KORMAN, District Judge.
On November 13, 2007, Joe Santo ("Santo"), Mark Palumbo ("Palumbo"), Joe
The plaintiffs are current and former members of two local unions, Local 1018 and Local 1010. LIUNA is an international labor organization representing workers in the United States and Canada. Its governing documents, which bind LIUNA, its affiliates, and its members, include the LIUNA International Union Constitution ("IUC"), the Uniform District Council Constitution ("UDCC"), and the Uniform Local Union Constitution ("Local Constitution"). The Pavers District Council is an intermediate labor organization, between LIUNA and the two local unions, which is affiliated with LIUNA. And, at all relevant times, Local 1018 and Local 1010 were affiliated with LIUNA and the Pavers District Council. The Pavers District Council, Local 1018, and Local 1010 are thus all subordinates of LIUNA. The members of the Pavers District Council are delegates who are elected by the district council's affiliated local unions, such as Local 1018 and Local 1010. (IUC, Art. XIX, § 5, pp. 53-54, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.)
The plaintiffs' complaint asserts six separate causes of action. The first three challenge the continuation of the trusteeships that were imposed on Local 1018, Local 1010, and the Pavers District Council, on the ground that their continuation violates (i) Title III of the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 ("LMRDA"), 29 U.S.C. § 401 et seq., (ii) the IUC, and (iii) Title I of the LMRDA, respectively. The fourth and fifth causes of action challenge the increase in the union members' working dues on the ground that this increase violated (i) the UDCC, incorporated by reference into the IUC and the Local Constitution, and (ii) Title I of the LMRDA. The sixth cause of action asserts that the defendants breached the duty of fair representation.
The defendants subsequently moved to dismiss the complaint, and the plaintiffs' third and sixth causes of action were dismissed pursuant to Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy's March 27, 2009 Report and Recommendation, which this Court adopted on April 16, 2009.
Thus, on the parties' cross-motions for summary judgment, only the plaintiffs' fourth and fifth causes of action challenging the dues increase are before this Court. Through these causes of action, the plaintiffs seek (i) injunctive relief, enjoining the defendants from deducting the increased amount of working dues from the local members' wages; (ii) declaratory relief, directing the defendants to comply with LIUNA's constitutional procedures for increasing dues; (iii) compensatory damages; and (iv) punitive damages.
On May 9, 2005, LIUNA placed Local 1018 under an emergency trusteeship. Three days later, on May 12, 2005, LIUNA placed Local 1010 and the Pavers District Council under an emergency trusteeship. On the same days the trusteeships were imposed, LIUNA's General President Terence M. O'Sullivan appointed Masino as the emergency trustee of Local 1018, Local 1010, and the Pavers District Council, with the authority to designate deputy trustees.
As trustee, Masino appointed John Peters ("Peters") as one of his deputy trustees.
The members of Local 1018 and Local 1010 are required to pay both "working dues" and "monthly dues." Working dues and monthly dues are separate and distinct in amount. These dues are used to finance the operations of Local 1018 and Local 1010 and are also paid to LIUNA monthly.
In or about February or March 2006, Masino decided to increase the working dues for the members of Local 1018 and Local 1010.
(Defs.' R. 56.1 Stmt. ¶ 43.)
The dues increase took effect without the vote of either the members of Local 1018 and Local 1010 or the elected delegates to the Pavers District Council. In Masino's view, however, he had the authority, as trustee of the Pavers District Council, to increase the union members' working dues without calling for such a vote. Masino believed that, as trustee, he held all of the power previously held by the delegates to the Pavers District Council.
The plaintiffs contend that the dues increase also took effect without any notice being given to the members of Local 1018 and Local 1010. The defendants, however, assert that from about January to July 2006 — before the dues increase took effect — "informal" monthly meetings were held at which the dues increase was discussed, and no objections were raised by the members in attendance.
Summary judgment must be granted "where the pleadings, the discovery and disclosure materials on file, and any affidavits show `that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.'" Brown v. Eli Lilly & Co., 654 F.3d 347, 358 (2d Cir.2011) (quoting Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a)). Both parties agree that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact regarding the dues increase.
