Operations In Fiscal Year 1988 - National Labor Relations Board

VIIIInjunction LitigationA. Injunctive Litigation Under Section 10(j)Section 10(j) of the Act empowers the Board, in its discretion,after issuance of an unfair labor practice complaint against anemployer or a labor organization, to petition a U.S. district courtfor appropriate, temporary injunctive relief or restraining orderin aid of the unfair labor practice proceeding while the case ispending before the Board. In fiscal 1988, the Board filed a totalof 33 petitions for temporary relief under the discretionary provisionsof Section 10(j): 32 against employers and 1 against a labororganization. Of this number, together with petitions pending orreinstated in court at the beginning of this report period, injunctionswere granted by the courts in 19 cases and denied in 6cases. Of the remaining cases, 10 were settled prior to courtaction, 1 was withdrawn based on changed circumstances, and 6remained pending further proceedings by the courts.Injunctions were obtained against employers in 17 cases andagainst labor organizations in 2 cases. The cases against employersinvolved a variety of alleged violations, including interferencewith nascent union organizational activity, conduct designedto undermine an incumbent union's representational status,and several instances when an employer's cessation of operationsnecessitated an injunction to sequester assets to protect an eventualBoard backpay order. The cases against unions involved seriouspicket line misconduct during a labor dispute when localauthorities appeared unable to control the misconduct and aunion's strike that was designed to compel a multiemployer associationto agree to a trust fund arrangement that contravened anoutstanding court order.Several cases decided during the past year were of sufficientinterest to warrant particular attention.In Miller v. Pacific Isle Packaging,' the Board sought a 10(j) injunctionordering the employer to reinstate a group of unfairlabor practice strikers whom the employer had allegedly unlawfullydischarged and to bargain with the union that had the supportof a majority of the employer's employees. The districtcourt, observing that the ultimate merits of the case turned on a1 No. 87-0907 ACK (D.Hawaii).149