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PW: bnaweb22 ----- Forwarded by Sylvia Hu/Corp/Enron on 11/22/2000 08:20 AM ----- "BNA Highlights" <bhighlig@bna.com< 11/21/2000 11:10 PM To: "BNA Highlights" <bhighlig@bna.com< cc: Subject: Nov. 22 -- BNA, Inc. Daily Labor Report ______________________________ DAILY LABOR REPORT Highlights & Table of Contents November 22, 2000 ______________________________ ISSN 1522-5968 Registered Web subscribers can access the full text of these articles by using the URL link supplied. Information about becoming a subscriber or signing up for a FREE Web trial is available at http://web.bna.com or call BNA Customer Relations at 1-800-372-1033, Mon. - Fri. 8:30 am - 7:00 pm (ET). __________ HIGHLIGHTS __________ JUDGE APPROVES $9 MILLION SETTLEMENT OF HARASSMENT SUIT AGAINST FORD A year after Judge Bucklo criticized a conciliation agreement between the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Ford Motor Co. for lacking "bite," the judge approves a $9 million revised agreement settling class allegations of sexual harassment at two of the company's Chicago plants ("Warnell v. Ford Motor Co., " N.D. Ill., No. 98 C 1503, 11/17/00). Bucklo of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois approves a settlement agreement between Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford and hundreds of current and former female employees of the company's Chicago Heights Stamping Plant and its Chicago Assembly Plant. The settlement agreement resolving claims under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act modifies a $7.5 million conciliation agreement affecting the same two plants that was reached between the EEOC and Ford in September 1999. The settlement enhances monetary terms for the plaintiffs and places the settlement process under judicial supervision. "What this does is take the conciliation agreement ... [and] incorporates that into something larger and gives it some teeth," according to plaintiffs' attorney Darnley Stewart. Bucklo criticized the lack of any legal enforceability in the earlier agreement one month after it was heralded by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission as an innovation. . . . Page AA-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6j1p5_ NLRB RULES 2-1 ALBERTSON'S ILLEGALLY BARRED TWO UNIONS' SOLICITATION Albertson's Inc. committed unfair labor practices in violation of the National Labor Relations Act by barring two unions' members from distributing handbills outside 11 grocery stores in Oregon and Washington, the National Labor Relations Board rules in a 2-1 decision ("Albertson's Inc., "332 N.L.R.B. No. 104, 10/31/00 [released 11/8/00]). Chairman Truesdale and Member Liebman decide the grocery store chain violated Section 8(a)(1) by forbidding United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555 from soliciting employees to join the union and stopping International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 582 from soliciting Albertson's customers to boycott products from a dairy company involved in a labor dispute. Finding Albertson's regularly granted access to the Salvation Army, a number of youth and school organizations, and veterans groups to solicit donations and sales, the majority decides this activity exceeded "the small number of isolated beneficent acts that the Board regards as a narrow exception to an otherwise valid, nondiscriminatory no-solicitation policy." Dissenting, Member Hurtgen maintains Albertson's did not discriminate against union activity because it drew "a line between (1) solicitations by charitable groups which are well known to the community and (2) solicitations by political groups, commercial groups which seek to sell goods or services, and charitable groups which are unknown to the community." . . . Page A-6 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7e1r7_ TYSON'S FAILURE TO FORM NONCOMPETE DOOMS TRADE SECRETS LAWSUIT Tyson Foods Inc.'s failure to protect its alleged trade secrets with a noncompetition agreement between it and three former executives doomed its lawsuit against the competing poultry producer to which the executives defected, the Supreme Court of Arkansas rules ("ConAgra Inc. v. Tyson Foods Inc., "Ark., No. 00-446, 11/16/00). The trial court erred in determining that it was inevitable that the executives would disclose Tyson's trade secrets to their new employer, ConAgra Inc., Judge Brown finds. Tyson, Brown says, failed to established that it had any secrets to protect because it had in place no protection against postemployment revelation of confidential information. The high court reverses the lower court's injunctions barring ConAgra from misappropriating any of Tyson's trade secrets, Jerry Dowd and John Curren from engaging in sales and marketing of poultry for one year, and Mike Hamblin from continuing a marketing relationship with certain clients. . . . Page A-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7d9a0_ DELAYED RETIREMENT NOT NECESSARY IF WORKERS SAVE MORE If workers' incomes continue to grow at a rate of a 1 percent to 2 percent over the next several decades, the workers can use those increases to finance longer, more comfortable retirements, an economist tells a group of researchers at a hearing sponsored by the Senate Special Committee on Aging. The population of older Americans continues to grow, causing increases in the costs of pensions, Social Security, and health benefits. However, worker productivity is likely to keep pace with those costs, according to Gary Burtless, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a Washington D.C.