Appendix — Carpenters 46 Northern California Counties Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee and Training Board v. Linda Eldredge
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APPENDIX A
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
Case No. 79-4482
LINDA ELDREDGE and CHRISTINE A. MAZUR,
individually and on behalf of all
others similarly situated,
Plaintiffs-Appellants,
Vv.
CARPENTERS 46 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
COUNTIES JOINT APPRENTICESHIP AND
TRAINING COMMITTEE,
De fendant-Appellee.
OPINION
Appeal from the United States District
for the Northern District of
California
Charles B. Kenfrew, District Judye,
Presiding.
Argued and Submitted: March 11, 1981
we
plications
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OPINION
Before FLETCHER and NELSON, Circuit
Judges, and KEEP*, District Judge.
FLETCHER, Circuit Judge:
This is an appeal from the district
court's order dismissing the action for
failure to join indispensable parties.
Fed. R. Civ. P. Fp, s The opinions are
reported at 20 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. 897
(N.D. Cal. 1979) and 440 F. Supp. 506
(N.D. Cal. i977). We reverse and remand.
I
FACTS
The facts underlying this suit are
recounted in great detail in the district
court opinion, 440 F. Supp. at 510-14, aM
and need only be summarized here. Plain-
tiffs Eldredge and Mazur hrought suit
* The Fonorable Judith N. | in
States District Judge for ae. ae
District of ae eine tong si eo a
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under Title VII, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2,
against the Carpenters 46 Northern
California Counties Joint Apprenticeship
and Training Committee (JATC), alleging
sex discrimination in the operation of
JATC's apprenticeship program. Plaintiffs
brought the suit as a class action, but
the district court has not yet considered
the question of class certification.
Defendant JATC is a joint labor-
management committee established under
an agreement that provides for a trust
fund contributed to by the parties to the
master collective bargaining agreements
in the Northern California construction
industry. JATC is composed of equal
numbers of labor and management represent- .
atives, and acts as a board of trustees
for the administration of the Carpenters
Apprenticeship and Training Trust Fund
for Northern California. It is responsi-
ble for establishing, supporting, and
aati ea
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A-3
maintaining programs to educate and train
journeymen and apprentices in all classi-
fications covered by any collective bar-
gaining agreement that requires employer
contributions to the trust fund. 440
F. Supp. at 510-11.
Plaintiffs al’? ye that the process
by which JATC selects applicants to its
apprenticeship training program discrim-
inates against women. Al‘hough JATC has
employed other selection procedures in
the past, see id. at 511-12, it presently
relies on what is known as the “unre-
stricted hunting license" system. Under
this system, an individual must first
convince an employer to hire him or her
as a beginning apprentice. JATC then
places the individual's name on its
applicant register. Id. at 512. The
applicant enters into an apprenticeship
agreement with JATC and is dispatched
through the union hiring hall. Id. An
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individual needs no prior trating to be-
come an apprentice; all that is required
is that he or she be 17 years of age and
have a high school diploma or its equiva-
lent. Id. at 5ll.
The master collective bargaining
agreements under which JATC operates re-
quire employers to hire one apprentice
for every five journeymen employed. The
apprenticeship is a four-year program.
Employers are under no obligation to hire
beginning as opposed to experienced ap-
prentices. Id. at 519. In May of 1976,
only thirteen of JATC's 3220 registered
apprentices were women. Id. at 514.
The essence of plaintiffs‘ complaint
is that, by relying on the unrestricted
hunting license system to recruit ap-
prentices, JATC has adopted an entrance
requirement for its program which is
known to have a discriminatory effect on
women. Plaintiffs argue that JATC knows
3
A-5
that individual employers do not hire
women under the unrestricted hunting
license system, and that JATC's use of
this system is therefore illegal under
Title VII. The district court assumed
for the purposes of its rule 19 analysis
that plaintiffs had stated a claim on
which relief could be granted. 440 F.
Supp. at 518 (citing Crockett v. Green,
388 F. Supp. 912 (E.D. Wis. 1975),
aff'd, 534 F.2d 715 (7th Cir. 1976).
The district court held that the
4500 employers and 60 union locals
covered by the master labor agreement,
or adequate representatives of their
interests, were indispensable to the
litigation under the standards imposed
by rule 19 (by. It ordered them joined
within 60 days. 440 F. Supp. at 527.
Plaintiffs were granted extensions of
time in which to explore the possibili-
ties for joinder, see 20 Fair Empl. Cas.
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at 898-99, but joinder of all 4500
employers proved impossible. The
plaintiffs then sought to join the
Northern California Homebuilders'
Conference (NCHBC) to represent the
absent employers' dike esis The court
held this inadequate and dismissed the
case. Id. at 900.” We conclude that
the employers are not necessary parties
under rule 19(a) and thus cannot be
indispensable parties under rule 19(b).
We reverse.
II
ANALYSIS
Rule 19 requires two separate
inguiries. First, are there persons who
should be joined, either because their
own interests or the interests of the
parties might be harmed by their absence?
Such persons, referred to as "necessary
parties," must be joined if feasible.
Fed. R. Civ. P. 19(a). Second, if parties
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A-7
determined to be necessary under rule 19
(a) cannot be joined, should the action
in “equity and good conscience" be dis-
missed? Only if the court determines
that the action should be dismissed is
the absent party labelled "indispensable."
Fed. R. Civ. P. 19(b); see English v.
Seaboard Coast Line Railroad, 465 F.2d 43,
48 (5th Cir. 1972).
The nature of the rule 19 inquiry is
described at some length in Provident
Tradesmens Bank & Trust Co. v. Patterson,
390 U.S. 102 (1968). The inquiry should
focus on the practical effects of joinder
and nonjoinder. Id. at 116 n.12;
Schutten v. Shell Oil Co., 421 F.2d 869,
874 (5th Cir. 1970). Rule 19 was revised
in 1966 to emphasize its practical focus
and to avoid the inflexible approach
taken by many courts under the prior ver-
sion of the rule. Id. at 871-74; see
Provident Tradesmens Bank & Trust Co. v.
A-8
Patterson, 390 U.S. at 106-07.
Rule 19(a) describes two categories
of persons who should be joined if feas-
ible. If the absent employers fall into
either of these two categories, they are
"necessary parties."
The first category comprises those
persons in whose absence "complete relief
cannot be accorded among those already
parties.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 19{a)(1). This
portion of the rule is concerned only with
“relief as between the persons already
parties, not as between a party and the
absent person whose joinder is sought.”
3A Moore's Federal Practice ¥ 19.07-1[1],
at 19-128(2d ed. 1980); accord, Morgan
Guaranty Trust Co. v. Martin, 466 F.2d
593, 598 (7th Cir. 1972). The district
court concluded that the absent employers
could frustrate any relief granted
against JATC, and that complete relief
would therefore not be possible unless
A-9
the employers were made parties. The
court reasoned that the employers could
defeat any order against JATC by refus-
ing to hire any apprentices, by hiring
only unregistered, nonunion apprentices,
or by rejecting all female apprentices
dispatched to them. 440 F. Supp. at
519-20. We believe that the district
court misapprehended the legal inquiry
required by rule 19(a) (1).
If JATC's activities violate Title
VII, a question not yet decided, then the
court has both the power and the duty to
enjoin those activities. The possibility
that such an injunction may induce employ-
ers to avoid JATC's services, or ultimate-
ly to disband the training and referral
system altogether, should not defeat the
present action against JATC. JATC may
not avoid its own liability for practices
illegal under Title VII by relying on the
employers' possible future conduct that
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A-10
might frustrate the remedial purposes of
any court-ordered changes in the appren-
ticeship program. See, e.g., United
States v. Sheet Metal Workers Local 36,
416 F.2d 123, 132 & n.16 (8th Cir. 1969)
(enjoining union from continuing discrimi-
natory referral practices, even though
those practices were required by collec-
tive bargaining agreement with absent
employers).
The district court appears to assume
that the employers would discriminate
against women because of their sex, and
that they would refuse to hire women
training in the apprentice program.
There is no evidence to this effect in
the record. On the contrary, the employ-
ers have previously participated, appar-
ently successfully. in a state-mandated
affirmative action program designed to
increase the number of minority appren-
tices. See 440 F. Supp. at 511-12.
