Texas Millinery Co. v. United Hatters, Cap & Millinery Workers International Union

229 F. Supp. 341, 55 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2863, 1964 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9713
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Texas
DecidedApril 23, 1964
DocketCiv. A. No. 9100
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 229 F. Supp. 341 (Texas Millinery Co. v. United Hatters, Cap & Millinery Workers International Union) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Texas Millinery Co. v. United Hatters, Cap & Millinery Workers International Union, 229 F. Supp. 341, 55 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2863, 1964 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9713 (N.D. Tex. 1964).

Opinion

HUGHES, District Judge.

The issue in this case is whether the United Hatters, Cap and Millinery Workers’ International Union, AFL-CIO violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

Plaintiffs, Texas Millinery Company, Sue Ellen Hat Company, Cedar Crest Hats, Parke Layne Hats, Jan Leslie Hats, Goldstein Hat Manufacturing Company, Pete Brook Hat Company, Bernstein Millinery Company and Frank M. Bensen, hereinafter referred to as Millinery Companies, are manufacturers of ladies millinery doing business in Dallas, Texas. The Defendant is the United Hatters, Cap and Millinery Workers International Union, AFL-CIO, hereinafter called Union.

Millinery Companies’ complaint is in four counts. The first count alleged a violation by the Union of the Sherman Act by entering into a conspiracy with two retailers of ladies millinery, Ogus, Rabinovich and Ogus, Inc., hereinafter called O.R.O. and Rhealee Stores, Inc., hereinafter called Rhealee, in restraint of trade or commerce among the several states. The Union denied the conspiracy.

Count Two of Millinery Companies’ complaint alleged a common law conspiracy in which Millinery Companies contended that, pursuant to the conspiracy alleged in Count One, O.R.O. and Rhealee ceased purchasing from Millinery Companies and in furtherance of the conspiracy the agents of Union attempted to induce and coerce other customers of Millinery Companies to cease purchasing goods from said companies. It was further alleged that such acts were undertaken maliciously and without justification for the purpose of damaging Millinery Companies in the sale of their merchandise, and that such acts proximately resulted in damages to Millinery Companies. Union denies the conspiracy and contended any action was lawful.

Count Three alleged the Union was guilty of unfair labor practices involving secondary boycott activities. It was further alleged that no labor dispute existed between Millinery Companies and Union, but in spite of said fact Union exerted unlawful economic pressure on certain retailers to restrict or eliminate their purchases from Millinery Companies. Union contended that a labor dispute existed and that all of its acts were legal.

Count Four alleged a common law unlawful, malicious interference with the business of Millinery Companies by Union. Union denied the allegations.

In response to special issues the jury found for Union on Counts Two, Three and Four.

On Count One the jury found (1) that Union entered into a conspiracy with 0. R.O. and Rhealee wherein O.R.O. and Rhealee would not buy any millinery from the Dallas Market except that manufactured by Bierner & Sons, a unionized millinery company, (2) that the conspiracy was in restraint of trade or commerce among the several states, and (3) that the conspiracy proximately resulted in damages in specific amounts to, each Millinery Company. The jury also found that the action of Union in inducing O.R.O. and Rhealee to cease the purchase of goods from Millinery Companies was undertaken without malice and with justification.

Both parties filed motions for judgment — Millinery Companies on the verdict on Count One and Union notwithstanding the verdict on Count One, and on the verdict on Counts Two, Three and Four. Millinery Companies’ motion was overruled, Union’s granted. The verdict of the jury on Counts Two, Three and Four was sustained by the evidence and is not in controversy. The question on the motion for judgment was whether as a matter of law the findings of the jury [343]*343on Count One constituted a violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

For many years prior to the filing of this suit Union had been attempting to organize employees of the Millinery Companies. In early 1962 Union in promoting the use of the union label decided to conduct a national campaign in which leaflets would be distributed to the public at entrances to retail stores selling ladies millinery, urging the public to buy union-made headgear and not buy nonunion-made headgear. A part of this program was directed at Plaintiff Millinery Companies and other non-union Dallas millinery manufacturers.

O.R.O. and Rhealee Stores, Inc., in 1962 and prior thereto were corporations engaged in the retail sale of ladies millinery, either in stores owned by such corporations or in departments leased from various department stores. Joseph Rabinovich, at the times involved herein, was the president and treasurer of O.R. O. and the owner of all the common stock of Rhealee. He controlled the policies and operations of both corporations.

On February 22, 1962, Alex Rose, president of Union contacted Joseph Rab-inovich and advised him that as a part of the national campaign to promote the sale of union-made hats Union intended to leaflet any stores which bought merchandise or sold hats without the union label. Thereafter in March 1962, solely as a result of such inducement by Union, Mr. Rabinovich decided that O.R.O. and Rhealee would discontinue purchasing merchandise from the non-union Dallas Market and he so informed Alex Rose. For a period of some eight or nine months there were no purchases by these companies from such market.

Rabinovich’s motive in ceasing to do business with Dallas non-union millinery manufacturers was distaste for union leafletting and there was no evidence, direct or indirect, that the agreement of Rabinovich with Rose that O.R.O. and Rhealee would cease purchasing non-union products had as its purpose or effect Union aiding and abetting O.R.O. and Rhealee to either restrain interstate trade in the ladies millinery industry or to give O.R.O. and Rhealee an economic advantage over its competitors in such industry.

There was no evidence that the action by Rabinovich to cease doing business with non-union Dallas millinery manufacturers had any effect on business concerns other than Plaintiffs or that Union had any motives other than those described by Rose; that is, to promote the sale of union-made goods and to discourage the sale of non-union-made goods. There was no evidence of any agreement or conspiracy or understanding between Union and any business concerns except O.R.O. and Rhealee.

The question is whether these facts constituted a violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

As defined by the Norris-LaGuardia Act, 29 U.S.C.A. § 113,

“The term ‘labor dispute’ includes any controversy concerning terms or conditions of employment, or concerning the association or representation of persons in negotiating, fixing, maintaining, changing, or seeking to arrange terms or conditions of employment, regardless of whether or not the disputants stand in the proximate relation of employer and employee.”

Court decisions have construed this provision of the act liberally. Lauf v. E. G. Shinner, 303 U.S. 323, 53 S.Ct. 578, 82 L.Ed. 872, Milk Wagon Drivers’, etc. v. Lake Valley Farm Products, 311 U.S. 91, 61 S.Ct. 122, 85 L.Ed. 63.

It is clear from the Act itself and subsequent decisions that where a Union has sought unionization of employees for many years a controversy bearing on an employer-employee relationship is involved and a primary labor dispute exists. The evidence in this case unquestionably shows such a controversy; accordingly, a primary labor dispute existed between Union and Millinery Companies.

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229 F. Supp. 341, 55 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2863, 1964 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9713, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/texas-millinery-co-v-united-hatters-cap-millinery-workers-txnd-1964.