-based think tank. Because more women are in the workforce, he says, the amount of time Americans between the ages of 25 and 54 spend at work has risen in the last 30 years. The increased work hours can help pay for shorter hours and longer retirements after age 55. . . . Page A-10 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7b0u5_ COURT ENFORCES ARBITRATION AFTER SEVERING UNCONSCIONABLE PROVISION A plaintiff may be compelled to arbitrate her pregnancy discrimination claim under a binding pre-dispute arbitration agreement with her employer, even though a provision requiring her to bear all costs of court and administrative proceedings is unconscionable and must be severed from the rest of the agreement, the California Court of Appeal rules ("Shubin v. William Lyon Homes Inc.", Cal. Ct. App., No. A088858, 11/14/00). Relying on a recent California Supreme Court decision, the court holds that a provision in the arbitration agreement was illegal that required employees to pay all costs and fees for any court action brought by the employee, even if she prevailed. Such a clause "chills the exercise of the employee's right to legitimately pursue her claim before the [Department of Fair Employment and Housing]," the appeals court says. But that provision could be severed "without adversely affecting the central purpose of the contract," it says. . . . Page A-2 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6e9u8_ NEWSPAPER GUILD MEMBERS STRIKE SEATTLE DAILIES Some 1,000 news, business, advertising, and circulation employees at the"Seattle Times" and "Seattle Post-Intelligencer" strike the newspapers in a contract dispute over wages and other working conditions. Members of the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild reject a final contract offer from the employers and also vote against postponing the previously authorized strike, according to the first edition of the union's online newspaper, the "Seattle Union Record". Union members reject a final contract offer from the papers that included hourly increases that averaged 55 cents per year over a six-year period, the union says. . . . Page A-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7e0v9_ ________________ ALSO IN THE NEWS ________________ DISTRIBUTION: Employees at the Sears Roebuck & Co. distribution center near Wilkes-Barre, Pa., vote 318-267 for representation by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. . . . Page A-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6w0v2_ FOOD PROCESSING: Production workers at a ConAgra Foods Inc. beef processing plant in Omaha, Neb., reject by a 238-150 vote representation by the United Food and Commercial Workers. In a separate election, a small unit of maintenance workers at the plant vote 20-13 to join UFCW Local 271. . . . Page A-4 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6u5c2_ EMPLOYMENT: Regional and state unemployment rates were largely unchanged during October as 41 states and the District of Columbia reported employment shifts of 0.3 percentage points or less, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics says. . . . Page D-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6v2k8_ CANADIAN ECONOMY: The continued rise in energy prices produced a slight increase in Canada's national inflation rate to 2.8 percent in October, Statistics Canada reports. . . . Page A-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6v1e4_ _________________ TABLE OF CONTENTS _________________ LEADING THE NEWS SEXUAL HARASSMENT Judge approves $9 million agreement settling class allegations of sexual harassment at two Ford Motor Co. plants in Chicago area . . . Page AA-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6j1p5_ ____ NEWS ____ AGE DISCRIMINATION Seventh Circuit rules Illinois horse breeder that laid off 71-year-old seasonal farm worker due to decreased business is not liable for age discrimination . . . Page A-5 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r2j6q3_ AIRLINES Flight delays and cancellations due to mechanical problems increase at Northwest Airlines, one day after federal judge issued temporary restraining order against Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association . . . Page A-9 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7e4x5_ ARBITRATION California Court of Appeal rules employee must arbitrate pregnancy discrimination claim after severing unconscionable cost provision from agreement with employer . . . Page A-2 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6e9u8_ AUTOS UAW, Ford Motor Co., and Visteon Corp. roll out program for child and other family care services at 30 new community centers around country . . . Page A-10 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7e3y8_ CANADIAN ECONOMY Statistics Canada reports continued rise in energy prices produced slight increase in national inflation rate to 2.8 percent in October . . . Page A-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6v1e4_ DISTRIBUTION IBT gains majority support from workers at Sears, Roebuck & Co. distribution center near Wilkes-Barre, Pa. . . . Page A-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6w0v2_ ERISA Federal district court in New York rules ERISA does not preempt state law conversion claim against employees who allegedly diverted checks earmarked as 401(k) plan contributions . . . Page A-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7d6u3_ Key House Republicans come out in opposition to Labor Department's final rule designed to speed handling of group health plans' claims and appeals . . . Page A-11 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7h5p6_ FARM WORKERS UFW ends 16-year boycott of California table grapes, will devote more resources to organizing efforts . . . Page A-7 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7c6b2_ FOOD PROCESSING Production workers at ConAgra Foods Inc. beef processing plant in Omaha, Neb., reject representation by UFCW in NLRB-supervised election . . . Page A-4 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6u5c2_ INTERNATIONAL LABOR Transition to 35-hour workweek, new rules on overtime, fuel friction between French government officials and private-sector leaders . . . Page A-4 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6v1c6_ NEWSPAPERS Some 1,000 news, business, advertising, and circulation employees at "Seattle Times" and "Seattle Post-Intelligencer" strike newspapers in contract dispute over wages and other working conditions . . . Page A-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7e0v9_ PENSIONS PBGC to take over Duro-Test Corp. pension plans covering about 1,600 former employees of bankrupt lighting products manufacturer and wholesaler . . . Page A-11 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6w2c6_ POSTAL WORKERS U.S. Postal Service and two unions agree to continue negotiations on new labor contracts beyond Nov. 20 expiration of prior agreements . . . Page A-11 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7c7n2_ RETIREE BENEFITS Economist says longer, more comfortable retirements can be funded by 1 percent to 2 percent growth in workers' incomes over next several decades . . . Page A-10 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7b0u5_ SAFETY & HEALTH California appeals court rules independent contractor's employee cannot bring negligent hiring claim against firm that hired his employer because hiring firm's duty to employ a "competent and careful" contractor does not extend to employees of contractor . . . Page A-5 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r5c6e3_ TRADE SECRETS Arkansas Supreme Court rules confidential information Tyson Foods Inc. failed to protect with noncompetition agreements was not trade secret . . . Page A-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7d9a0_ UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES NLRB rules Albertson's Inc. committed unfair labor practices by barring members of two unions from distributing handbills outside 11 grocery stores in Oregon and Washington . . . Page A-6 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7e1r7_ _____________ ECONOMIC NEWS _____________ EMPLOYMENT Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics reports regional and state unemployment rates largely unchanged during October as 41 states and District of Columbia report shifts of 0.3 percentage point or less in jobless rates . . . Page D-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6v2k8_ TRADE Commerce Department says U.S. trade deficit in goods and services surged 15 percent to set new record of $34.3 billion in September . . . Page D-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7f6j4_ _______ JOURNAL _______ CONFERENCES & MEETINGS Calendar of meetings, courses, and seminars . . . Page dlz1 ______________ TABLE OF CASES ______________ Aircraft Mech. Fraternal Ass'n v. Northwest Airlines, Inc. (D.C. Minn.) . . . Page A-9 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7e4x5_ Albertson's Inc. (N.L.R.B.) . . . Page A-6 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7e1r7_ ConAgra Inc. v. Tyson Foods Inc. (Ark.) . . . Page A-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7d9a0_ Costigan & Co., P.C. v. Costigan (S.D.N.Y.) . . . Page A-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r7d6u3_ Minster v. Contadina Food Inc. (Cal. Ct. App.) . . . Page A-5 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r5c6e3_ Ritter v. Hill 'N Dale Farm Inc. (7th Cir.) . . . Page A-5 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r2j6q3_ Shubin v. William Lyon Homes Inc. (Cal. Ct. App.) . . . Page A-2 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6e9u8_ Warnell v. Ford Motor Co. (N.D. Ill.) . . . Page AA-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a3r6j1p5_ __________ Daily Labor Report (ISSN 1522-5968) Highlights are published daily by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., 1231 25th St., NW, Washington, DC 20037. For account information and changes, contact 1-800-372-1033 (M-F, 8:30 am-7:00 pm ET) To request retransmission or to order a copy of the summarized article, contact 1-800-452-7773 or e-mail bnaplus@bna.com. For copyright guidelines, go to http://www.bna.com/corp/copyright. Copyright © 2000 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc. Washington, D.C. 20037. Use of this service is subject to the terms and conditions of the license agreement with BNA. Unauthorized access or distribution is prohibited.
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