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While it might be desirable to join
all 4500 employers in-order to eradicate
sex discrimination in the industry, we
conclude that relief on plaintiffs’
claims against JATC as an entity could be
afforded by an injunction against JATC
alone. Both sides agree that JATC has
the power under the trust fund agreement
to structure its apprenticeship program
in any way it sees fit. 440 F. Supp. at
510-11. It is quite possible that a
court-ordered restructuring of the pro-
gram could effectively increase the par-
ticipation of women in the apprentice-
ship program. See, e.g., EEOC v. Local
638, Sheet Metal Workers’ Union, 565 F.2d
31, 34-35 (2d Cir. 1977).
The second inquiry required by rule
19(a) concerns prejudice, either to the
absent persons or to those already parties.
Rule 19(a) (2) (i) provides that a person
should be joined if he claims an interest
A-12
relating to the subject of the action,
and the disposition of the action may “as
a practical matter impair or impede his
ability to protect that interest."
| The district court held that Ling”
employers should be joined since they
have a right to select their own employ-
ees, a substantial interest that they
have a right to speci We disagree.
The trust fund agreement grants full
authority to JATC to structure the ap-
prenticeship program and to select the
apprentices. We conclude that the employ-
ers have ’-» contract ceded to JATC what-
ever legally protectible interest they
may have had in selecting apprentices to
be trained. On the other hand, without
the joinder of the employers, any court
order that may be entered to enjoin JATC
to institute programs cannot go beyond
the authority granted JATC under the trust
fund agreement. The absent employers are
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A-13
thus assured that an injunction against
JATC will not trench on any rights re-
served to the employers under the agree-
ment. We must conclude that the employ-
ers‘ ability to protect whatever inter-
est in employee selection they retain
will not be “impaired or impeded" if
they are not made parties. They are
therefore not necessary parties under
rule 19(a) (2) (i).
The district court was understandably
concerned that the absent employers might
have interests that would be unrepresent-
ed in the present suit. Although we have
concluded that their interests are not
the sort that would make the employers
y necessary under rule 19, on remand it is
possible that some employers, or the
: NCHBC, may move to intervene. The dis-
i trict court may then consider whether to
4 permit intervention under Fed. R. Civ. s
4 P. au. See e.g., United States v.
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a ee "We hold that the trial court erred
"in dismissing the case for nonjoinder of
“necessary parties. (We REVERSE and REMAND
for further proceedings. |
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A-15
FOOTNOTES.
Rule 19 provides in pertinent
part:
(a) Persons to be Joined if
Feasible. A person who is subject
to service of process and whose
joinder will not deprive the court
of jurisdiction over the subject
matter of the action shall be joined
as a party in the action if (1) in
his absence complete relief cannot
be accorded among those already
parties, or (2) he claims an inter-
est relating to the subject of the
action and is so situated that the
dispositior: of the action in his
absence may (i) as a practical
matter impair or impede his ability
to protect that interest or (ii)
leave any of the persons already
perties subject to a subs<cantial
risk of incurring double, multiple,
or otherwise inconsistent obliga-
tions by reason of his claimed
interest. If he has not been so
joined, the court shall order that
he be made a party. If he should
join as a plaintiff but refuses to
do so, he may be made a defendant,
or, in a proper case, an involun-
tary plaintiff. If the joined
party objects to venue and his
joinder would render the venue of _ .
the action improper, he shall be
dismissed from the action.
(b) Determination by Court
Whenever Joinder not Feasible. If
a person as described in subdivision
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A-16
(a) (1)-(2) hereof cannot be made
a party, the court shall determine
whether in equity and good con-
science the action should proceed
among the parties before it, or
should be dismissed, the absent
person being thus regarded as in-
dispensable. The factors to be
considered by the court include:
first, to what extent a judgment
rendered in the person's absence
might be prejudicial to him or
those already parties; second,
the extent to which, by protec-
tive provisions in the judgment,
by the shaping of relief, or
other measures, the prejudice
can be lessened or avoided; third,
whether a judgment rendered in the
person's absence will be adequate;
fourth, whether the plaintiff will
have an adequate remedy if the
action is dismissed for nonjoinder.
The trial court also decided two
issues not raised in this appeal. It
held that the plaintiffs had exhaust-
ed their administrative remedies,
440 F. Supp. at 515-18, and that the
absent parties could be joined even
though they were not named in the
charge to the EEOC, id. at 524-26.
The NCHBC is a large employers’
organization which negotiated the
A-17
master labor agreement under which
JATC operates. Not all of the
employers who subscribe to the
master agreement belong to the
NCHBC. 20 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. at
899.
The plaintiffs also sought to
join the United Brotherhood of
Carpenters and Joiners of America,
the international, to represent the
union locals. The district court
did not decide whether the inter-
national could adequately repre-
sent the locals because it decided
that the action could not proceed
in any case. 20 Fair Empl. Prac.
Cas. at 899 n. 4.
The district court did not find
the employers necessary under rule
19(a)(2) (ii). See 440 F. Supp. at
522-24.
&/
4
A-18
Fed. R. Civ. P. 24 provides:
(a) Intervention of Right.
Upon timely application anyone
shall be permitted to intervene in
an action: (1) when a statute of
the United States confers an uncon-
ditional right to intervene; or
(2) when the applicant claims an
interest relating to the property
or transaction which is the sub-
ject of the action and he is so
situated that the disposition of
the action may as a practical
matter impair or impede his abil-
ity to protect that interest,
unless the applicant's interest
is adequately represented by
existing parties.
(b) Permissive Interven-
tion. Upon timely application
anyone may be permitted to inter-
vene in an action: (1) when a
statute of the United States con-
fers a conditional right to inter-
vene; or (2) when an applivant's
Claim or defense and the main
action have a question of law or
fact in common. When a party to
an action relies for ground of
claim or defense upon any statute
or executive order administered
by a federal or state governmentai
officer ev #vency or upon any regu-
lation, orser, requirement, or
agreement issued or made pursuant
to the statute or executive order,
the officer or agency upon timely
application may be permitted to
intervene in the action. In exer-
cising its discretion the court
shall consider whether the
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APPENDIX B
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
Case No. 79-4482
\\LINDA ELDREDGE and CHRISTINE A. MAZUR,
‘individually and on behalf of all
others similarly situated,
Plaintiffs-Appellants,
Vv.
CARPENTERS 46 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
COUNTIES JOINT APPRENTICESHIP AND
TRAINING COMMITTEE,
De fendant~-Appellees.
ORDER
Filed: February 8, 1982
ORDER
Before FLETCHER and NELSON, Circuit
#
Judges, and KEEP, District Judge.
This opinion filed November 4, 1981
is amended as follows:
On page 5755 of the slip opinion,
in the final paragraph, the first sen-
tence should be deleted and the
following sentence inserted in its stead:
The district court appears
to assume that the employers
would refuse to hire women
admitted tc the apprentice
program pursuant to any
judgment that may be
entered against JATC in
this suit.
The petition for rehearing is denied.
The full court has been advised of the
suggestion for en banc hearing, and no
judge of the court has requested a vote
Seal » ach
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Te Re CRE KORE Sane.
e , Case Ro. C-75-2062-CBR
LINDA ELDREDGE, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
e4 : vs.
CARPENTERS 46 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
COUNTIES JOINT APPRENTICESHIP AND
TRAINING |
« Filed: July 9, 1979
3
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This Court having ordered plain-
tiffs to join as parties defendant
certain employers and unions that the
Court determined to be indispensable
parties under Rule 19, and plaintiffs
having failed to satisfactorily comply
with the Court's order, and the Court
having filed a Memorandum of Opinion
on July 9, 1979,
IT IS HEREBY ADJUDGED that the ac-
tion is dismissed without prejudice
pursuant to Rule 41(b).
IT IS HEREBY FURTHER ADJUDGED that
the parties shall bear their own costs.
Dated: July 9, 1979.
/s/ Charles B. Renfrew
Charles B. Renfrew
United States District Judge
ENTERED IN CIVIL DOCKET 7/11, 1979
Case No. C-75-2062-CBR
Fai. LINDA ELDREDGE, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
oy : vs.
CARPENTERS 46 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
COUNTIES JOINT APPRENTICESHIP AND
TRAINING COMMITTEE,
oe jae Defendant.
