Kawano, Inc. v. Agricultural Labor Relations Board

Kawano, Inc. (Kawano) an agricultural employer subject to the provisions of the Agricultural Labor Relations Act (Act) (Lab. Code, § 1140 et seq.), seeks review of an order of the Agricultural Labor Relations Board (Board) finding Kawano has committed unfair labor practices under the Act and decreeing certain remedies.

Kawano grows truck crops such as tomatoes, strawberries and cauliflower on land in San Diego County, some owned and some leased. Its president, chiefly responsible for management decisions, is John Kawano (John), assisted in operating the business by other family members, including his brother Harry Kawano. Its supervisory employees include numerous foremen who hire and fire field laborers and oversee their work. Field workers are normally hired seasonally on an as-needed basis at the fields and fall into two categories: so-called “legáis,” who are Mexican nationals with valid immigration status in this country and who commute to the Kawano fields from border communities such as San Ysidro and Tijuana; and “illegals” or “casuals,” who as their name implies, are illegal immigrants.

*941 Kawano headquarters are located at its 200-acre San Luis Rey ranch,…

I concur in the majority opinion statement of the law, but respectfully dissent insofar as the opinion upholds the entire order of the Board because I believe certain portions of the order lack evidentiary support.

Under the provisions of Labor Code section 1160.8, if there is substantial evidence based on the record as a whole, the decision of the Agricultural Labor Relations Board is conclusive (Tex-Cal Land Man *956 agement, Inc. v. Agricultural Labor Relations Bd. (1979) 24 Cal. 3d 335 [ 156 Cal.Rptr. 1 , 595 P.2d 579 ]). I can appreciate Kawano, faced with rising costs of labor, taxes and materials, was prompted to cut back on its operation. A change in operations motivated by financial or economic reasons is not an unfair labor practice (N.L.R.B. v. Kingsford (6th Cir. 1963) 313 F.2d 826, 830 ). The test which must be applied, however, is whether economics or the antiunion animus was the predominant motivation for the action. This is a factual question which is within the province of the Board to resolve. There was evidence of Kawano’s enmity for the union. We are not at liberty to substitute our judgment for that of the Board.

The question remains, however, which…

Marco E. Lopez, Carlos M. Alcala, Francis E. Fernandez, Carmen C. Flores, William H. Carder, Jerome Cohen, Sanford N. Nathan, Tom Dalzell, Ellen Greenstone, George C. Lazar, Dianna Lyons, James Rutkowski and Kirsten L. Zerger for Real Party in Interest.

OPINION

BROWN (Gerald), P.J.

Kawano, Inc. (Kawano) an agricultural employer subject to the provisions of the Agricultural Labor Relations Act (Act) (Lab. Code, § 1140 et seq.), seeks review of an order of the Agricultural Labor Relations Board (Board) finding Kawano has committed unfair labor practices under the Act and decreeing certain remedies.

Kawano grows truck crops such as tomatoes, strawberries and cauliflower on land in San Diego County, some owned and some leased. Its president, chiefly responsible for management decisions, is John Kawano (John), assisted in operating the business by other family members, including his brother Harry Kawano. Its supervisory employees include numerous foremen who hire and fire field laborers and oversee their work. Field workers are normally hired seasonally on an as-needed basis at the fields and fall into two categories: so-called "legals," who are Mexican nationals with valid…