The plaintiffs assert that the July 1, 2006 increase in their working dues violated Title I of the LMRDA — specifically, Section 101(a)(3), 29 U.S.C. § 411(a)(3). The plaintiffs maintain that, despite the imposition of the trusteeships, Masino did not have the authority to unilaterally increase their working dues and that the procedures laid out in Section 101(a)(3) of the LMRDA should have been followed. This is so, the plaintiffs argue, because union members retain their Title I rights, even in the face of a trusteeship. The defendants respond that, as the trustee of the Pavers District Council, Masino possessed the power to unilaterally increase the union members' working dues and that his doing so was in compliance with the LMRDA. The question is thus whether, consistent with Section 101(a)(3) of the LMRDA, the trustee of a non-local labor organization (such as a district council) can unilaterally increase the dues of the members of its affiliated local unions, also in trusteeship, without holding a vote, either
The LMRDA "was the product of congressional concern with widespread abuses of power by union leadership." Finnegan v. Leu, 456 U.S. 431, 435, 102 S.Ct. 1867, 72 L.Ed.2d 239 (1982). Its "primary objective" was to "ensur[e] that unions would be democratically governed and responsive to the will of their memberships." Id. at 436, 102 S.Ct. 1867. Title I of the LMRDA, 29 U.S.C. §§ 411-415, the "Bill of Rights of Members of Labor Organizations," was "aimed at enlarged protection for members of unions paralleling certain rights guaranteed by the Federal Constitution." Finnegan, 456 U.S. at 435, 102 S.Ct. 1867; see also Hall v. Cole, 412 U.S. 1, 7-8, 93 S.Ct. 1943, 36 L.Ed.2d 702 (1973) ("Title I of the LMRDA ... was specifically designed to promote the full and active participation by the rank and file in the affairs of the union ...." (footnote and internal quotation marks omitted)); Burroughs v. Operating Eng'rs Local Union No. 3, 686 F.2d 723, 727 (9th Cir.1982) ("The guaranty of a democratic union organization provided by section 101 [of the LMRDA] was designed to shield the union membership from arbitrary, autocratic, and despotic control by union officers and leaders.").
Sections 101(a)(1) and 101(a)(2) of the LMRDA, 29 U.S.C. § 411(a)(1), (2), guarantee union members equal voting rights and free speech and assembly rights, respectively. 29 U.S.C. § 411(a)(1), (2). Section 101(a)(3), 29 U.S.C. § 411(a)(3) — the provision at issue here — governs the procedures for increasing union members' dues, laying out the exclusive methods by which such increases can take place. As the Second Circuit has explained, "Section 101(a)(3) is intended to insure that dues will not be imposed on union members by the mere fiat of their officers." King v. Randazzo, 346 F.2d 307, 309 (2d Cir.1965); see also id. at 309-10 ("[T]he evident purpose of § 101(a)(3) ... is to place union dues more directly under the control of the union membership."); Sertic v. Cuyahoga, Lake, Geauga & Ashtabula Counties Carpenters Dist. Council of the United Bhd. of Carpenters & Joiners of Am., 423 F.2d 515, 521 (6th Cir. 1970) ("Union members are entitled under the [LMRDA] to the right of a meaningful vote on increases in dues or assessments."). The Ninth Circuit has similarly stated that "[t]he clear purpose of section 101(a)(3) ... is to curb the potential for autocratic and unrepresentative rule of union officers by preventing the leadership of a union from imposing arbitrary financial exactions unilaterally on its membership." Burroughs, 686 F.2d at 728 (citation omitted). In other words, "Section 101(a)(3) was designed to vest control over increases in rates of dues in the union members, not the union management." Id.
Section 101(a)(3) is further broken down into two subsections: Section 101(a)(3)(A), which applies to dues increases by a local labor organization, and Section 101(a)(3)(B), which applies to dues increases by a non-local labor organization. Because the dues for the members of Local 1018 and Local 1010 are established and regulated by the Pavers District Council, a non-local labor organization,
Section 101(a)(3)(B) lays out three methods by which dues can be increased by a non-local labor organization:
29 U.S.C. § 411(a)(3)(B). The UDCC, which governs the Pavers District Council, has adopted the first of these three methods — known as the "convention" method — as the lawful method by which the dues of its affiliated locals' members can be increased. (UDCC, Art. VIII, § 2, pp. 125-26, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.)
