Extract
Greyston Bakery, Inc., 433 (1999)
Greyston Bakery, Inc. and Local 3, Bakery, Confectionery and Tobacco Workers International Union, AFL-CIO. Cases 2-CA-29671, 2-CA- 30407, and 2-CA-30831
January 25, 1999 DECISION AND ORDER BY CHAIRMAN TRUESDALE AND MEMBERS FOX AND HURTGEN On October 2, 1998, Administrative Law Judge Eleanor MacDonald issued the attached decision. The Respondent filed exceptions. The General Counsel filed an answering brief. The National Labor Relations Board has delegated its authority in this proceeding to a three-member panel. The Board has considered the decision and the record in light of the exceptions and brief and has decided to affirm the judge's rulings, findings,1 and conclusions2 and to adopt the recommended Order. ORDER The National Labor Relations Board adopts the recommended Order of the administrative law judge and orders that the Respondent, Greyston Bakery, Inc., Yonkers, New York, its officers, agents, successors, and assigns, shall take the action set forth in the Order.Karen M. Newman, Esq. and Joshua Zuckerberg, Esq., for the General Counsel.Alfred J. Smith, Jr., Esq., of Stamford, Connecticut, for the Respondent.Samantha Dulaney, Esq. (Spivak, Lipton, Watanabe, Spivak & Moss), of New York, New York, for the Charging Party. DECISION STATEMENT OF THE CASE ELEANOR MACDONALD, Administrative Law Judge. This case was heard in New York, New York, on 6 days be- tween September 23, 1997, and January 14, 1998. The complaint alleges that Respondent, in violation of Section 8(a)(1) and (3) of the Act, interrogated its employees, threatened its employees with loss of benefits and with discharge because they formed the Union, placed an employee on a production quota, committed various other violations, suspended employees, and discharged employees James Edmonson, Irene Williams, Berlin Craig, and Sabrina James. Respondent denies that it engaged in any violations of the Act. 1 The Respondent has excepted to some of the judge's credibility findings. The Board's established policy is not to overrule an administrative law judge's credibility resolutions unless the clear preponderance of all the relevant evidence convinces us that they are incorrect. Standard Dry Wall Products, 91 NLRB 544 (1950), enfd. 188 F.2d 362 (3d Cir. 1951). We have carefully examined the record and find no basis for reversing the findings. In adopting the judge's finding that the Respondent demonstrated union animus, we find that the Respondent's conduct in violation of Sec. 8(a)(1) amply demonstrated such animus. We therefore find it unnecessary to rely on any conduct by the Respondent other than that found to have violated Sec. 8(a)(1). 2 In Member Hurtgen's view, the judge, in several instances, engaged in improper speculation. For example, the judge stated that, because employee James Edmonson had been orally warned about attendance problems, "it is reasonable to assume that the same is true for other employees." There is no finding to support that statement. Nor does Member Hurtgen agree with the judge's implicit rejection of the argument that an employer could reasonably choose a person for layoff because that person will likely find another job. Despite these instances, however, Member Hurtgen finds sufficient record evidence to support the 8(a)(1) violations found. Further, he concludes that these 8(a)(1) violations supply the requisite "animus" needed to support the 8(a)(3) findings. On the entire record, including my observation of the demeanor of the witnesses, and after considering the briefs filed by the General Counsel and the Respondent on March 20, 1998, I make the following2 FINDINGS OF FACT I. JURISDICTION Respondent, a corporation, with an office and place of business in Yonkers, New York, is engaged in the wholesale production of baked goods. Respondent annually purchases and receives at its Yonkers, New York facility goods and supplies valued in excess of $50,000 directly from points located outside the State of New York. The parties agree, and I find, that Respondent is an employer engaged in commerce within the meaning of Section 2(2), (6), and (7) of the Act and that Local 3, Bakery, Confectionery and Tobacco Workers International Union, AFL-CIO (the Union), is a labor organization within the meaning of Section 2 (5) of the Act. II. ALLEGED UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES A. The Facts 1. Background The Greyston Bakery (the Bakery) is associated with the Greyston Foundation and the Zen Community of New York. The mission of the Foundation is to work with the residents of southwest Yonkers, New York, to help people who are homeless, incarcerated, formerly addicted, and disenfranchised to achieve self-sufficiency. The Foundation provides housing, day care, a residence for AIDS sufferers, and a day health facility. The Greyston Bakery offers economic ...See the full content of this document
Sponsored links