MEMORANDUM OF OPINION
Filed July ¥, 1979
D-1
On September 30, 1975, plaintiffs
Linda Eldredge and Christine Mazur filed
this sex discrimination suit against de-
fendant Carpenters 46 Northern California
Counties Joint Apprenticeship and Train-
ing Committee ("JATC"), alleging that
defendant had violated Title VII of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C.
§$2000e-2(d). Defendant JATC is a joint
labor-management committee that serves
as a board of trustees responsible for
the administration of the Carpenters
Apprenticeship and Training Trust Fund
for Northern California. The trust fund
was created by a 1963 agreement among
representatives of various local unions
of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters
and Joiners of America (AFL-CIO and
various associations of contractors who
employ carpenters in Northern California.
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D-2
Pursuant to its authority under the
trust fund agreement, defendant JATC has
established a four-year apprenticeship
program leading to journeyman status upon
the completion of a specified number of
hours of classroom training and on-the-
job experience. In order to gain admis-
sion into a JATC training program, one
must obtain placement on a new applicant
referral list maintained by a district
office of the JATC and one must be re-
ferred to a job as a beginning appren-
tice.
There are two methods of obtaining
such a job referral. One approach is to
await referral in numerical order off
the new applicant referral lists. If an
employer calls a union dispatcher and
seeks a beginning apprentice without re-
questing a particular individual, the
next apprentice on the JATC's referral
list will be referred. In their
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D-3
original complaint, plaintiffs alleged
that the JATC had violated Title VII
through engaging in discriminatory prac-
tices in the placement of women on the
new applicant referral lists. Plaintiffs
claimed that they had been treated less
favorably than male applicants when seek-
ing placement on such lists.
Applicants rarely obtain jobs through
numerical referral, however, for employ-
ers very seldom call in for a beginning
apprentice without requesting a particu-
lar individual. The vast majority of
those admitted to the JATC training pro-
gram obtain a job referral through the
"hunting license” method, which enables
an individual to seek employment on his
own. After finding a contractor willing
to employ him as an apprentice for at
least 60 days, an individual may ohtain
a letter of subscription signed by that
employer, place his name on the new
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applicant referral list, and then be dis- a
patched to work for that employer.
After discovery in this suit revealed
the unlikelihood of receiving a numerical
referral off the new applicant referral
lists, both plaintiffs unsuccessfully
attempted to find employment through the
“hunting license” method. They then
amended their complaint to ailege that
defendant's maintenance of this alter-
native method of securing job referrals
violates Title VII. The amended complaint
alleges that employers’ discrimination
against women operates thorugh [sic] the
“hunting license” system to exclude women
from apprenticeships.
Following plaintiffs’ amendment of
their complaint, the Court concluded that
calitornia, ste. 110 F- Supp. 306 OLB.
i A more detailed explanation of the '
factual background of of [sic] this case Ry
is provided in the Court's earlier opin- ~
D-5
since the numerical referral method plays
such a minor role in the job referral
system, plaintiffs' efforts to obtain re-
lief that would increase women's chances
of gaining admission to defendant's ap-
prenticeship program should be directed
at the “hunting license” system rather
than the numerical referral method. In
fact, the remedy plaintiffs propose did
involve elimination of the “hunting
license" system:
"Plaintiffs have not specified
the precise system they seek to
have instituted, but it is plain
that they envision a system re-
guiring an employer who wishes
to hire a beginning apprentice
to contact the union local and
enter a request without naming
any individual, whereupon the
union would be required to dis-
patch an applicant selected by
the JATC by means of one of
anumber Sow of non-discrimi-
natory techniques. Eldred
v. Carpenters 46 Northern Cali-
fornia, etc. 440 F.Supp. 506,
514 (N.D.Cal. 1977). (footnote
omitted).
D-6
Thus, the relief contemplated would
substantially alter the present sys-
tem of hiring beginning apprentices.
In order to grant effective
relief and to enable the employers
to protect their interest in select-
ing their own employees, this Court
ordered that the affected employers
be joined as indispensable parties
under Rule 19.7
440 F.Supp. at 519-
527. In so doing, the Court recog-
nized the substantiality of the
employers’ interest in preserving
the present hiring system:
///
///
2 Although the Court was primar-
ily concerned with the need to join
the employers, the Court also con-
cluded, for reasons set forth in the
earlier opinion, that the local
unions that refer applicants regis-
tered with JATC to employment should
be considered indispensable parties.
Eldredge, supra, 440 F.Supp. at 524.
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D-7
"Even where there are no objec-
tive qualifications for a job,
the interest of an employer in
selecting those who, for any
non-discriminatory reason, he
believes to be more highly mo-
tivated or more compatible with
his existing work force, is not
an insubstantial one. * * * It
is no doubt true that the
*"unstandardized and subjective"'
judgments presently being made
""lend themselves to arbitrary
and discriminatory hiring'"
[citations omitted], and plain-
tiffs have suggested that such
results have occurred in this
case. Nevertheless, the em-
ployers are entitled to their
day in court to contest these
allegations before the Court
issues an order abolishing the
prerogatives they presently
enjoy." 440 F.Supp. at 522.
This Court concludes that the employ-
er contributors to the trust fund and the
socal unions that refer applicants re-
gistered with JATC to employment were in-
dispensable parties in whose absence the
action could not in equity and good con-
science proceed. On November 3, 1977,
the Court ordered that if such parties
were not joined within sixty days or
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D-8
within such further time as the Court
might, on good cause shown, allow, the
action would be dismissed, Eldredge,
supra, 440 F.Supp. at 527.
Plaintiffs’ Motion to Join Addi-
tional Parties Defendant.
Plaintiffs have engaged in extensive
discovery in order to determine which em-
ployers and unions should be joined and
whether certification of defendant clas-
ses or joinder of employers’ associations
and the international union might serve
as an alternative means of complying with
the Court's order. In order to afford
plaintiffs sufficient time to obtain and
analyze the voluminous data relating to
the affected employers and local unions,
the Court granted an extension of the
time limit originally set for effecting
soinder.
3 The Court first granted an exten-
sion of the time limit to April 2, 1978,
and later granted a further (continued)
' D-9
He. Plaintiffs have moved to amend their
4
complaint to join the Northern California
Homebuilders’ Conference ("NCHBC"), an
employers’ association, and the United
Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of
America, the international union, as
additional parties defendant. Defendant
JATC seeks dismissal of the action argu-
: ing that joinder of these parties does
not comply with the Court's cde of
November 3, 1977. The most significant
objection raised by defendant is that
plaintiffs have failed to establish that
the NCHBC could adequately protect the
interests of all employers invotved in
the JATC apprenticeship program. Al-
though plaintiffs emphasize that NCHBC
negotiates the lead collective bargain-
ing agreement governing carpentry in
extension allowing plaintiffs through
eg January 1, 1979, to join additional
parties defendant.
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2 Ae “4 : ‘ f. ¥y ~ tte: : w Tae ‘ aS
<> 2 ota ee. ose, re ee - > abet £ - Te a few Ne
=o ae
ay
- ote, tn eee
D-10
Northern California, this fact alone does
not establish that NCHBC could represent
the interests of the numerous employers
who would be affected by a court order
directing the JATC to institute a new job
referral system. Since many of the af-
fected employers are not even members of
the NCHBC, but are represented by other
contractors’ associations or are inde-
pendent contractors, joinder of NCHBC
does not fully satisfy the Court's con-
cerns regarding representation of the
employers’ interest in preserving the
present hiring system. Plaintiffs con-
sider NCHBC “the part most capable of
representing employer interests." Yet
even assuming that NCHBC is the single
party most capable of representing the
employer interests at stake here, which
plaintiffs have not shown, the Court is
not persuaded that joinder of this one
contractors’ association is a satisfactory
. a 5s ‘ x ~ » > . * fe 3 a
Mees . OE RUNES ELE ey PERNT REE TS. MPa aes
Red Cee Se Pee ee ee eee eet” a Oe OP, eee a Ae ee ee oe aR ipa
substitute for joinder of the individual
employers who would be affected by the
proposed decree. Furthermore, the de-
Cclaration submitted by Mr. Wesley Sizoo,
an attorney for NCHBC, in support of
JATC's opposition to plaintiffs' motion
to amend, states that no employer or mem-
ber organization of NCHBC has consented
to have NCHBC appear on its behalf in
this action. Plaintiffs have not con-
tradicted the statement that NCHBC is not
authorized to represent the employer in-
terests here, nor have they provided the
Court with a basis for concluding that
NCHBC could effectively represent those
interests.
