IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS
COUNTY OF SUMMIT
THOMAS E. LILLEY, et al. CASE NO. CV 91 08 2861
Plaintiffs JUDGE MURPHY
vs
SUMMIT COUNTY BOARD OF MENTAL JUDGMENT
RETARDATION AND DEVELOPMENTAL
DISABILITIES
and
ADMINISTRATOR, OHIO BUREAU OF
EMPLOYMENT SERVICES, et al.
Defendants
This cause came on before this Court upon the statutory appeal of
all of the Appell'ants under Ohio RevisedCode 4141.28(0).
Upon the transcript and the evidence presented by the parties, the
Court finds that all of the Appellants are members of the Weaver
Education Association or the Weaver Workshop and Support
Association. The Appellee, Summit County Board of Mental
Retardation and Developmental Disabilities, was their employer up
to and including the dispute herein. When negotiations for a new
contract came to an unsuccessful conclusion, the contract expired
August 31, 1990.
After the required notice the Appellants/employees notified the
employer/Appellee that they were to engage in a partial work
stoppage (half day) commencing September 17, 1990. This economic
sanction on the employer was authorized at that time by the State
Employment Relations Board. The employer/Appellee exceeded this
request initially and contacted another union, the Teamsters Union,
as drivers of the buses to bring the students to the school and
return them after class to see if their hours could be varied to
accommodate this partial work stoppage. The union for the bus
drivers would not or could not, and the employer/Appellee then
informed the Appellants that they would agree to extend the
contract on the same terms and conditions but that the daily
hours of employment had to remain the same and they could not
permit half day work stoppages.
Commencing September 17, 1990 and each day thereafter as long as
this dispute continued the Appellants appeared at their places of
work at 12:00 noon indicating they were ready, willing, and able to
perform their assigned duties. The employer then indicated to each
of these claimants that they would not be permitted to work or
furnish services for the remainder of that assigned shift. Each of
the claimants then filed with the Ohio Bureau of Employment
Services for unemployment compensation and were refused that
compensation in that "the claimants were unemployed as a result of
a labor dispute other than a lockout."
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
The most recent opinion of the Ohio Supreme Court in Bays v.
Shenango Company (1990), 53 Ohio St. 3d 132, appears to be
controlling. Definitions of "strike", "Iockout," and "labor
dispute" have been decided in separate cases. See, for example,
Leach v. Republic Steel Corporation 176 Ohio St. 221 and
Baker v. Powhatan Mining Company 146 Ohio St. 600.
When there is a cessation of work by the employees but not a
complete closing of the facilities and the employer offers to
continue the existing contract with the same terms and conditions,
the "Bays court" indicates a status quo test is to be
utilized. In other words, which side, union or management, first
refused to continue operations under the "status quo" after the
contract had technically expired. If the employer refused to
continue the contract under the same terms and conditions and
refused to allow the employees to work, it would clearly be a
lockout.
In the case at hand the Defendant/Appellee offered to maintain the
status quo and the Appellants refused by their conduct to except
those same terms and conditions while the negotiations proceeded
and, therefore, were not locked out of their employment. The scope
of the review in this case is whether the Court finds then that
that decision of the Defendant/Appellant was unlawful,
unreasonable, or against the manifest weight of the evidence, and I
find that it is not; and, accordingly, I am under the duty to
affirm that decision.
It is ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECREED that the issues herein are
here found to be in favor of the Defendant/ Appellees and the
complaint of the Plaintiff is hereby dismissed. Final judgment is
entered in accordance with the ruling of the Ohio Bureau of
Employment Services. It is so ordered.
JUDGE JAMES E. MURPHY
cc:
Attorney Ronald Macala
Administrator, Ohio Bureau of Employment Services
Board of Review, Ohio Bureau of Employment Services
Summit County Board of Mental Retardation and
Developmental Disabilities
Attorney Vincent J. Tersigni
pam 3/5/92
OW: 2861-JM1