Constellation Brands, U.S. Operations, Inc. v. NLRB

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The Union filed a petition seeking to represent Constellation’s outside cellar employees as a bargaining unit. Constellation subsequently refused to bargain with the Union and the Union filed an unfair-labor-practice charge. The Board granted summary judgment for the Union, concluding that Constellation had violated labor laws. Constellation petitioned for review and the Board cross-petitioned for enforcement. At issue is whether the framework for evaluating proposed bargaining units set forth in Specialty Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center of Mobile, is unlawful. The court held that the Specialty Healthcare framework was valid, as its sister circuits have, and was consistent with this court’s precedent. However, the court concluded that the Board did not properly apply the Specialty Healthcare framework in its decision and order against Constellation. In approving the petitioned‐for collective bargaining unit, the court concluded that the Board did not analyze at step one of the Specialty Healthcare framework whether the excluded employees had meaningfully distinct interests from members of the petitioned‐for unit in the context of collective bargaining that outweigh similarities with unit members. Accordingly, the court granted the petition for review, denied the cross-petition for enforcement, and remanded for further proceedings. View "Constellation Brands, U.S. Operations, Inc. v. NLRB" on Justia Law