Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST—DOre: Antitrust Counterclaims Stayed in Union’s Dispute over Dock Work, (Mar 18, 2013)
Law Firms Mentioned:Miller Nash LLP | Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, PC | Stoel Rives LLP
Organizations Mentioned:ICTSI Oregon, Inc. | International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers | International Longshore and Warehouse Union | International Longshore and Warehouse Union and International Longshore and Warehouse Union | Leonard Carder, LLP | Miller Nash, LLP | Pacific Maritime Association. | Port of Portland | Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt, PC | Stoel Rives, LLP
By E. Darius Sturmer, J.D.
In a labor dispute concerning who was entitled to perform “reefer work” at a terminal of the Port of Portland, Oregon, a claim by the operator of the terminal that a pair of unions violated federal antitrust laws by engaging in slowdowns, work stoppages, safety gimmicks, and by prosecuting numerous grievances against both the terminal operator and ocean carriers calling on Portland was stayed by the federal district court in Portland. The antitrust counterclaims in the action could not be resolved while National Labor Review Board actions centered on the propriety of the conduct and grievances were pending, the court decided (Int’l Longshore and Warehouse Union v. ICTSI Oregon, Inc., March 15, 2013, Simon, M.) .
The “reefer work” at issue involved plugging in, unplugging, and monitoring refrigerated shipping containers at the terminal.
The disagreement at the heart of the dispute was as follows: The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (“ILWU”) and the Pacific Maritime Association (“PMA”) contended that their collective bargaining agreement required Defendant ICTSI Oregon, Inc. (“ICTSI”), the operator of the terminal and a PMA member, to assign the reefer work to ILWU members. ICTSI, along with the Port of Portland and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (“IBEW”) Local 48, contended that other contracts—including the terminal lease agreement between the Port and ICTSI and another pact between the Port and IBEW—required that the reefer work be assigned to IBEW members.
The case is No. No.: 3:12-cv-01058-SI.
Attorneys: Robert Remar (Leonard Carder, LLP) for International Longshore and Warehouse Union and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 8. Jeffrey P. Chicoine (Miller Nash LLP) for Pacific Maritime Association. Michael T. Garone (Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, PC) for ICTSI Oregon, Inc. Randolph C. Foster (Stoel Rives LLP) for the Port of Portland.
Companies: International Longshore and Warehouse Union and International Longshore and Warehouse Union; Pacific Maritime Association.
Cases: Antitrust OregonNews