United Steel, Paper & Forest, Rubber, Mfg, Energy Int'l Union v. PPG Indus., Inc., No. 13-2468 (7th Cir. 2014)
Annotate this CaseThe Union represents a bargaining unit at PPG’s plant. PPG informed the Union in April 2009 that it wanted to modify the collective bargaining agreement to reduce labor costs. That CBA states that a party seeking to alter the agreement must provide 30 days’ notice. The parties are required to meet in conference at least 10 days before the agreement expires. Proposed changes must be presented not later than the first day of the conference, by the party seeking modification. The parties attended an informal meeting on May 14. PPG explained that its labor costs exceeded competitors’ by $10 an hour; the parties discussed possibilities for reducing those costs. The Union requested that PPG provide details of one proposal and calculate labor-cost reductions that could be achieved without concessions from current employees. On May 28, PPG sent an e-mail with those details. The official negotiating conference began on June 1. PPG reiterated its proposal. During the next two days PPG put forward other proposals. The Union responded that it was not required to bargain about those proposals and filed a grievance. An arbitrator found some proposals timely and others untimely. PPG put forward its final offer, removing several items that had been proposed after June 1. PPG determined that the parties were at an impasse and unilaterally implemented the final offer. The Union filed suit under 29 U.S.C. 185(a). The district court granted PPG summary judgment, concluding that the arbitrator’s award did not preclude PPG from implementing the proposals. The Seventh Circuit affirmed. Neither the text of the decision nor the arbitration record supported the Union’s desired interpretation of the award.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.