No. 10-2092
VERIZON NEW ENGLAND, INC.,
Plaintiff, Appellant,
v.
INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS,
LOCAL NO. 2322,
Defendant, Appellee,
INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS,
LOCAL NO. 2323,
Defendant.
APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS
[Hon. Richard G. Stearns, U.S. District Judge]
Before
Lynch, Chief Judge,
Torruella and Boudin, Circuit Judges.
Arthur G. Telegen, with whom John E. Duke and Seyfarth Shaw, LLP were on brief, for appellant.
Harold L. Lichten, with whom Timothy Belcher, Lichten & Liss-Riordan, P.C., Alfred Gordon, and Pyle Rome Ehrenberg, P.C. were on brief, for appellee.
June 30, 2011
This appeal arises from a denial of injunctive relief against a union under Boys Markets, Inc. v. Retail Clerks Union, Local 770, 398 U.S. 235 1970, and § 301 of the Labor-Management Relations Act LMRA, 29 U.S.C. § 185, as well as a denial of declaratory relief concerning actions previously taken by that union. We affirm the denial of injunctive relief, vacate the denial of declaratory relief, and remand.
Verizon New England, Inc. VNE alleges that the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 2322 the Union violated a collective bargaining agreement CBA no-strike clause on four occasions in 2008 and 2009. VNE argues that these acts were part of a pattern of behavior undercutting the arbitral process that warrants federal court relief. It alleges that the Union did not comply with the CBA when its members 1 made representations that the Union would fine members who brought required devices to work, 2 engaged in a short but concerted work stoppage, 3 coordinated refusals to volunteer for overtime work, and 4 protested at a VNE facility each morning for several weeks. VNE seeks injunctive relief and, in the alternative, declaratory relief in furtherance of the arbitral process.
The district court granted the Unions motion for summary judgment, finding that VNE had not shown future harm and declining to issue either injunctive or declaratory relief. Verizon New England, Inc. v. Local No. 2322, Intl . Bhd. of Elec. Workers, No. 09-10165-RGS, 2010 WL 3282605 D. Mass. Aug. 20, 2010. Because a Boys Markets injunction must meet the traditional standards for injunctive relief and because VNE has not, at this point, demonstrated irreparable injury, we find no abuse of discretion in the district courts denial of injunctive relief. However, because we believe the district court misapprehended the relevant legal standard for declaratory relief, we vacate the denial of that relief and remand for further consideration of the issue.