In American Federation of Musicians v. Wittstein, 379 U.S. 171, 85 S.Ct. 300, 13 L.Ed.2d 214 (1964), the Supreme Court described the right guaranteed by Section 101(a)(3)(B) as "a member's right to participate in deciding upon the rate of dues, initiation fees, and assessments." Id. at 181, 85 S.Ct. 300 (internal quotation marks omitted). The Court explained that Section 101(a)(3)(B) formed a part of the Title I framework "by requiring participation by all members, either directly or through their elected representatives, on
Federal courts have, therefore, held that this right is protected when a local union's elected delegates vote to increase the dues of that local union's members at a duly constituted convention. See, e.g., Mori v. Int'l Bhd. of Boilermakers, Iron Ship Builders, Blacksmiths, Forgers & Helpers Local Lodge No. 6, 653 F.2d 1279, 1285 (9th Cir.1981) (holding that "the participation of delegates representing plaintiffs ensured their rights under [Section] 101(a)(3)(B), and there is no reason in this case to distrust the democratic process at work at the convention"); Ranes v. Office Emps. Int'l Union, Local No. 28, 317 F.2d 915, 918 (7th Cir.1963) (holding that the plaintiff local union members received the protection of Section 101(a)(3) because their dues were increased "[a]t a duly constituted convention, at which [their local union] was represented by a delegation elected by its members"); see also id. (describing how "Congress has said that [the] purpose [of Section 101(a)(3)] ... is served when union members have representation at the council table where dues structures are changed"). The case law thus makes clear that what matters is that union members be represented in some capacity when the decision to increase their dues is made. See Michelotti, 61 F.3d at 14-15 (upholding, as consistent with Section 101(a)(3)(B)(i)'s "convention" method, a dues increase approved at a meeting of a "master executive council" comprised of representatives elected by the union members).
Despite the clarity with which courts have described the right guaranteed by Section 101(a)(3)(B), they have yet to directly address how the imposition of a trusteeship affects this particular right. In Sheet Metal Workers' International Ass'n v. Lynn, 488 U.S. 347, 109 S.Ct. 639, 102 L.Ed.2d 700 (1989), however, the Supreme Court strongly suggested that Title I rights, such as that guaranteed by Section 101(a)(3)(B), are in no way diminished in the context of a trusteeship. See id. at 356-58, 109 S.Ct. 639. In Sheet Metal, the Supreme Court examined whether the removal of an elected business agent, in retaliation for statements made at a union membership meeting in opposition to a dues increase sought by the union trustee, violated Section 101(a)(2) of the LMRDA — the free speech provision.
Id. at 356-57, 109 S.Ct. 639 (emphasis added) (footnote omitted). Although the Supreme Court's holding directly involved only the right guaranteed by Section 101(a)(2), its broad language is a powerful indication that all of the rights embodied in Title I — including the right guaranteed by Section 101(a)(3)(B) — retain their full force in the face of a trusteeship.
The Supreme Court, however, did not stop there. It went on to discuss how a trusteeship also does not affect a local union member's right under Section 101(a)(3)(A) to vote on a dues increase.
Id. at 358, 109 S.Ct. 639 (emphasis added). Although the Supreme Court limited its discussion to the right guaranteed by Section 101(a)(3)(A), there is no principled reason — and the defendants fail to provide one — why the right guaranteed by Section 101(a)(3)(B) should be any less protected in the context of a trusteeship. Thus, despite the imposition of the trusteeships in this case, the members of Local 1018 and Local 1010 should have been permitted to participate in and vote on the decision to increase their dues — either directly or through their elected delegates to the Pavers District Council.
The defendants' position rests primarily on the notion that, with the imposition of trusteeships on Local 1018, Local 1010, and the Pavers District Council, there ceased being delegates to the Pavers District Council and that Masino, as trustee, possessed all of the authority of the Pavers District Council, including the authority to increase the dues of the members of its affiliated local unions. Therefore, the defendants argue, no vote was required before the dues could be increased. Rather, the "convention" method described in Section 101(a)(3)(B)(i) was fully satisfied "by Masino, as the trustee possessing the full authority of the Pavers District Council,
In support of their argument that Masino's conduct was lawful, the defendants also cite to the LMRDA's definition of "trusteeship," which is "any receivership, trusteeship, or other method of supervision or control whereby a labor organization suspends the autonomy otherwise available to a subordinate body under its constitution and bylaws," 29 U.S.C. § 402(h), emphasizing the words "suspends the autonomy." (Defs.' Mem. of Law 28.) The defendants fail to recognize, however, that this same definition of "trusteeship," in effect at the time Sheet Metal was decided, did not affect the Supreme Court's conclusion that Congress did not intend Title I rights to "fall by the wayside whenever a trusteeship is imposed." 488 U.S. at 356, 109 S.Ct. 639.
