Int'l Alliance of Theatrical Stage Emps. v. Nat'l Labor Relations Bd.

885 F.3d 1123
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
DecidedMarch 26, 2018
DocketNo. 16-3686; No. 16-3940
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 885 F.3d 1123 (Int'l Alliance of Theatrical Stage Emps. v. Nat'l Labor Relations Bd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Int'l Alliance of Theatrical Stage Emps. v. Nat'l Labor Relations Bd., 885 F.3d 1123 (8th Cir. 2018).

Opinion

SMITH, Chief Judge.

*1126The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, Its Territories and Canada, Local No. 151 (IATSE) petitions for review of the National Labor Relations Board ("Board") decision finding IATSE violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) through its hiring practices. The Board cross-applies for enforcement of the decision and order. We deny the petition for review and grant the cross-application for enforcement.

I. Background

IATSE furnishes labor for entertainment-venue employers, supplying stagehands, riggers, and lighting technicians to employers who require such services for entertainment events. Two such employers are The Freeman Companies, d/b/a Freeman Decorating Services, Inc. ("Freeman") and SMG, specifically SMG's place of business called the Pershing Center in Lincoln, Nebraska ("SMG Pershing"). The Board issued a complaint alleging IATSE had operated an exclusive hiring hall with respect to Freeman and SMG Pershing and had violated section 8(b)(1)(A) and (2) of the NLRA. The Board alleged that IATSE: (1) discriminated against nonunion employees by granting priority to its own members for job referrals; (2) refused to refer two employees to a particular job in February 2013; (3) suspended seven members from its referral list; (4) had maintained a rule in its constitution and bylaws prohibiting legal proceedings against it by its members without providing for the four-month limitation required by section 101(a)(4) of the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act; (5) followed a job-referral rule that allowed IATSE to refuse to refer an employee in order to collect a fine; (6) failed to remit certain bonuses to employees who are not IATSE members; and (7) failed to remit such bonuses to certain individuals for improper reasons. IATSE denied all allegations.

After a trial in early 2014, the administrative law judge (ALJ) found all the allegations to be supported by the evidence, except the fourth: that IATSE violated the NLRA by failing to include certain language in its constitution and bylaws. The Board affirmed the ALJ's rulings and findings, adopting her opinion with limited modifications, in fall 2016.

IATSE petitions for our review of the Board's decision, and the Board cross-applies for enforcement. First, IATSE argues the Board lacked jurisdiction over employer SMG Pershing. Second, it contends that it did not operate exclusive hiring halls with respect to either SMG Pershing or Freeman. Third, IATSE argues that it did not violate the NLRA by removing individuals from its referral list, failing to refer the two employees to a February 2013 job, or prioritizing members over nonmembers. Finally, IATSE contends that the Board's charge of discriminatory referrals was time-barred.1

*1127II. Discussion

A. Standard of review

We review the Board decision for substantial evidence on the record as a whole. Midwest Precision Heating & Cooling, Inc. v. N.L.R.B. , 408 F.3d 450, 457-58 (8th Cir. 2005) (citations omitted). Credibility determinations are also considered under the substantial evidence test. Id. at 457. We will not displace the Board's choice between two fairly conflicting views, even if we would have made a different choice had the matter been before us de novo. Id. at 458 (citation omitted). Instead, we afford great deference to the Board's credibility determinations, "and will not overturn them unless they shock the conscience." N.L.R.B. v. RELCO Locomotives, Inc. , 734 F.3d 764, 787 (8th Cir. 2013) (citation omitted). Finally, we defer to the Board's conclusions of law in construing the NLRA, so long as "they are based upon a reasonably defensible construction of the Act." JCR Hotel, Inc. v. N.L.R.B. , 342 F.3d 837, 841 (8th Cir. 2003) (citation omitted).

B. Jurisdiction over SMG Pershing

We first consider whether the Board has jurisdiction over employer SMG Pershing. By statute, "[t]he Board is empowered ... to prevent any person from engaging in any unfair labor practice ... affecting commerce." 29 U.S.C. § 160(a). We have noted that "Congress gave and intended to give the Board the fullest possible jurisdiction under the commerce clause of the Constitution." N.L.R.B. v. Erlich's 814, Inc. , 577 F.2d 68, 70 (8th Cir. 1978) (citations omitted). The Board has also imposed discretionary jurisdictional standards upon itself. See id. The Board will exercise discretionary jurisdiction over a non-retail enterprise if the enterprise has a gross outflow or inflow of $50,000 across state lines. N.L.R.B. v. Jerry Durham Drywall , 974 F.2d 1000, 1002 (8th Cir. 1992) ; see also N.L.R.B. v. Somerville Constr. Co. , 206 F.3d 752, 754 n.3, 754-55 (7th Cir. 2000).

In assessing whether the $50,000 threshold has been met by a multi-state employer, the Board considers all the employer's locations, not just the particular location at issue. This has long been the established standard. Siemons Mailing Serv. , 122 N.L.R.B. 81

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Bluebook (online)
885 F.3d 1123, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/intl-alliance-of-theatrical-stage-emps-v-natl-labor-relations-bd-ca8-2018.