The Court therefore finds that plain
tiffs have not adequately complied with
the Court's order of November 3, 1977,
insofar as it directed joinder of the em-
ployer contributors to the Carpenters
Apprenticeship and Training Trust Fund “a
hie i's ne aaa
D-12
for Northern California. *
Accordingly,
the action must be dismissed under Rule
41(b) for failure to comply with the
Court's order directing joinder of in-
dispensable parties.
Defendant's Motion for Attorneys’
Fees and Costs
Defendant JATC seeks an award of
costs and an award of attorneys' fees
for the period following the Court's
November 3, 1977 opinion. In support
of the motion for attorneys’ fees, de-
fendant relies primarily” on
4 Since the case must be dismissed
for failvre to join the affected em-
ployers, it is unnecessary to consider
whether plaintiffs’ proposed joinder of
the international union would serve as
an adequate substitute for joinder of
the affected local unions.
5 In addition, defendant apparently
contends that 28 U.S.C. §1927, which
permits the Court to require an attorney
personally to satisfy excess costs in-
curred because of the attorney's un-
— ‘and apts. (continued)
i& i Me
ie _ ea ele ute AS ATL es ie ae
Biss. r
fs
es ur i Ae ; ‘ we es mT Faye
D-13
Christianburg Garment Co. v. E.E.0O.C.,
attorney's fees.
Me ate Ware’ axe ll 7 .
vs soi Fe. ‘5 tx he A os i? r ’
f , . eI ty ws tha* - 3 > b *. . t? * i?
a ’ wre ee. - Se a] ‘ wk 5 * Pua F s ; ae ‘ ar. .
le eer Se ge ee Pt, ete “aed ee ae oe ae ee ee “Fy ie. oe set . Ge SS.
434 U.S. 412, 421 (1977), in which the
Supreme Court held:
"({A] district court may in
its discretion award attor-
ney's fees to a prevailing
defendant in a Titie VII
case upon a finding that the
plaintiff's action was fri-
volous, unreasonable, or
without foundation, even
though not brought in sub-
jective bad faith.”
Defendant asserts that plaintiffs pro-
ceeded in an unreasonable and frivolous
litigation, could serve in a Title VII
suit as a basis for imposing liability
on the attorney for attorneys’ fees in-
curred because of such unreasonable con-
duct. This argument is based on the
provision in Title VII permitting the
court to award the prevailing party "a
reasonable attorney's fee as part of
Since the plaintiffs‘ attorney in this
case did not act so unreasonably that
costs could be imposed under 28 U.S.C.
§1927, defendant's argument need not be
considered, yet the Court notes that it
would be very difficult to construe 28 |
U.S.C. §1927 as authorizing an award of ‘<
Sy
D-14
manner by engaging in extensive discovery
regarding the identity of those employers,
employers’ associations, and labor organi-
zations that are involved with the JATC
apprenticeship program and by then moving
to amend the complaint to join NCHBC and
the international union, rather than in-
dividual employers and the local unions.
Defendant views plaintiffs’ proposed
joinder of these two parties as an un-
reasonable failure to make use of the
information obtained through discovery
and states that plaintiffs have acted in
total disregard of the reasoning of the
Court's November 3, 1977 opinion.
Although plaintiffs’ proposed second
amended complaint does not adequately
comply with the Court's order regarding
indispensable parties, plaintiffs have
not proceeded in a manner that could be
categorized as “frivolous,” justifying
an award of attorneys’ fees. Rather,
BP FS, eer
Noe
oe
D-15
they have attempted to comply with the
Court's order in the face of great dif-
ficulties arising from the fact that the
affected employers are so numerous that
it is impractical to join them all as
individual defendants. Plaintiffs can-
not be faulted for considering joining
contractors’ associations in lieu of
employers, as this alternative was re-
ferred to in the Court's earlier opinion
and not conclusively rejected. Eldredge,
supra, 440 F.Supp. at 526-527.
Defendant's memorandum regarding the
requested award of costs and attorneys'
fees does not specifically address the
issue of costs, yet it seems to assume
that where a case is dismissed due to
plaintiffs' failure to join indispens-
able parties the defendant should be
considered a "prevailing party" within
- D-16
the meaning cf Rule 54(a).° Certainly
defendant JATC is not a “prevailing party”
in the sense of having successfully de-
fended the suit on the merits, nor is
this a case where plaintiffs voluntarily
dismissed the suit.’ Even assuming that
defendant JATC should be considered a
"prevailing party,” Rule 54(d) does not
6 Federal Rule of Civil Procedure
54(d) provides, in relevant part:
"Except when express pro-
vision therefor is made either
in a statute of the United
States or in these rules, costs
shall be allowed as of course
to the prevailing party unless
the court otherwise directs ***,"
7 In Corcoran v. Columbia Broadcast-
sng System, Inc., 121 F.2d 575 (9 Cir.
1), Court of Appeals for the
j Ninth Cireuit considered the meaning of
the term “prevailing party” as used in
;, a statutory provision governing an award
BY of attorneys’ fees. The court concluded
: that the defendant was a "prevailing
2 party” although the case had not gone to
*f trial on the merits. Since the plain-
‘y tiff had poy mage Baenate 99 the suit,
¥ the defendant was prevailing party
“within the spirit and intent of the
statute.” 121 F.2d at 576.
—) eee he
. SL Rs Or
“ew -
sd .
: a> P
‘
— peal bo ’
; : ia nd Fe 4 : it
. : Tt . 4
: 3 Marty Pate bs 9) Peer i | Wey |
. ‘ ae oe ie ; | Aste CMe PAT
= eos } erst BPE Bhs AS ER ba ee BR od es 03 8 are : : ef) ieee |
Nidan. « Sa See, “CY Me FU they pas eet ot oa heed PURER Cees’ | TST te Ay bee tee | |:
compe 1 an award of costs. The rule pro-
vides that "costs shall be allowed as of
course to the prevailing party unless
the court otherwise directs." In this
case the most equitable resolution of
this matter is to have each side bear
its own costs. Plaintiffs have diligent-
ly though unsuccessfully attempted to
comply with the Court's order requiring
joinder of indispensable parties. The
Rule 19 issue that arose in this case
presented complex legal questions and
particularly difficult practical prob-
lems because of the factual setting of
this suit. This is not a case where
defendant can be said to have “prevailed”
in the usual sense. Rather, considera-
tions of equity prevented the suit from
continuing without the joinder of par-
ties who as a practical matter could
Gf ‘seers © vew ee.
{4
¢
a.
aad ee
D-18
not be joined. The Court of Appeals
for the Ninth Circuit has stated that
8 While the Court is convinced the
result reached here is required for the
reasons set forth above, it is nonethe-
less troubled by the seemingly harsh
result. Counsel for plaintiffs have
devoted a substantial amount of time
and effort in vigorously prosecuting
this case. Because the Court is de-
sirous that women be afforded equal
opportunities in all areas of employ-
ment, including the construction in-
dustry, the Court asked counsel for JATC
at a status conference in chambers wheth-
er JATC would take every step to in-
sure that women would be given every
opportunity to be employed as carpen-
ters. In a proposed statement submit-
ted to the Court and counsel for plain-
tiffs, defendant JATC “reaffirm[ed]
{its} desire and intention to exert
[its] best efforts to assist women in
becoming more active and involved in
the carpentry craft through greater
participation in the carpenter appren-
ticeship program. The JATC will com-
municate’ with participating carpenter
local unions and with individual em-
ployers and employer associations to
make them aware of the opportunities
for employing female apprentices, and
will encourage individual employers
to hire qualified female apprentices.
It is the intention that these ef-
forts will result in an awareness of
individual employers (continued)
a re
Bes
bn sai to
D-19
“the awarding of [costs under Rule 54(d)]
is discretionary with the trial judge.”