While it may be true that the imposition of trusteeships on Local 1018 and Local 1010 meant that these local unions no longer had delegates to the Pavers District Council,
The defendants seem to suggest that, if a vote had been held, Masino's efforts to raise funds for the locals would have been thwarted because the union members would have been under the "potential continuing influence" of the allegedly corrupt former leaders of the locals. (See Defs.' Reply 17.) Such a vote, the defendants contend, would reflect "only the appearance of a democratic vote of a membership that in fact does not represent the members' uncoerced views." (Id.; see also Defs.' Letter dated Dec. 15, 2011 at 3 ("[A] vote free of the improper influence of the former officers ... could not have been held prior to the dues increase.").) This argument would have some force if Masino had articulated the possibility of a corrupting influence as a reason for his not having held a vote on the dues increase and if a vote had been held and had failed. In sum, the working dues increase effectuated by Masino, without any kind of vote, is a violation of Section 101(a)(3)(B).
In addition to asserting a violation of Title I of the LMRDA, the plaintiffs also argue that the defendants violated the UDCC, incorporated by reference into the IUC and the Local Constitution, by failing to comply with the procedures for increasing dues laid out therein. The defendants, however, respond that this claim is barred because the plaintiffs failed to exhaust internal union remedies before bringing this claim in district court.
Article XVI, Section 2 of the IUC requires that union members exhaust intra-union remedies before bringing an action in district court.
(IUC, Art. XVI, § 2, p. 47, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.)
With regard to LIUNA's internal procedures, the IUC states that,
(IUC, Art. VIII, § 2(a-vi), p. 28-29, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.) In other words, a union member can bring an action before the LIUNA General Executive Board, and, as a subsequent section of Article VIII of the IUC explains, the General Executive Board's ruling can then be appealed to the LIUNA Convention. (IUC, Art. VIII, § 2(a-viii), p. 29, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.)
As the Supreme Court has explained, "courts have discretion to decide whether to require exhaustion of internal union procedures." Clayton v. Int'l Union, United Auto., Aerospace & Agric. Implement Workers of Am., 451 U.S. 679, 689, 101 S.Ct. 2088, 68 L.Ed.2d 538 (1981). In other words, the exhaustion requirement is not absolute. Thompson v. Local 144/S.E.I.U, No. 99 CIV. 11503, 2001 WL 293930, at *2, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3257, at *6 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 26, 2001). But, "[i]n deciding whether to apply the exhaustion doctrine, a court `must balance the right of union members to institute suit against the policy of judicial noninterference in union affairs.'" Maddalone v. Local 17, United Bhd. of Carpenters & Joiners of Am., 152 F.3d 178, 186 (2d Cir.1998) (quoting Johnson v. General Motors, 641 F.2d 1075, 1079 (2d Cir.1981)). A court must also consider "whether the available procedures are adequate and reasonable in light of the facts of the particular case." Henry v. Cmty. Res. Ctr., Inc., No. 95 Civ. 5480, 1996 WL 251845, at *6, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 6414, at *18 (S.D.N.Y. May 10, 1996) (quoting Johnson, 641 F.2d at 1079).
There are three factors that a court should consider in conducting the exhaustion inquiry:
Clayton, 451 U.S. at 689, 101 S.Ct. 2088. The burden is on the union to establish that its internal procedures meet these requirements. Maddalone, 152 F.3d at 186; see also Thompson, 2001 WL 293930, at *2, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3257, at *7 ("Defendants have the burden of proving that their procedures are reasonable and not futile.").
Application of the three Clayton factors to the present case reveals that the plaintiffs' failure to exhaust internal union remedies should not be excused. As for the first factor, there is no evidence that LIUNA's officials were so hostile that a fair hearing on the plaintiffs' dues-increase claim was not possible. The plaintiffs simply state that, because Masino "knowingly" violated the UDCC when he increased the working dues and did so after speaking with LIUNA's General Counsel, challenging the dues increase through LIUNA's internal review process would have been futile. (Pls.' Opp. 22-23.) But this is insufficient evidence of union hostility. Cf. Thompson, 2001 WL 293930, at *4, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3257, at *10 ("If the Court were to hold that exhaustion would be futile because internal remedies would be reviewed by the same organization whose actions were being challenged, [it] would amount to an exception that swallows the whole."). Although Masino may have knowingly disregarded the UDCC's requirements even after speaking to LIUNA's General Counsel, there is no evidence that the union officials handling LIUNA's internal review process would have been hostile. See Henry, 1996 WL 251845, at *7-8, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 6414, at *23-24 (finding no hostility where there was no evidence that a union organizer's bias would have affected the outcome of the internal union appeal process).
