Huber, Hunt & Nichols, Inc. v. United Ass'n of Journeymen & Apprentices of the Plumbing & Pipefitting Industry, Local 38

In this case, two arbitrators claim the power to decide a labor dispute under the same umbrella labor agreement. The parties to the agreement disagree over which arbitrator had power to arbitrate, what type of grievance was before the arbitrators and whether both grievances concerned the same dispute. Each party asks us to confirm one award and vacate the other.

The district court held that, under the circumstances, the question of arbitrability turned on analysis of the grievances rather than on analysis of the agreement. We have jurisdiction, and we reverse.

I

The facts are undisputed. Appellant Huber, Hunt & Nichols, Inc. (the “General Contractor”) was hired to build Pacific Bell Park, the new ballpark of the Giants baseball club in San Francisco, California. Workers from several AFL-CIO-affiliated unions, including appellee United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry, Local 38 (“Local 38”), were hired to perform the construction work. The General Contractor and the unions entered *748 into a prehire agreement 1 (the “Project Stabilization. Agreement” or “Agreement”) reconciling the terms of the unions’ various collective…