K-2 Ski Company v. Head Ski Co., 506 F.2d
471, 476-477 (9 Cir. 1974). The Court
concludes that in this case discretion
should be exercised to deny the award of
costs sought by defendant JATC.
Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED
that plaintiffs’ motion to join addition-
al parties defendant is denied, and the
case is dismissed without prejudice pur-
suant to Rule 41(b) on the ground that
plaintiffs have failed to comply with the
Court's order to join indispensable
to the employment of women and a sub-
stantiel increase in the number of
females enrolled in the apprenticeship
program." The Court expects that de-
fendant JATC will adopt this statement
and exercise its best efforts toward
these laudable goals. Hopefully the
ultimate relief sought by plaintiffs
may be obtained by this informal method.
‘
“5 Aw .a”
ies Vind
D-20
: parties.
: IT IS HEREBY FURTHER ORDERED that
defendant's motion for an award of
attorneys’ fees and costs is denied, and
the parties shall bear their own costs.
Dated: July 6, 1979.
/s/ Charles B. Renfrew
arles B. Renfrew
United States District Judge
as
.
Sei :
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Sp OTA? Ole EES, A ee ee RS ee ge Oy en ee ee , 2a°r a an? Lae te -2
eee es Oe Te ee ee ae et
«
; APPENDIX E -
: UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
t
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
Case No. C-75-2062-CBR
LINDA ELDREDGE, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
vs.
CARPENTERS 46 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
COUNTIES JOINT APPRENTICESHIP AND
TRAINING COMMITTEE,
Defendant.
AMENDED MEMORANDUM OF OPINION
Filed: November 3, 1977
5.
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By:
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E-1
Plaintiffs Linda Eldredge and
Christine A. Mazur filed this sex dis-
crimination action on September 30, 1975.
The complaint alleged that the defendant
Carpenter 46 Northern California Coun«
ties Joint Apprenticeship and Training
Committee ("JATC") had violated Title
VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,
42 U.S.C. §2000e-2(d), by denying female
applicants equal opportunity for place-
ment on the new applicant referral lists
used to supply names to union dispatch-
ers for referral of applicants to jobs
as beginning apprentices. Plaintiffs
sought preliminary relief; certification
of a class composed of all women who ap-
plied to the JATC for placement on those >
lists between August 18th and 29th,
1975;2 orders requiring the JATC to
aS.
1 Plaintiffs have not amended the
complaint to allege any larger class.
However, they state in (continued)
SEA hy
E-2
place and refer applicants in the order
in which they apply and to establish an
affirmative action program for women;
damages including back pay; and costs of
suit.
Plaintiffs' motion for a temporary
restraining order was denied on October
3, 1975. Although the Court simulta-
neously ordered the defendant to show
cause why a preliminary injunction
should not issue, a hearing on that
order was withdrawn from the calerdar
pursuant to a stipulation and order on
December 30, 1975. On July 16, 1976,
defendant noticed a motion to dismiss
the action or for summary judgment; on
August 26, 1976, plaintiffs noved to
eae
their Memorandum in Support of Plain-
tiffs' Motion to Certify Action as a
Class Action, filed August 26, 1976,
at 1, that the class is to include all
women who were discriminatorily denied
admission to defendant's apprentice-
ship and training program at any time
since August of 1973.
wy
os
se
Bis.
amend their complaint, for class certi-
fication, and for summary judgment.
Each of these motions was extensively
briefed by both parties, and oral argu-
ments were heard on September 16, 1976.
On September 30th, plaintiffs’ motion to
amend the complaint was granted, and an
amended complaint was filed February 10,
1977. The principal effects of the
amendment were to delete the prayer for
damages and preliminary relief, and to
add new allegations of discrimination.
In addition to the alleged discrimina-
tion in placement on referral lists,
plaintiffs now allege that defendant's
system for referring new applicants to
the job necessary for admission into ap-
prenticeship, under which the vast majo-
rity of new applicants are referred not
in numerical order off lists but as they
are requested by name by contractor-
employers, is itself discriminatory in
a
ae
- ee
: 4 »
, teint £ As rae
E-4
effect. Since the amended complaint al-
leges that illegal effects result from
the operation of a system in which par-
ties not before the Court are intimately
involved, the Court on February 10, 1977,
requested the submission of further fac-
tual information and briefing relating
to defendant's suggestion that employers
and labor unions in the Northern Cali-
fornia carpentry trade are indispensable
parties to the action. (Memorandum in
Opposition to Plaintiffs‘ Motion for
Summary Judgment, filed September 9,
1976, at 6-7.) Defendant filed a memo-
randum on this point on March 18, 1977,
to which plaintiffs responded on May 9th.
The issues presently before the
Court are (1) whether the action must be
dismissed for failure to exhaust state
and administrative remedies; (2) whether
all necessary parties as defined by Rule
19, Fed.R.Civ.P., are presently before
E-5
the Court; (3) whether class certifica-
tion is appropriate; and (4) the cross
motions for summary judgment. For the
reasons set forth below, the Court con-
Cludes that plaintiffs have exhausted
their remedies within the meaning of
Title VII, but that the affected employ-
ers and unions must be joined prior to
any further disposition of the case.
I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND
Defendant JATC is a joint labor-
management committee composed of equal
numbers of employer and employee repre-
sentatives. The committee serves as
board of trustees responsible for the
administration of the Carpenter Appren-
ticeship and Training Trust Fund for
Northern California ("Fund"), which was
created by a 1963 agreement ("trust fund
agreement") among representatives of
various local unions of the United
Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of
Ye,
E-6
America (AFL-CIO) and various associa-
tions of contractors who employ carpen-
ters in Northern California. The agree-
ment grants the defendant, as board of
trustees, “the power and duty * * * to
establish, support or maintain programs
* * * for the purpose of educating and
training persons as journeymen or ap-
prentices” in all classifications
covered by any collective bargaining
agreement requiring employer contribu-
2
tions to the Fund. To meet this obli-
gation, defendant has developed a set of
2 The Northern California carpentry
trade is governed by two master agree-
ments which are identical in all re-
spects relevant to this action. Carpen-
ters Master Agreement and Hiring Proce-
dures between the Northern California
Home Builders Conference et al. and the
Carpenters 46 Northern Courties Con-
ference Board, Exhibit 11 to the deposi-
tion of Charles F. Hanna, filed August
26, 1976; Carpenters’ Master Agreement
(1974-1977) between the Associated
General Contractors of California, Inc.,
et al. and the United (continued)
E-7
apprenticeship standards and established
e four-year apprenticeship program lead-
ing to journeyman status upon the com-
pletion of a specified number cf hours
of classroom training and on-the-job ex-
perience. The procedures for selecting
among applicants to enter this program
are the subject matter of this suit.
No selection procedures are speci-
fied in either the trust fund agreement
or the relevant collective bargaining
agreements. Authority to establish such
procedures in each of 43 local regions
Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of
America, Exhibit 12 to the deposition of
Charles F. Hanna, supra ("Master Agree-
ments"). Individual @mployers neither
participate in negotiations nor sign
these agreements. Instead, they sign
brief Memorandum Agreements by which they
agree to comply with a master agreement,
to contribute to various trust funds,
including the apprenticeship and train-
ing trust fund, in the amounts speci-
fied in the master agreement, and to be
bound by all obligations imposed by the
corresponding trust fund agreements.
has been delegated to separate ) <al
Joint Apprenticeship and Training Com-
mittees ("local JATC's"). However,
those local bodies are required to oper-
ate within the framework of policies
adopted by the defendant, and most ad-
ministrative tasks are performed by
defendant's ten District Offices. Until
1974, procedures varied from region to
region, but in that year defendant in-
stituted a program imposing uniform
selection procedures designed to bring
all 46 counties governed by the trust
fund agreement into compliance with pro-
visions of state and federal law requir-
ing joint apprenticeship comrittees to
adopt affirmative action plans to in-
crease the number of minorities in the
trade.> The new procedures were
3 See Secretary of Labor, Regulations
on Equal Employment Opportunity in Ap-
prenticeship Training (continued)
- ee
Cea eee a ee eS eee ee eee
embodied in “Annex C-1," an Equal Oppor-
tunity Addendum to the Carpenters 46
Northern California Counties Apprentice-
ship Standards, and were approved by the
California Administrator of Apprentice-
ship. Local JATC's operated according
to Annex C-1 until November 18, 1976,
when the Santa Clara County Federation
of Joint Apprenticeship and Training
Committees obtained state approval of an
"amended C-1." The majority of local
JATC's have subsequently shifted to the
amended C-1 upon findings by the Admini-~
strator of Apprenticeship that they have
met their quotas for minorities. However,
29 C.F.R. Part 30 (1976); Cal.Labor Code
§§3070 et seq. and 3076 (West Supp. 1977);
Cal.Adm. T. 8, Part 1, Ch. 2, §§200
ct sed. Although California law was re-
cently amended to require joint appren-
ticeship committees to set goals for
women, the precise requirements and en-
forcement procedures of those new provi-
sions are as yet unclear. Neither party
relies on state law in this action.