As for the second factor, the plaintiffs allege that the defendants have failed to show that LIUNA's intra-union procedures would have afforded the plaintiffs adequate relief, given that the plaintiffs seek compensatory and punitive damages. While the parties seem to agree that, under Article VIII, Section 2(a-vi) of the IUC, LIUNA's internal review process could have awarded the plaintiffs compensatory damages (see Defs.' Mem. of Law 49-50; Pls.' Opp. 23-24), the plaintiffs argue that the defendants have failed to demonstrate that punitive damages were available through this process.
Although "punitive damages are available to deter malicious violations of the LMRDA," Maddalone, 152 F.3d at 186, the Second Circuit has made clear that "punitive damages generally may not be awarded in a ... breach of contract action," Drywall Tapers & Pointers of Greater N.Y. v. Local 530 of Operative Plasterers & Cement Masons Int'l Ass'n, 36 F.3d 235, 240 (2d Cir.1994). And since a union constitution is considered a contract between labor organizations, Commer v. McEntee, No. 00 Civ. 7913, 2006 WL 3262494, at *16 (S.D.N.Y. Nov. 9, 2006), punitive damages are not available for the plaintiffs' union constitution claim. There is, therefore, no evidence that LIUNA's internal review process would have afforded the plaintiffs inadequate relief. As for the third factor, the plaintiffs do not even argue that exhausting LIUNA's internal remedies would have unreasonably delayed their opportunity to seek relief in
The plaintiffs do, however, contend that, because the working dues were increased during the trusteeships' existence, exhaustion of internal union remedies was not required. In support of this proposition, the plaintiffs cite to cases holding that exhaustion of intra-union remedies is not required for actions seeking the dissolution of a trusteeship. See Brush v. Hotel Emps. & Rest. Emps. Int'l Union, 170 F.Supp.2d 803, 806 (N.D.Ill.2001); C.A.P.E. Local Union 1983 v. Int'l Bhd. of Painters & Allied Trades, 598 F.Supp. 1056, 1067 (D.N.J.1984); Schonfeld v. Raftery, 271 F.Supp. 128, 145 (S.D.N.Y.1967); Monborne v. United Mine Workers of Am., 342 F.Supp. 718, 723 (W.D.Pa.1972). The plaintiffs' union constitution claim, however, does not seek dissolution of the trusteeships, and none of the cases the plaintiffs cite — nor any that this Court can find — holds that exhaustion is not required in actions challenging dues increases effectuated during a trusteeship. The plaintiffs' argument is, therefore, without merit.
In short, the plaintiffs' claim that the dues increase violated LIUNA's constitutions is barred because the plaintiffs failed to exhaust LIUNA's internal remedies before bringing this claim in district court. None of the Clayton factors exist here, and the defendants have thus met their burden of establishing the applicability of the exhaustion defense.
The plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment on the LMRDA claim is granted, and the defendants' cross-motion is denied. The defendants' motion for summary judgment on the union constitution claim is granted, and the plaintiffs' cross-motion is denied. I do no more than rule on the motions because the issue of damages is unresolved, and it is not clear to me that the plaintiffs are entitled to obtain a refund of the entire sum of dues imposed without a vote. They continued to receive the benefits of union membership during that period, and it seems clear that some increase was necessary. Indeed, the plaintiffs never sought to enjoin the collection of the dues.
(IUC, Art. XVIII, § 8(c), p. 51, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.) Article VIII, Section 1 of the Local Constitution similarly provides:
(Local Constitution, Art. VIII, § 1, p. 95, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.) Article II, Section 2(e) of the UDCC provides that the Pavers District Council shall have the authority
(UDCC, Art. II, § 2(e), p. 113, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.) Article VIII, Section 2 of the UDCC provides:
(UDCC, Art. VIII, § 2, pp. 125-26, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.)
(IUC, Art. VIII, § 2(a-viii), p. 29, attached as Ex. E to Marinovic Decl.)
