There must be “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover.” And yet, some disputes have a way of sticking around. The labor conflict between Rieth-Riley Construction Company and Local 324 of the International Union of Operating Engineers began in 2018 over the union’s decision to withdraw from a multi-employer bargaining arrangement and negotiate separately with each employer.
Eight years, a lockout, a still-ongoing strike, and three trips to the Sixth Circuit later, the parties still do not have a collective-bargaining agreement. In two recently published opinions, the Sixth Circuit denied Rieth-Riley’s efforts to overturn board decisions that determined its conduct violated the NLRA. These decisions offer important reminders for employers navigating contentious union relationships.
And, yes, because we love a pithy title, this is a (Paul) Simon & Garfunkel-themed post. We hope you like folk music and offer our apologies in advance.
Let us be lovers, we’ll marry our fortunes together. Rieth-Riley is an Indiana-based construction contractor that employs around 130 to 170 union engineers. The union bargained with Rieth-Riley as part of a multi-employer association (the “employer association”).
The union and Rieth-Riley, through the employer association, were parties to a collective-bargaining agreement (CBA) set to expire in June 2018. The CBA required 60 days’ notice before expiration for any party wishing to terminate or modify its terms. On February 19, 2018, the...
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