Smith, Etc. v. General Motors Corp.

143 N.E.2d 441, 128 Ind. App. 310, 40 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2416, 1957 Ind. App. LEXIS 118
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 20, 1957
Docket18,774
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 143 N.E.2d 441 (Smith, Etc. v. General Motors Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Smith, Etc. v. General Motors Corp., 143 N.E.2d 441, 128 Ind. App. 310, 40 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2416, 1957 Ind. App. LEXIS 118 (Ind. Ct. App. 1957).

Opinion

Bowen, J.

The appellants, individually and on behalf of a class designated as other employees of the General Motors Corporation in the State of Indiana, and not members of any union, brought an action in the court below against General Motors Corporation, which shall be hereinafter referred to in this opinion as General Motors, and the United Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, which shall be hereinafter referred to in this opinion as UAW, seeking a restraining order and a temporary injunction to prevent the enforcement of the union shop provision of the collective bargaining agreement between General Motors and UAW and certain named officials of the UAW who are the appellees herein. The court rendered special findings of fact .as follows:

(a) That no unlawful acts have been threatened, or committed, or will be committed unless restrained, by the defendants.
*314 (b) That no substantial or irreparable injury to the plaintiff’s property will follow.
(c) That as to each item of relief sought, greater injury would be inflicted upon defendants by the granting of relief than would be inflicted upon plaintiff by the denial of relief.
(d) That plaintiff has no remedy at law or in equity since no unlawful acts have been threatened or committed.
(e) That the public officer charged with the duty to protect plaintiff’s property is able and willing to furnish adequate protection.
(f) That plaintiff has failed to make any effort to settle the dispute by the use of the provisions for review and decision in the collective bargaining agreement or by the use of the machinery provided in the National Labor Relations Act.

The court also entered its conclusions of law that the law is with the appellees and that the appellants are not entitled to a temporary injunction. From a judgment dissolving the restraining order and denying the appellants’ petition for temporary injunction this appeal is taken.

The evidence for the most part consisted of a stipulation of facts which in substance sets forth that the appellee General Motors is engaged in manufacturing at various plants within the State of Indiana, and at each of those plants is engaged in interstate commerce; that the UAW is a labor organization which has been certified by the National Labor Relations Board as exclusive representative of all the production and maintenance employees for the purpose of collective bargaining in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, or other conditions of employment, at each of the various General Motors plants within the State of Indiana; and that such UAW has continued, and is continuing to be such exclusive representative, representing approximately 37,000 of the General *315 Motors employees in Indiana. The dates of such certifications in the various plants were in the early 1940’s. It was further stipulated that the appellant Smith, and those on whose behalf the action was brought, were employees in one of the appropriate bargaining units covered by the certifications for which UAW is the collective bargaining representative. Attached to the Stipulation of Facts as Exhibit 1 was the Collective Bargaining Agreement between General Motors and UAW which contained the sections of such agreement which were quoted in a certain letter sent by General Motors on July 29, 1955, to its employees. Such provisions of the agreement are as follows:

“ (4) An employe who is a member of the Union at the time this Agreement becomes effective shall continue membership in the Union for the duration of this Agreement to the extent of paying an initiation fee and the membership dues uniformly required as a condition of acquiring or retaining membership in the Union.
“(4a) An employe who is not a member of the Union at the time this Agreement becomes effective shall become a member of the Union within 60 days after the thirtieth (30th) day following the effective date of this Agreement or within 60 days after the thirtieth (30) day following employment, whichever is later, and shall remain a member of the Union, to the extent of paying an initiation fee and the membership dues uniformly required as a condition of acquiring or retaining membership in the Union, whenever employed under, and for the duration of, this Agreement.
“(4b) Anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding, an employe shall not be required to become a member of, or continue membership in, the Union, as a condition of employment, if employed in any state which prohibits, or otherwise makes unlawful, membership in a labor organization as a condition of employment.
“(4c) The Union shall accept into membership each employee covered by this Agreement who *316 tenders to the union the periodic dues and initiation fee uniformly required as a condition of acquiring or retaining membership in the Union.”

Such letter from General Motors to its employees and plaintiff below, further set forth:

“General Motors Corporation and the International Union, UAW-CIO have entered into a new National Agreement which became effective on May 29, 1955. Under this Agreement all covered employes must become and remain members of the Union as a condition of employment. The Union shop provisions of this new National Agreement are as follows: . . . .
“It is our understanding from information available to us that you are not now a member of the UAW-CIO. Even though you may not have been requested previously to become a member of the Union or may have possibly resigned from Union membership under the provisions of the May 29, 1950 National Agreement between General Motors Corporation and the UAW-CIO, it will now be necessary for you, within the time limits specified in the above-quoted union shop provisions of the new 1955 National Agreement, and in any event not later than August 26, 1955, to become and remain a member of the Union as a condition of continued employment.
“If you have any questions concerning any of the foregoing information, consult the Personnel Department.
“For your convenience, a UAW-CIO Membership Application form and an Authorization for CheckOff of Dues form are enclosed. When completed, these may be mailed or delivered either to the local Union or to the Personnel Department of the Company.
Very truly yours,
/s/ T. J. Dwyer
T. J. Dwyer
Supervisor, Labor Relations.”

The appellants’ petition for temporary and permanent injunction which was denied by the lower court, in effect sought to enjoin the appellees from requiring *317 the appellants to become and remain members of the union as a condition of their employment to the extent and in the manner provided for by such contract.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Banfield v. Laidlaw Waste Systems
977 S.W.2d 434 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1998)
Wagler Excavating Corp. v. McKibben Construction, Inc.
679 N.E.2d 155 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1997)
Eby v. York-Division, Borg-Warner
455 N.E.2d 623 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1983)
State Ex Rel. Cleary v. Board of School Commissioners
438 N.E.2d 12 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1982)
Hurwich v. Zoss
353 N.E.2d 549 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1976)
Thomas D. Ramsey v. National Labor Relations Board
327 F.2d 784 (Seventh Circuit, 1964)
City of Terre Haute v. Deckard
183 N.E.2d 815 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1962)
Lewis v. Kerns
175 F. Supp. 115 (S.D. Indiana, 1959)
Binder v. Construction & General Laborers Local Union No. 685
317 P.2d 371 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1957)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
143 N.E.2d 441, 128 Ind. App. 310, 40 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2416, 1957 Ind. App. LEXIS 118, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/smith-etc-v-general-motors-corp-indctapp-1957.