Asphalt Paving, Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen & Helpers of America, Local Union No. 795

317 P.2d 349, 181 Kan. 775, 1957 Kan. LEXIS 415, 41 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2194
CourtSupreme Court of Kansas
DecidedOctober 5, 1957
Docket40,282
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 317 P.2d 349 (Asphalt Paving, Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen & Helpers of America, Local Union No. 795) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Kansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Asphalt Paving, Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen & Helpers of America, Local Union No. 795, 317 P.2d 349, 181 Kan. 775, 1957 Kan. LEXIS 415, 41 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2194 (kan 1957).

Opinions

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Fatzer, J.:

The principal question here presented is whether the district court had jurisdiction to enjoin the defendant labor unions and their agents from peacefully picketing construction projects [777]*777and general contractors who employed union labor, with an objective of forcing termination of their contracts with plaintiff who employed nonunion labor, the ultimate objective being to force plaintiff’s recognition of one of the defendants as the bargaining agent of its employees and cause it to enter into an all-union agreement without approval of a majority of its employees to be governed thereby, in violation of G. S. 1955 Supp. 44-809 (4).

Both parties introduced evidence at a hearing for a temporary injunction, at the conclusion of which, upon motion of defendants, the district court dismissed the action upon two grounds: First, that it did not have jurisdiction of the subject matter since the controversy was governed by the Labor Management Relations Act, 1947, hereafter referred to as Taft-Hartley (29 U. S. C. A. § 141, et seq.); and second, that the National Labor Relations Board (29 U. S. C. A. § 160 [a]) had exclusive jurisdiction of the controversy. Plaintiff has appealed from that ruling.

Defendant S. E. Smith was business agent for defendant Teamsters Local Union No. 795, and defendant Olin Miles was business agent for defendant Hoisting and Portable Engineers Local Union No. 101. Both defendant labor unions are affiliated with American Federation of Labor and each has a business office in Wichita.

We summarize or quote portions of the record bearing upon the question presented, as follows: Plaintiff is a Kansas corporation engaged in the business of paving parking lots and driveways with asphalt and does an annual gross business of approximately $200,000. It performs no state or municipal work. Jobs of less than $1,000 constitute seventy-five percent of its volume. Plaintiff’s mixing plant and principal office are located on North Broadway in Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kansas, where it employs ten to twelve men, none of whom belong to defendant unions or any other labor union. No controversy of any character existed between plaintiff and its employees; the relationship between them was mutually harmonious. Plaintiff performed all its work in Sedgwick County and procured all materials there or in adjoining Butler County. It purchased all its equipment within the state of Kansas, although one roller and one grader of the approximate value of $21,700 were manufactured outside the state.

Plaintiff alleged unlawful acts of combination in restraint of trade, and that various employees of general contractors were induced to strike their employment, the objective being to force the general [778]*778contractors to cease doing business with plaintiff; conspiracy on the part of defendants and their agents to injure and destroy its good will, trade and business, and of irreparable damage thereto; lack of adequate remedy at law; and, that the devices and activities of defendants were in violation of the provisions of Ch. 252, Laws of Kansas 1955. (G. S. 1955 Supp. Ch. 44, Art. 8.) No pleadings were filed by the defendants.

Evidence at the hearing for a temporary injunction established, among other things, the following: In January, 1955, plaintiff was installing an asphalt parking lot for a Safeway store at Douglas and West Streets in Wichita and was forced to complete that job by using drivers who were members of defendant Teamsters Union.

Prior to July 1955 one Pearson, representing the defendant Hoisting Engineers, requested a conference with plaintiff, saying he had contacted the other trades and that they would like to sit in on the conference. At that conference, plaintiff was advised by Miles and Pearson that it would have to use union labor as long as the Union could furnish proper employees, and that it could not use nonunion labor on its small or noncommercial jobs. Plaintiff refused defendants’ demand since the larger part of its annual gross dollar volume was from small noncommercial jobs and to employ union labor would make it economically infeasible to compete in the construction business.

During October 1955 plaintiff had subcontracts with general contractors and contracts with owners of construction projects to install asphalt covering on parking lots adjacent to five buildings in the process of construction, where only union labor was employed by the general contractors. One of such contracts was with Love Box Company, an industry conceded to be subject to the jurisdiction of Taft-Hartley, where Hahner & Foreman, Inc., the general contractor, was finishing a new factory building. Hahner & Foreman did a gross annual business of $1,500,000 of which approximately $400,000 in materials was purchased in the state of Kansas but originated outside the state in interstate commerce. In addition, purchases of $16,111 were made directly from interstate points. Another contract was with Bleckley, Inc., where Weller & Boucher Construction Company, the general contractor, was constructing a medical office building. Weller & Boucher did a gross annual business of approximately $1,000,000, of which $500,000 of materials were purchased locally but originated outside the state of Kansas [779]*779in interstate commerce. Another contract was with Soderberg Construction Company which was constructing a Safeway store and a retaining wall at Kellogg and Lightner Streets in Wichita. The fourth contract was with the East Side State Bank, which was having its bank building constructed by Soderberg Construction Company at Windsor and Kellogg Streets in Wichita. Of Soderberg’s $1,000,000 annual volume, $300,000 was in materials purchased locally but originated outside the state in interstate commerce. The fifth contract was with Cessna Aircraft Company, an interstate concern, by which that company was having Vollmer Construction Company, its general contractor, extend and repair an airplane hangar. Vollmer did a gross annual business of $3,700,000, and purchased locally $661,000 worth of materials originating in interstate commerce and $60,000 worth directly from interstate points outside the state of Kansas.

In an attempt to unionize plaintiff’s employees and secure an all-union agreement affecting them, the Hoisting Engineers peacefully picketed the work area at Safeway at Kellogg and Lightner Streets, and both defendants peacefully picketed the work areas at Cessna and Love Box. As a result of the picketing and because of plaintiff’s nonunion status, unionized masons, carpenters, electricians and other craftsmen employed by Hahner & Foreman, by Soderberg, and by Vollmer, walked off the jobs. Plaintiff’s plant on North Broadway was not picketed. At the other two construction areas, threats were made by agents of defendant Hoisting Engineers to Weller & Boucher and to Soderberg that unless plaintiff’s contracts were terminated, union employees of those general contractors would strike and walk off the jobs. As a result, plaintiff’s contracts were terminated at each of the five construction projects.

The testimony of Robert Love, Vice President of Love Box, illustrates the technique of defendants at that company’s work area. Love testified that Miles of Hoisting Engineers and Smith of Teamsters directed the picketing.

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Bluebook (online)
317 P.2d 349, 181 Kan. 775, 1957 Kan. LEXIS 415, 41 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2194, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/asphalt-paving-inc-v-international-brotherhood-of-teamsters-chauffeurs-kan-1957.