Hotel Statler Co. v. Converse

19 Ohio Law. Abs. 560, 1935 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 1142
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedSeptember 27, 1935
DocketNo 433403
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 19 Ohio Law. Abs. 560 (Hotel Statler Co. v. Converse) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hotel Statler Co. v. Converse, 19 Ohio Law. Abs. 560, 1935 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 1142 (Ohio Ct. App. 1935).

Opinion

[566]*566OPINION

By JOY SETH HURD, J.

As heretofore stated it has been conceded in this case for .the record that there exists between the Statler. Hotel Company and its . former employees a “legitimate trade dispute.” Therefore under existing Ohio law certain rights accrue to the defendant unions and their members.

Fundamentally the principles which apply in a suit where an injunction is sought in controversies between employers and employees are the same as apply in any other case in which it is claimed that individual or property rights have been un- . justly affected or interfered with in such a manner as to make the ordinary legal remedies inadequate.

The principles of law involved are clear. The difficulty in the instant case is presented when we come to the application of the principles of law to the facts in the cas?. There is no question' under the law as to the right of the plaintiff, the employer, to conduct his business without illegal interference, and there is no question that legal means employed by the defendant unions and their members must riot be curtailed. The Supreme Court of Ohio in the LaFrance case said:

“Equality of justice demands that iri any 'controversy .the lights c-f all parties be scrupulously maintained. The right of workmen to be employed, irrespective of union membership, must be maintained; the right of the employer to conduct his business without illegal interference rriúst be upheld; and legal means employed ’by strikers must not be curtailed.’ Among ’the latter are the right of peaceful picketing, the peaceful persuasion of 'employees to ■terminate contracts at will, and the peaceful persuasion of expectant employees not -to. accept work' With the employer in ques[567]*567tion.” LaFrance Co. v Electrical Workers Union, 108 Oh St, 95.

In an earlier case involving this same plaintiff, The Statler Hotel and its employees, Judge Lawrence of this court said:

' “There,is no question of the right of the former 'employees of the Statler Company to strike 'and quit their employment, or of their right to use peaceable argument ’and persuasion to induce others not to accept employment in their places. They also have the right, by fair and peaceable means, -to advise or persuade those who have accepted such employment, to quit the same, there being no proof of any attempt to induce such persons to break a contract for a definite term of service.”

On the other hand it is well settled law that the rights guaranteed to the defendant unions and their members include only peaceful and lawful means. They may not commit acts of violence, coercion, intimidation, and they may not obstruct access to their employer’s place of business and they may not interfere with the guests or patrons of. their employer in any way and neither may they obstruct the public highways- in any way. Picketing which is not for the purpose of persuasion or for the purpose of obtaining or communicating information is unlawful although peaceably carried on.

Furthermore, in the same earlier case it was held:

' “There can be no question that the strikers or others associated with them, have no right to use threats, violence, intimidation or coercion -to accomplish these objects. ■Nor have they a right to obstruct access to their former employer’s place of business,, or to threaten, insult or unreasonably interfere with its guests or patrons in any way, nor have they the right to cause wanton or wrongful injury to the business or property of the plaintiff, or to join together with the motive or intent of causing such injury.” Statler v Restaurant Employees, supra. ■

■ In the same case the court said further:

“The weight of authority supports the right of strikers, as an’ incident of their right of persuasion, as well as a means of obtaining information, -to maintain - what are called “pickets”, provided such pickets are limited in -number, and the picketing is carried on in a peaceable and lawful manner without violence, threats or intimidation, without obstruction to the premises of any other person and without annoying others or causing a nuisance in the vicinity by loud cries, noise or other disturbance. In other words, whether picketing in a given case is lawful or otherwise, depends on the manner in which it is carried on.” Statler v Restaurant Employees, supra.

The court can well adopt and does adopt! the language of this opinion as its own as applied to this case. The present hearing is concerned with the motion to vacate or modify the injunction originally granted. This motion is brought under the provisions of §11891 GC, which is as follows:

“Motion to vacate or modify injunction. When, before the trial, an injunction has been granted a party may apply to the court in which the action is pending or a judge thereof to vacate or modify it. The party applying for such vacation or modification shall give to the -adverse party such notice of time and place at which the -the motion will be heard as' the court or judge may deem reasonable. The application may be made upon the petition and affidavits upon which the injunction was granted or upon affidavits on the part of the party enjoined with or without answer.”

Notice-was given of the hearing and oral testimony was adduced by both sides. The evidence shows clearly and convincingly that since the granting of the temporary order herein there have been a number of violations including two stench bombings, an attack upon an employee of the plaintiff and the interference with the delivery of mail by parcel post. There is also testimony to the effect that in one instance transportation of baggage of a guest was interfered with. It has been clearly shown that there have been at times congregations of people at the rear entrance to the hotel and on the east and west side of 12th Street. 'Witnesses for the defendants have admitted walking back and forth and remaining on the picket line for some considerable periods of time. Evidence is clear that automobiles, some owned or controlled at least by the defendant, have been parked at the rear of the hotel. on 12th Street and that sometimes those frequenting the picketing lines have occupied the same. The evidence is also quite clear that at times when deliveries of goods were about to be made that large groups of people would congregate at the point of delivery.

Evidence is also clear that one of the picke.ts violated the oi;der in that he talked [568]*568in a very loud tone of voice so that he could be heard for some considerable distance away making remarks derogatory to the plaintiff.

There was also an incident of the finding of an automobile, the property of a person connected with one of the defendants, in which there was a number of paving bricks hr other bricks, the number and the character of the bricks being somewhat uncertain, as the evidence is conflicting.

In fairness to the defendants it should be stated that no evidence was adduced connecting the defendants with the stench bombs aforesaid. No evidence was adduced showing any overt act or intention to commit an overt act by the defendants in connection with the automobile in which the bricks were found.

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Related

Saltzman v. United Retail Employees' Local No. 112
25 Ohio Law. Abs. 354 (Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, 1937)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
19 Ohio Law. Abs. 560, 1935 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 1142, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hotel-statler-co-v-converse-ohioctapp-1935.