Reyco Granning LLC v. IBT, Local No. 245, No. 13-1002 (8th Cir. 2013)
Annotate this CaseReyco appealed from the district court's grant of summary judgment for the Union and the district court's denial of its motion for summary judgment and request to vacate the arbitrator's award. At issue was Article XII, section 3 of the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between Reyco and the Union. In this case, the arbitrator recognized that the crux of the issue was whether the use of the word "may" was discretionary or mandatory when referring to exceptions to be made to a holiday pay policy. The arbitrator, relying on parol evidence, concluded that the word "may" indicated the company held "some discretion" and that the language of the contract did not make granting the exception mandatory. The court concluded, however, that there was no ambiguity in the contract language at issue. The arbitrator was not construing an ambiguous contract term, but rather was imposing a new obligation upon Reyco. Therefore, the arbitrator's interpretation altered the plain language of the contract as written. Accordingly, the court vacated the district court's order and opinion granting summary judgment for the Union and confirming the arbitration award, and directed the court to grant Reyco's motion for summary judgment, vacating the arbitrator's award.
Court Description: Civil case - Labor law. Where the Collective Bargaining Agreement provided that exceptions "may" be made to a holiday pay policy, discretion over enforcing the policy was left to the company, and the arbitrator exceeded his authority by relying on parole evidence of the parties' bargaining history rather than the unambiguous terms of the agreement to determine whether an employee should receive holiday pay. Judge Smith, dissenting.
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