IBP, Inc. v. Local 556 International Brotherhood of Teamsters

MEMORANDUM **

IBP, Inc. (“IBP”) appeals the district court’s order confirming the arbitrator’s award in part and vacating it in part, and the district court’s subsequent refusal to reconsider its decision after the arbitrator amended his initial determination in favor of Local 556 International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America (“Union”). We affirm.

I. The Arbitrator’s Determination that IBP Violated the Collective Bargaining Agreement (“CBA”)

Judicial “review of an arbitrator’s decision is extremely narrow”; an arbitrator’s resolution need only be “rationally derived from some plausible theory of the general framework or intent of the agreement.” Van Waters & Rogers, Inc. v. International Bhd. Of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of Am., 56 F.3d 1132, 1135 (9th Cir.1995) (citations omitted) (emphasis in original).

It is plausible that the arbitrator construed the CBA provision “allowing” a 30-minute meal period as “allotting” or “providing” the employees with a 30-min-ute respite. Such a reading is consistent with the other provisions of the agreement. See id. at 1136 (arbitrator’s determination upheld where provision in…