Dominic Garcia v. National Labor Relations Board, United Parcel Service, Intervenor-Respondent

Dominic Garcia, a United Parcel Service (UPS) employee, refused to obey a supervisor’s order to tap his horn when he stopped to make residential deliveries because state law forbids horn honking unless necessary for safety. UPS discharged him for gross insubordination but after he filed a grievance the joint labor-management arbitration committee changed his discipline to a 10-day suspension. Garcia filed an unfair labor practice (ULP) charge under Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act. 29 U.S.C. § 158 (a)(1) (1982) (“NLRA” or “the Act”). The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “the Board”) dismissed his complaint because of its decision to defer to the arbitration award and Garcia has petitioned this court for review of the NLRB deferral. We refuse to enforce the Board’s order because its deferral decision was an abuse of discretion.

FACTS

Garcia had worked as a package delivery driver for UPS in Stockton, California for one and one-half years when on January 24, 1983 a supervisor scheduled a ride-check to assist in improving his productivity on the job. When Garcia began his deliveries in a residential area, his supervisor instructed him to tap his horn…