United Farm Workers Union, AFL-CIO v. Mel Finerman Co.

364 F. Supp. 326, 84 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2081, 1973 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12221
CourtDistrict Court, D. Colorado
DecidedAugust 20, 1973
DocketCiv. A. C-5216
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 364 F. Supp. 326 (United Farm Workers Union, AFL-CIO v. Mel Finerman Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United Farm Workers Union, AFL-CIO v. Mel Finerman Co., 364 F. Supp. 326, 84 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2081, 1973 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12221 (D. Colo. 1973).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

CHILSON, District Judge.

The matter presently before the Court is plaintiff’s motion

“for a preliminary injunction restraining defendants from preventing plaintiff’s members from having access to the labor camps owned or controlled by the defendant Finerman .for the purpose of. communicating with the occupants thereof and to prevent the defendant Finerman from retaliating in any way against the occupants of the labor camps as a result of their communicating with plaintiff’s members during the pendency of this action.”
(Plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunction.)

An evidentiary hearing was had on August 6 and 7, 1973, at the conclusion of which, the Court ordered simultaneous briefs filed. The briefs have been received and considered by the Court.

The essence of the controversy is a labor dispute between the plaintiff and Finerman.

The plaintiff, a union of farm workers, and defendant, Finerman, which grows and harvests lettuce in the vicinity of Center, Colorado, and elsewhere, formerly were parties to a collective bargaining agreement which expired in 1973. The agreement was not renewed and plaintiff called a national strike against Finerman. In conjunction with the strike, plaintiff is attempting to organize Finerman’s present employees in order that they will become members of the plaintiff union and join with the plaintiff in its strike.

The employees that plaintiff seeks to organize are migrant farm workers, who while so employed, live in labor camps operated and controlled by Finer-man. The camp located in Center, Colorado, is here involved.

In its complaint, plaintiff alleges that Finerman has refused to permit plaintiff, through its field organizers, to come upon the grounds of the labor camp, although permission to go into the camp has been granted to the Teamsters Union representatives and representatives of the Teamsters have on at least two occasions, conducted organizing activities within the camp.

The evidence discloses that Finerman maintains the camp for the use of the migrant workers employed by it. The camp consists of a barracks-type sleeping facility, (bunkhouse) a dining hall, and a common bathing and toilet facility. The migrants make their own arrangements for food and its preparation and service in the dining facility.

The facilities are provided without charge to the migrants, but the facilities are of substantial value to the migrants, for without the facilities, the migrants would be required to provide their own housing at their own expense, if indeed, such housing could be obtained in the area in which the migrants work.

The camp can accommodate about 200 men and is used exclusively to house Finerman’s migrant workers. It is located within the corporate limits of the town of Center, Colorado, which has a population of about 1400 persons and is either fenced or posted with signs indicating it is private property. Except for the facilities mentioned, there are no *328 other improvements; no business other than the labor camp is conducted thereon, and no municipal or public improvements such as public streets or parks are located thereon.

The camp is located about ten blocks from the business district of the town of Center, and within walking distance from the camp.

The bunkhouse is one large building, the interior of which is divided by partitions into three large rooms. Within each room are rows of cots about three feet apart. The bunkhouse, together with the dining facilities and the bath and toilet building, constitute what plaintiff properly refers to in the complaint as the migrant’s “home away from home”.

The evidence discloses that some employees of Finerman took steps to prevent plaintiff’s representatives from entering the camp, but at the hearing, Finerman stated its policy to be to allow plaintiff’s representatives access to the camp with reasonableness and common sense the only restrictions.

The Court finds that the defendants, Andy Barela, Sheriff of Saguache County, Colorado, and Emory Brewer, Chief of Police of Center, Colorado, did not commit or participate in any acts to prevent plaintiff’s representatives from obtaining access to the camp, and that the acts of Finerman’s employees, including those of the guards employed by Finer-man to police the camp were not authorized by said defendants, nor ratified nor confirmed by them.

During the course of the controversy, plaintiff’s members and representatives engaged in picketing outside the camp. On some occasions during the week of July 8, there was some early morning picketing. On July 17, a large number of pickets arrived at the camp in the early morning (sometime between 3:30 A.M. and 4:30 A.M.) and stationed themselves outside the camp at a fence which separated the camp from the adjacent property. The pickets engaged in shouting and cursing in loud voices amplified in volume by a bull horn, directed at the occupants of the camp.

This was prior to the rising time of the camp occupants and resulted in disturbing the occupants of the camp as well as residents outside of the camp, living in the general area.

As a result of this conduct, complaints were made by residents of the area outside of the camp to the police and a summons was issued to one of the picketers for creating a disturbance.

In the early hours of the next morning (July 18), the picketers again engaged in similar conduct and again disturbed the peace and quiet of the camp and adjacent neighborhood. Police officers including Barela and Brewer requested the pickets to cease their disturbance and to disburse. The picketers refused to discontinue their conduct and responded with curses and threats of bodily harm against the police officers. The police officers then told the pickets that if they did not disburse, the officers would use tear gas. Again the pickets refused to disburse and continued their threats of bodily harm to the police. Thereupon the officers used tear gas and disbursed the pickets.

The evidence does not justify injunctive relief against the defendants, Barela or Brewer.

We turn now to a discussion of the respective rights of the plaintiff, the defendant, Finerman, and the occupants of the camp. Although the migrant workers who occupied the camp have not been made parties to this proceeding and are not here represented, this controversy involves their constitutional rights as well as those of Finerman as the employer and owner of the camp and those of the plaintiff union and its members.

Finerman’s constitutional rights as the owner of the land includes its right to exercise dominion over and control of the property for the purpose of maintaining and operating the labor camp, but such right does not permit Finerman to exclude from the camp in *329 vitees of the occupants and their right to access to information and visitors.

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Bluebook (online)
364 F. Supp. 326, 84 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2081, 1973 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12221, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-farm-workers-union-afl-cio-v-mel-finerman-co-cod-1973.