San Diego Nursery Co. v. Agricultural Labor Relations Board

The Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB or Board) appeals from an order of the San Diego Superior Court granting a preliminary injunction prohibiting ALRB agents from conducting “worker education” on the premises of the San Diego Nursery Company, Inc. (Employer) without the Employer’s permission. The superior court found “absent express statutory authorization, the ALRB may not enter an employer’s premises for the purposes of worker education without first obtaining the employer’s consent.”

Facts

The Employer operates a nursery in Chula Vista, California. On December 8, 1977, the United Farm Workers of America, AFL-CIO (UFW), filed in the San Diego ALRB office a notice of intention to take access at the Employer’s premises, pursuant to title 8, California Administrative Code, section 20900, subdivision (e)(1)(B). The next day, the UFW filed a notice of intention to organize as provided by title 8, California Administrative Code, section 20910. These notices evidence the fact that the UFW would engage in an organizational drive among the Employer’s workforce which might culminate in an election petition. Under ALRB regulations (Cal. Admin. Code, tit. 8, § 20910,…