Board of Education v. Peoria Education Ass'n

330 N.E.2d 235, 29 Ill. App. 3d 411, 89 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 3009, 1975 Ill. App. LEXIS 2454
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedJune 17, 1975
Docket74-281
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 330 N.E.2d 235 (Board of Education v. Peoria Education Ass'n) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Board of Education v. Peoria Education Ass'n, 330 N.E.2d 235, 29 Ill. App. 3d 411, 89 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 3009, 1975 Ill. App. LEXIS 2454 (Ill. Ct. App. 1975).

Opinion

Mr. JUSTICE STENGEL

delivered the opinion of the court:

Peoria Education Association, its officers and members (defendants), appeal from a permanent injunction order of the Circuit Court of Peoria County prohibiting' a teachers’ strike against the Peoria Board of Education (plaintiff).

In August of 1973 after tire Board and the teachers’ bargaining representatives had failed to reach an agreement for a 1973-74 contract, defendants voted to strike, and 330 teachers failed to report for work on August 27 and 28. The Board initiated this action on August 28 and without a hearing obtained a prehminary injunction whibh prohibited defendants from engaging in a strike or picketing at the schools. On September 10, 1973, by stipulation of the parties, a hearing for a permanent injunction was continued to June 3, 1974, and in October of 1973 the parties reached agreement on a contract for 1973-74. On June 20, 1974, following a hearing on the merits, a permanent injunction was granted ordering defendants to refrain from “participating in, advising, urging, directing, causing, inducing, encouraging any strike or other concerted withholding of services, or interference with the performance of any service by any employee of plaintiff.”

The pertinent evidence adduced at the hearing showed that the plaintiff and teachers’ representatives were at that time (June, 1974) engaged in negotiations for a contract for 1974-75; that in March the teachers had proposed contract changes to increase the scope of the agreement to provide for binding arbitration and Hmitations on class size; that plaintiff had proposed a salary increment of approximately one-third the amount proposed by the teachers; that the plaintiffs refusal to agree to simffar demands by teachers the previous year was the cause of the strike; that the teachers had decided to postpone their demands for enlarging the scope of the agreement until the 1975-76 negotiations; that similar teacher proposals had been made in 1971 and 1972 with no strikes resulting; and that defendants had no discussions or votes concerning a strike after September of 1973.

Defendants contend that the order for a permanent injunction on June 20, 1974, was improper and unwarranted because the dispute which prompted the injunction had been settled when the Board and teachers agreed to a contract for 1973-74 which included a no-strike clause and which disposed of other differences existing prior to the strike. Plaintiff responds that as of June 20, 1974, the same issues were in dispute between the parties as those that caused the 1973 strike and that, unless the injunction were made permanent, another strike could be anticipated.

Plaintiff cites. the many cases where Illinois courts have approved temporary injunctions to prohibit strikes by public employees, including teachers, but we note that all of these cases involved, a strike already called or in progress. City of Pana v. Crowe, 57 Ill.2d 547, 316 N.E.2d 513 (1974); Board of Education v. Kankakee Federation of Teachers Local No. 886, 46 Ill.2d 439, 264 N.E.2d 18 (1970), cert. denied, 403 U.S. 904, 29 L.Ed.2d 679, 91 S.Ct. 2203, (1971); Board of Education v. Redding, 32 Ill.2d 567, 207 N.E.2d 427 (1965); Allen v. Maurer, 6 Ill.App.3d 633, 286 N.E.2d 135 (4th Dist. 1972); Board of Junior College District No. 508 v. Cook County College Teachers Union, Local 1600, 126 Ill. App.2d 418, 262 N.E.2d 125 (1st Dist. 1970), cert. denied, 402 U.S. 998, 29 L.Ed.2d 165, 91 S.Ct. 2168 (1971); City of Rockford v. Local No. 413, International Association of Firefighters, 98 Ill.App.2d 36, 240 N.E.2d 705 (2nd Dist. 1968); see Annot., 37 A.L.R.3d 1147, 1150 (1971).

As these cases indicate, issuance of a temporary injunction is within the somid discretion of the trial court upon a prima facie showing of necessity, and a reviewing court will not set aside such an injunction unless there was a manifest abuse of discretion or an error of law. (Stine v. Chicago Transit Authority, 13 Ill.App.3d 219, 300 N.E.2d 548 (1st Dist. 1973).) However, where, as here, a permanent injunction is challenged, a reviewing court must consider that the party seeking the injunction has the burden of proving it necessary. (Guaranty Trust Co. v. Henwood, 86 F.2d 347, 108 A.L.R. 1020 ( 8th Cir. 1936).) It is, therefore, our duty to ascertain if the finding of the trial court that such necessity exists has a reasonable basis in the evidence. Simmons v. Retail Clerks International Association, 5 Ill.App.2d 429, 125 N.E.2d 700 (4th Dist. 1955).

Here the parties agree that a strike by public school teachers is unlawful and that the temporary injunction ordered on August 28, 1973, was proper. The defendants complied with the order and returned to work the following day. It is also agreed that the dispute which gave rise to the strike was settled in October of 1973, and that, in June of 1974, some of the same issues were again subject to negotiations by representatives of plaintiff and defendants. The record discloses that little progress had been made towards reconciliation of those issues and we perceive that the question of a permanent injunction was a disturbing element in the negotiations.

The trial court cited Piano & Organ Workers’ International Union of America v. Piano & Organ Supply Co., 124 Ill.App. 353 (1st Dist. 1906), where the appellate court approved a permanent injunction to restrain picketing issued after tire strike had been settled. The trial court here, relying on the Piano case, held that issuance of a permanent injunction depended upon the facts as they existed at the time the complaint was filed, and if the facts were true at that time, there was need for an injunction. Tire trial court also stated that here, as in Piano, unless a permanent injunction could be issued, temporary compliance with the terms of an interlocutory injunction, with the reserved purpose of renewing unlawful action after the final hearing, would paralyze all power of the court to grant relief. The court, again in reliance on Piano, held that there can be no practical harm in continuing an injunction which bars unlawful actions against persons who are not now engaged in such unlawful actions and do not intend to be so in the future. The record of proceedings in the case at bar shows that the trial judge discussed the Piano & Organ Workers opinion at length and quoted from it with approval, but gave no consideration to more modern views of injunctive relief in labor disputes.

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330 N.E.2d 235, 29 Ill. App. 3d 411, 89 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 3009, 1975 Ill. App. LEXIS 2454, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/board-of-education-v-peoria-education-assn-illappct-1975.