Morales

jn this action for libel, plaintiff/appellant Robert Morales appeals from an order granting summary judgment in favor of defendants/respondents Coastside Scavenger Company (Coastside) and Mario Torrigino. We affirm.

As the secretary-treasurer of Sanitary Truckdrivers and Helpers Local 350 (union), appellant acts as the union’s collective bargaining agent. Respondent Torrigino is the manager of Coastside and represents the company in its dealings with the union. The two men apparently have had a long and stormy relationship.

The present dispute began in October 1981 when Torrigino learned that the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) planned to conduct a “sweep” of Bay Area businesses to discover and deport illegal aliens. Torrigino supplied the INS with a list of Coastside employees whom he suspected were illegal aliens. In response, the INS informed Torrigino that two Coastside employees, Jose Gonzales and Aurelio Navarro, lacked proper immigration documentation. Torrigino discharged both employees. However, he later rehired Gonzales when Gonzales demonstrated that the INS had provided Coastside with erroneous information. Navarro, who was unable…