TWENTY-SIXTH ANNUAL REPORT - National Labor Relations Board

Unfair Labor Practices 103
(c) Illegal enforcement of union-security agreement
Under the proviso to section 8 (a) (3), no employee may be discharged
under the terms of a union-security agreement for reasons
other than the failure "to tender periodic dues and initiation fees
uniformly required as a condition of acquiring or retaining membership"
Moreover, "the only obligation an employee has under the
compulsion of the proviso to Section 8(a) (3) of the act [to pay dues],
is to pay dues for the period of employment with the employer who is
a party to the contract and during the term of the contract" 78 In
one case, a panel majority" affirmed a trial examiner's finding that
an employer violated section 8(a) (3) by threatening employees with
discharge if they did not pay strike assessments levied by the union,
and by checking off such assessments as a condition of their continued
employment, and noted that the proviso to section 8(a) (3) does not
include such assessments 78
During the past year, the Board again had occasion to determine
in a number of cases whether employees had been unlawfully discharged
under union-security agreements for reasons other than the
failure "to tender periodic dues and initiation fees" In F J Burns.
Draying, Inc ,79 the Board held that an employee had been unlawfully
discharged foi "some reason" other than nonpayment of required dues
and initiation fees where the union requested his dischaige after it
had accepted the employee's tender of delinquent dues and initiation
fees and notified him of his reinstatement, and the employer had
knowledge of the fact that the employee had tendered the required
dues and initiation fees Similarly, in General Motors Corp ,
(lire Divieion,8° the discharge of an employee who had previously withdrawn
from the union, but was required to rejoin under a new contract,
was found unlawful where the union requested his discharge after he
had tendered a money order sufficient to cover both the reinstatement
fee required and current dues—although he did not specify that it was
in payment of both—and the union had simply returned the tendet
without explanation, "as the [employer] had reasonable grounds
for believing that membership was denied [him] for reasons other
" Montgomery Ward tS Co • 121 NLRB 1552 (1958) , Twenty fourth Annual Report
(1959), p 70 Bee also Ws, AFL-010, Frigidaire Local 801 (General Motors Gory,
Frigidab e Dsv ), 129 NLRB 1379, 1380, 1381
II Members Rodgers and Fanning
78 Florence Brooke, 131 NLRB No 97, footnote 2 Member Leedom dis genting with respect
to those employees who had executed checkoff authorizations specifically authorizing deductions
of "any assessments" Compare with Wm Wolf Bakery, Imo, 122 NLRB 680
(1958)
79 129 NLRB 252
AFL-010, Frigidaire Local 801 (General Motors Carp, Frigidaire Div), 129
NLRB 1879