Y
ayia
4
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E-10
a few are still operating under the ori-
ginal Annex C-1. |
Under both the original and the
amended Annex C-1, the qualifications
and requirements for admission to ap-
prenticeship are the same: to be quali-
fied, an applicant mat be at least 17
years of age and have a high school
diploma, G.E.D., or equivalent; to gain
admission, he must obtain a position on
a new applicant referral list wikitatunil
by a local JATC and a referral slip from
a local union dispatching him to a job
as a beginning apprentice. Once an ap-
plicant has satisfied both the listing
and the job requirements, he may sign an
apprenticeship agreement at one of de-
fendant's district offices, join the
union local, and attain the status of
“registered” or “indentured" apprentice
eligible for classroom training under
JATC auspices. All subsequent job
;
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oF [ES hn Be 1 sf fee ies
eth h A 4 es
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,
E-11 | a
referrals for registered apprentices are
handled exclusively by the union locals
pursuant to collective bargaining agree-
ments. JATC participation in such pro-
cedures is limited to the referral of
new applicants to their first jobs.
The original Annex C-1 provides for
a “closed list” system of first refer-
rais. Only applicants listed on an ex-
isting new applicant referral list are
eligible for referral, and placement on
that list may only be obtained during
limited open periods selected by the
local JATC's. Forty-five days prior to
a scheduled opening, the local JATC sends
announcements to news media, schools,
employment services, outreach programs,
and others specifying the date and time
of the opening, the duration of the ‘oe
period, and the procedure for applying.
At the specified time, applicants line .
up at the designated District Office and a
E-12
are given appointments to return and sign,
in the order in which they appeared, the
“applicant register" for the local JATC
from which they desire to be referred.
The names of those who are qualified are
placed on the new applicant referral
list in that order up to a maximum of
one and one-half times the estimated
number of persons to be referred during
the referral period. The list is re-
viewed by a district coordinator for
compliance with affirmative action goals,
posted, and distributed to local union
dispatchers. Applicants named thereon
remain in the pool of those eligible for
referral for two years, and may be re-
ferred in two ways. First, each appli-
cant is given a letter of subscription
or “hunting license," which he may use
to seek employment on his own. When he
finds a contractor willing to employ him
as a registered apprentice for at least
=
ya
te: saad
E-13
sixty days, that employer's signature on
the letter will upon presentation to the
union dispatcher entitle the applicant
to a referral slip. Second, an appli-
cant may await placement off the new ap-
plicant referral list simply by keeping
the JATC apprised of a telephone number
where he can be reached within 24 hours.
When an employer calls the union dis-
patcher and requests a beginning appren-
tice without specifying any particular
individual, the dispatcher obtair. from
the JATC District Office the name of
the first ranking applicant in numerical
order on the list and issues a referral
slip for that person. After receiving a
referral slip by either method, the ap-
plicant is indentured.
Although the original C-1 provided
considerable room for employer judgment
in the selection of new apprentices, it
generated dissatisfaction among employers
?
5 4 ¥ ; Be. Nee : ~ i
< > > . : M peat OME Pays _ . - ee a.
Mee Es ae DS ee ee “ee roy ae ae
ee aE eS ee a gee Me ee Mee ae SES Roe
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E-14
because it restricted the use of the
hunting license and thus the potential
apprentices available for hire to those
named on an established list. This ob-
jection provided the impetus for adop-
tion of the amended C-1, which estab-
lishes an "open list” or "unrestricted
hunting license” procedure. An appli-
cant must still obtain a position on the
new applicant referral list prior to in-
denture, but he may do so at any time
and regardless of the number of appli-
cants already on the list. Thus, any
individual, whether or not listed with
the JATC in advance, may obtain a let-
ter of subscription signed by an employ-
er, place his name on the applicant
register, enter into an apprenticeship
agreement, and be dispatched to work as
a registered apprentice forthwith. The
only significance of the list under this
system is that the rare employer who
" mat 4 > “ -
Fg Se MP De 4 ae By ior oe Aer, sie
ei, a AL pS NP ae eT? A Bees ana SR My: SS eS, RE
E-15
calls in for a beginning apprentice with-
‘it naming an individual will receive
the applicant highest in numerical order
on that list. It is not disputed that
employers are reluctant to hire new ap-
prentices by this method, sight unseen.
Of 288 new applicants referred to jobs
from the implementation of Annex C-1 un-
til June of 1976, only six, or two per
cent [sic], obtained jobs in this way.
Plaintiffs were not aware until mid-
1976 of the near futility of awaiting
numerical referral off the new applicant
referral lists. Believing high place-
ment on the list to be crucial to entry
into defendant's program, each plain-
tiff lined up outside a JATC District
Office at midnight on August 17, 1975,
nine hours before the scheduled opening
for applications. Ms. Eldredge thereby
obtained the eighth position in line
outside the District 5 (San Francisco)
Oe Pe:
‘ethe
sie at ye ae < ¢ 3 fee ie Te SA ae lk. -_ Se ew ~~
E-16
Office and Ms. Mazur obtained the eighth
position outside the District 8 (Marti-
nez) Office. Ms. Eldredge and Ms. Mazur
did subsequently receive the correspond-
ing eighth positions on local JATC new
applicant referral lists at San Fran-
cisco and Martinez, respectively. How-
ever, each plaintiff alleges that she
encountered an “atmosphere of discri-
mination that was hostile and dis-
couraging tc women" during the applica-
tion process.
Specifically, Ms. Eldredge states
that the first person in line at San
Francisco, a woman, was originall given
the number two appointment slip to re-
turn and sign the applicant register.
The error was corrected at the request
of the woman, but when she returned to
sign, she did so over a long strip of
white tape which had been placed over
the number one spot. Ms. Eldredge
seri me © i
Spee tn or me i Seana oe, @ ie: ee oe ee ae a. Sek see Cre” eee” ee
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E-17
further alleges that Percy Long, Appren-
ticeship Coordinator for District 5, was
evasive in answering her questions as to
how applicants were placed on new appli-
cant referral lists and how they would
be referred to jobs.
Ms. Mazur states that she applied
at the Martinez District Office speci-
fically in order to obtain referrals for
the Richmond area, where she understood
new apprentices were in greater demand,
and that she was deprived of the oppor-
tunity to sign the Richmond register
when District 8 personnel failed to in-
form her and other women in line that
two separate sets of numbered appoint-
ment slips were being distributed: one
for applicants who wished to sign the
Martinez local JATC applicant rv y.ster,
and the other for those who wished to
sign the Richmond local register. Arlis
Paslay, Supervisor of the District 8
E-18
Apprenticeship Program, announced to 2
those in line that anyone from the Rich-
mond, El Sobrante, or San Pablo area
should obtain appointment slips from his
secretary while those from Eastern
Contra Costa County should do so from
him. Although Ms. Mazur heard the an-
nouncement, she attached no significance
to it in light of her Oakland residence,
and as a result obtained the number
eight appointment slip for Martinez from
Mr. Paslay. When she returned to sign
the register, she learr.ed for the first
time of the Richmond register but was
told she could not sign until after all
those with Richmond appointment slips
had done so. Because two men who were
behind Ms. Mazur in line and who simi-
larly were unaware of the existence of
two sets of slips were permitted to sign
the Richmond register in fourth and
fifth positions, plaintiff feels there
sot
Lan en 5 = age
> aes ey Me Ae hy Se ee me, ee ae ae SE
2 ees * Pe a ~ « % ee Pa hana al eee. a « re i :
hee ae eR i pa
* ye eer
Oy is ae
E-19
thas been differential treatment on the
ba ‘basis of sex. However, neither man re-
members clearly how he came to sign the
Richmond register, and both are resi-
dents of San Pablo. Deposition of Joe
A. Silveira, filed Feb. 24, 1976, at 6,
14-21; Deposition of Victor Louro, fil-
‘4 ed Feb. 24, 1976, at 6, 13-17. There is
no evidence to suggest that either ob-
tained his position on the Richmond
register by anything but routine appli-
cation of the procedure described by Mr.
