Rivcom Corp. v. Agricultural Labor Relations Board

Rivcom Corporation (Rivcom), its parent Riverbend Farms, Inc. (Riverbend), and Triple M. Farms, Inc. (Triple M) petition for review of a decision of the Agricultural Labor Relations Board (Board) that the first two companies (collectively the growers) committed acts prohibited by section 1153, subdivisions (a), (c), and (e) of the Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975 (ALRA or Act) (Lab. Code, § 1140 et seq.). The findings under subdivisions (a) and (c) 1 are that the growers, as new operators of a large citrus farm in Ventura County, sought to avoid unionization by replacing the resident union-affiliated employees of the farm’s previous owner with nonunion workers, and by evicting the resident employees from their labor-camp housing. The Board also upheld allegations that the growers violated subdivision (e) by refusing to bargain in good faith with the United Farm Workers of America (UFW), the certified representative of the predecessor employees. 2 The remedy imposed includes broad cease-and-desist and bargaining orders, combined with reinstatement, backpay, and make-whole relief.

We must decide, among other things, what deference is due the Board when it infers…

I respectfully dissent.

My review of the record in this case convinces me that the Agricultural Labor Relations Board (Board) failed to give proper credence to the unimpeached and uncontradicted testimony of Larry Harris, president of petitioner Riverbend Farms. (See Martori Brothers Distributors v. Agricultural Labor Relations Bd. (1981) 29 Cal.3d 721, 728 [ 175 Cal.Rptr. 626 , 631 P.2d 60 ].) Harris’ testimony demonstrated that petitioners had legitimate and substantial business justifications for replacing the employees of the unprofitable predecessor grower, NPMS. Accordingly, the Board erred in rejecting Harris’ justifications as “superficial, unfounded and contradictory.” There was absolutely no evidence that petitioners’ actions were prompted by any antiunion motive.

I will not repeat the evidentiary facts which disclosed petitioners’ justifications as most of those facts are described in the majority opinion. Because the factual issues raised herein are of no legal importance to anyone but the parties to this litigation, a hearing in this case was improvidently granted, being unnecessary to secure “uniformity of decision” or to settle “important questions of law.” (Rule…

Dianna Lyons, Federico G. Chavez, Ellen J. Eggess, Daniel A. Garcia, Ira Gottlieb and Wendy Jones for Real Party in Interest.

OPINION

GRODIN, J.

Rivcom Corporation (Rivcom), its parent Riverbend Farms, Inc. (Riverbend), and Triple M. Farms, Inc. (Triple M) petition for review of a decision of the Agricultural Labor Relations Board (Board) that the first two companies (collectively the growers) committed acts prohibited by section 1153, subdivisions (a), (c), and (e) of the Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975 (ALRA or Act) (Lab. Code, § 1140 et seq.). The findings under subdivisions (a) and (c) [1] are that the growers, as new operators of a large citrus farm in Ventura County, sought to avoid unionization by replacing the resident union-affiliated employees of the farm's previous owner with nonunion workers, and by evicting the resident employees from their labor-camp housing. The Board also upheld allegations that the growers violated subdivision (e) by refusing to bargain in good faith with the United Farm Workers of America (UFW), the certified representative of the predecessor employees. [2] The remedy imposed includes broad cease-and-desist and bargaining orders,…