Paslay.
On or about September 2, 1975, each
plaintiff filed formal charges with the
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
("EEOC") alleging that she had suffered
discrimination in attempting to obtain a
3 position on defendant's new applicant
referral lists. The EEOC on September
8th referred the charges to the Califor-
nia Fair Employment Practices Commission
&
<“ B=20
("FEPC"), as required by 42 U.S.C.
§2000e-5(c), with the recommendation
that the case was appropriate for im-
mediate preliminary injunction. 4 By
notification of September 11, 1975, the
FEPC replied that it would not process
the charges in light of the EEOC recom-
mendation, and on September 29th the
: EEOC issued right-to-sue letters to both
plaintiffs on the ground that it would
not be able to investigate, conciliate
or file suit within 180 days. Upon re-
ceipt of those letters, plaintiffs filed
this action.
Despite the alieged discrimination,
both plaintiffs had fulfilled the first
4 Notice of Deferral Transmittal,
dated p. 1975, attached as Exhibit D
to defendant's Memorandum in Support of
ei Defendant's Motion to Dismiss, etc.,
a _ filed July 16, 1976. Although the EEOC
‘a request does not itself appear on this
form, the FEPC response cites that re- 4
quest as the reason for the state's
fajiure to process the claim.
E-21 ,
requirement for admission to apprentice-
ship when their names were placed on new
applicant referral lists. Accordingly,
they were eligible for job referrals
pursuant to the original Annex C-1 then
in effect. Each attended an orientation
meeting in late September, 1975, at which
she was informed of the two alternative
methods of obtaining a referral, but be-
cause each believed it was unlikely she
could convince a contractor to request a
woman by name, neither initially used her
"hunting license" to seek employment on
her own. Although each plaintiff con-
tinuously maintained a current telephone
number in the hope of receiving a numeri-
cal referral, neither has been dispatch-
ed by that method. In August, 1976,
after Ms. Mazur had received a letter
from the Martinez JATC stating that many
applicants were finding jobs on their
own, after defendant had moved for summary
on
E-22
judgment in this action, and after dis-
covery had revealed the unlikelihood of
numerical referral, both plaintiffs un-
successfully attempted to find jobs by
contacting contractors. At the same
time, they sousht to amend their com-
plaint to allege that defendant's main-
tenance of the “hunting license" system
as an alternative method of securing
job referrals itself violates Title VII.
As of May, 1976, defendant's records
show 3,220 registered apprentices, only
13 of whom are women. > Of the approxi-
mately 1700 persons who obtained posi-
tions on new sopiicant referral lists
when applications were opened in August
1975, 92 are women, but as of May, 1976,
5 In a subsequent affidavit, Charles
F. Hanna states that 25 women are cur-
rently enrolled &s apprentices. Affidavit
of Charles F. Hanna, filed March 10, 1977,
at 11. However, no complete statistics
later than those of May, 1976, are
presently before the Court.
hae pe | La ad -_
E-23
only four, or four percent of the women
on those lists had been dispatched to
jobs while 398, or 25 percent of the men
had been dispatched. Plaintiffs now
contend that this low representation of
women is the result of the establish-
ment and maintenance by defendant of the
"hunting license" system, ostensibly as
an alternative method of obtaining the
first job referral necessary for admis-
sion, but in fact knowing that because
of employer preference, it is the near-
ly exclusive method. They have submit-
ted the affidavits of three female ap-
prentices and one female applicant, as
well as a letter signed by twelve
female apprentices, describing the
employer discrimination against women
which, they allege, operates through the
hunting license system to exclude women
from apprenticeship. The act of discri-
mination complained of on this theory is
E-24
thus the defendant's use of a system
that pasges the decision as to who may
enter the program to others who are known
to discriminate against women.
Although plaintiffs continue to cm
plain of discriminatory practices in the
placement of women on new applicant re-
ferral lists, the relative insignifi-
cance of placement on those lists as
long as the hunting license system re-
mains available suggests that any re-
lief directed to such practices alone
would in no way enhance the ability of
women to gain admission to defendant's
program. ° Such relief would be appro-
priate only if the JATC were first
ordered to abolish the hunting license
6 Even Ms. Mazur, who seeks an order
granting her and others similarly situ-
ated their “rightful places” on the
Richmond new applicant referral list,
has failed to show that she would have
been referred to a job if she had been .
given a place on that list rather than
the Martinez list..
loon £6 4 ow Bw at
Le
‘ gee,
system and to institute a new system for
referring applicants to employment, eli-
minating the present discretion of em-
ployers to select new apprentices from
those who apply to them. Plaintiffs
have not specified the precise system
they seek to have instituted, but it is
plain that they envision a system re-
quiring an employer who wishes to hire a
beginning apprentice to contact the union
local and enter a request without naming
any individual, whereupon the union would
be required to dispatch an applicant
selected by the JATC by means of one of
a number of non-discriminatory techni-
ques.’
7 Possibilities include the hiring
hall system currently used for referral
of journeymen to jobs; selection on the
basis of the renk order of scores of
applicants on one or more qualification
standards; random selection from a pool
of eligible applicants; selection on an
equal basis from separate lists estab-
lished for minorities, (continued)
2
*
2
rc!
— - ey ai + at Nl 7 ee
II. STION OF IES
Title VII provides an independent
basis for federal jurisdiction over ac-
tions pursuant to its terms. 42 U.S.C.
§2000e-5(f) (3). Prior to seeking judi-
cial relief, however, plaintiffs must
exhaust both state and administrative
remedies. Specifically, section 2000e-
(5) (c} requires that they first file
charges with the state agency, if any,
charged with authority to enforce state
employment discrimination laws, and
await state action for sixty days unless
proceedirgs are earlier terminated; and
section 2000e-5(f) (1) requires that they
file timely charges with the EEOC, defer
women, and all others; and random or
numerical selection from a pool of eli-
gibles chosen by a system guaranteeing
population parity. Affidavit of B. J.
Miller in Support of Plaintiffs' State-
ment of Position, filed May 16, 1977;
Plaintiffs’ Memorandum in Support of
Plaintiffs' Motion for Summary Judgment,
filed August 26, 1976, at 7-8,
E-27
filing suit for 180 days after those
charges are filed, and obtain a right+o-
sue letter from the EEOC. Defendant
argues that plaintiffs have not satis-
fied the state exhaustion requirement and
that the action must accordingly be dis-
missed. This contention is without merit.
Even where the deferral requirement
is not satisfied, dismissal is unneces-
sary; the proper course is to retain
jurisdiction while plaintiffs seek re-
dress from the state agency. Waters v.
Heublein, Inc., 547 F.2d 466, 468 (9 Cir.
1976), cert.denied, 45 U.S.L.W. 3840
(1977); Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission v. Wah Chang Albany Corp.,
_499 F.2d 187, 189 n.3 (9 Cir. 1974).
That procedure is unnecessary in this
case, however, since it is well settled
that section 2000e-5(c) is satisfied by
the procedure followed here: initial re-
ference of the matter to the state agency
that it will take no action. Love v.
Pullman Co., 404 U.S. 522, 525 (1972);
Motorola, Inc. v. Equal Employment Op-
portunity Commission, 460 F.2d 1245,
1246 (9 Cir. 1972). Defendant contends
that the FEPC's decision not to pursue
the matter was improper under California
law in that no reference was made to the
Administrator of Apprenticeship and no
hearing was provided. Regardless of the
merits of this contention, see Cal.Labor
Code §3096 (West Supp. 1977), violations
of state law in the treatment of a claim
do not offend the deferral rule: federal
policy requires only that the state be
afforded an opportunity to take the case.
Pacific Maritime Ass'n v. Quinn, 465
F.2d 108, 110-111 (9 Cir. 1972). Finally,
plaintiff's failure to allege deferral
in their pleadings is of no significance,
since no such allegations are required
by Rule 8(a)(1), Fed.R.Civ.P. Equal
—, -
bt
E-29
Employment Opportunity Commission v. Wah
Chang Albany Corp., supra, 499 F.2d at
189,
A more difficult question is posed
4 by plaintiffs’ undisputed failure to
wait 180 days after the EEOC's assump-
tion of jurisdiction before filing suit,
as required by section 2000e-5(f) (1).
There is a sharp division in the autho-
rities as to whether this requirement is
jurisdictional. Compare Budreck v.
Crocker National Bank, 407 F.Supp. 635
(N.D.Cal. 1976), and Jones v. Pacific
Intermountain Express, 10 F.E.P. Cases
914 (N.D.Cal. 1976), with Lewis v. FMC
Corp., 11 F.E.P. Cases 31 (N.D.Cal. 1975),
and Howard v. Mercantile Commerce Trust
Co., 10 F.E.P. Cases 158 (E.D.Mo. 1974).
For the reasons stated in Budreck, supra,
the Court adheres to the view that com-
pliance with the statutory waiting period
%, is ordinarily a prerequisite to the
ou
Pi a hia. a ’ 6 a tt (pe * oe)
Re eae oe Se a. PF Er, Oy en, ee ee a vl
E-30
assumption of jurisdiction. Plaintiffs
apparently believe that their prayer for
a temporary restraining order and a pre-
liminary injunction made compliance with
the statutory period unnecessary for all
purposes. Memorandum of Law in Response
to Defendant's Motion to Dismiss and for
Summary Judgment, filed August 26, 1976,
at 23-24. Such a per se rule cannot be
supported. However, in the circumstances
of this case the Court agrees that juris-
diction was properly assumed to entertain
those motions, and that the passage of
180 days prior to hearing on a motion to
dismiss cured the jurisdictional defect
that would otherwise have required dis-
missal of the action for permanent re-
lief.
At plaintiffs’ request, the EEOC -
issued right-to-sue letters only 18 days
after receipt of the case from the FEPC,
and this action was filed the following
; F
* : . +p & . ;
yo ae, aI BEE ee yee COTE we ae, ©), Te ee ia
M
ae ae
E-31
day. The result of this procedure was
to foreclose any possibility of concil-
iation -- either formal or informal --
prior to the hardening of positions and
narrowing of issues that inevitably
follow the assumption of roles as ad-
versary parties in a judicial proceed-
ing, impairing further efforts at volun
tary settlement. See Johnson v. Railway
Express Agency, 421 U.S. 454, 461 (1975);
Budreck v. Crocker National Bank, supra,
407 F.Supp. at 643-644. In the ordinary
case, such short-circuiting of the time
periods contemplated by the statute
frustrates the intention of Congress to
promote éonosifetion ani voluntary set-
tlement. Yet Congress itself recogniz-
ed, by enacting a provision authorizing
the EEOC to seek preliminary relief, 42
U.S.C. §2000e-5(f) (2), that the interest
in enforcement may outweigh the policy
favoring non-judicial settlement when an
ae,
be -
a - aa 2 ~~ = ~~ |
E-32 *
aggrieved person is threatened with ir-
reparable injury that imperils the ade-
quacy of any final relief. Congress
failed to similarly provide for private
litigants, however, and their efforts
to invoke the jurisdiction of federal
courts on motions for preliminary relief
pending administrative disposition of
the underlying charges have met with
mixed success. ° The conflicting results
8 For the view that courts have
jurisdiction to hear claims for preli-
minary relief despite the failure to
exhaust administrative remedies, see,
e.g., Drew v. Liberty Mutual Insurance
ae 480 F.2d 69 (5 Cir. 1973),
cer P Gere cened, 417 U.S. 935 (1974); Parke
pepese mlop, 517 F.2d 785 (5 Cir. 19
Rotate vy. forcester Foundat Lon ity
tal ’ wiology, dee, 525 7 F.Supp.
ss.), aittd 545 F.2a 933 (1
Cir. 1976). For the “opposing view,
see, @.g., Nottelson v. A. O. Smith
Corp., 397 F.Supp. 928 (E.D.Wis. 1975);
v. Shell Oil Co., 378 F. Supe 1042
~D.Mich. 1974), al dismis as
weer t 519 F. igi 403 appea Cir. roaeye
cor ns v. Southwestern Bell Tel ephone
“7 F. upp D. Okla. ..
Other courts have (Continued)
te are —
®
es
i ree
E-33
derive from the courts’ efforts to acco-
modate two competing concerns: first,
that it would be unfair and unreaiistic
to require exhaustion where rights are
threatened with irreparable harm, a
failure to act may permanently foreclose
adequate relief, and the EEOC's caseload
precludes it from seeking preliminary
relief, see Bowe v. Colgate Palmolive
Co., 272 F.Supp. 332, 338 (S.D.Ind.1967),
blurred the distinction between juris-
diction and the availability of preli-
minary relief, and appear to hold that
jurisdiction may be available only in
cases where relief on the merits is
appropriate, see Berg v. Richmond
Unified School District, 528 F.2d 1208,
Cir. 1975), cert.granted, 45
U.S.L.W. 3508 (1977); Jerome v. Viviano
Food Co., Inc., 489 F.2d 965, 966 (6
Cir. 1974) (holding no irreparable harm
and thus no jurisdiction where no exist-
ing employee-employer relationship);
nald v. Ray, 377 F.Supp. 986, 987
-D.Tenn. 74}; or only where the cir-
pg ese particularly demand such re-
lief, Townsend v. mn Co., 420 F.Supp.
189, 153 1b tase) 1878) Tontaliatory
discharge).
E-34
aff'd in part and rev'd in part, 426 F.2d
711 (7 Cir. 1969); Drew v. Liberty Mutual
Insurance Company, 480 F.2d 69, 73-74
(5 Cir. 1973), cert.denied, 417 U.S. 935
(1974); and second, that to permit indi-
viduals to bypass the statutory mechanism
in cases where the EEOC does not seek
prompt judicial relief would flood the
courts with such requests, see Collins v.
Southwestern Bell Telephone Co., 376
F.Supp. 979 (E.D.Okla. 1974).
9 A third concern occasionally men-
tioned is that without jurisdiction over
the underlying cause of action, a court
is precluded from ce tbrey relief of
any sort. Troy v. Shell Oil Co., supra,
378 F.Supp. at 1048; Nottelson v. A. O.
Smith Corp., supra, 397 F.Supp. at 933.
s concern seems unfounded, however,
in view of the principle established in
other areas of administrative law that
a court has power to preserve the status
quo by staying private action pending an
administrative decision. See Develo
ments in she Ee ent Discrial-
na’. T VII o Beil Biohe
paten ang Taye cat of me Gre Gass
1977).
. > r :
ita WO gt _ ~ : re : She Mies .- 5 ‘
DS Shia et Gaeee. Poe ot) Ae eee AY ees | OE ew, ee
Ce ee
E-35
Although the issue is currently be-
fore the United States Supreme Court, the
law of this Circuit at the present time
is that in a "limited class of cases"
where there exists a high probability of
success on the merits and the threat of
irreparable harm, a court may entertain
a suit to maintain the status quo pend-
ing administrative disposition. Berg
v. Richmond Unified School District, 528
F.2d 1208, 1211 (9 Cir. 1975), cert.
granted, 45 U.S.L.W. 3508 (1977). Al-
though the facts of this case depart
from the Berg rule in at least three re-
spects, none of those differences calls
for a change in the result. First,
since the motion for a preliminary in-
junction was withdrawn from the calendar,
the Court has made no findings on the
merits. Nevertheless, the EEOC's evalua-
tion of the case as one appropriate for
immediate preliminary injunction would
Ri A ss — A NS 4
Wigs Waals rte te. PREIS oe eR a oe 50 are
ie oo » 1 th. % S ¥ ; at | ad
re » Ls P :
E-36
appear to satisfy the threshold test
that there be some substance to the
Claim. To permit suits only where such
a determination is made need not lead
to any flood of litigation. Second,
plaintiffs’ motions went beyond merely
“maintaining the status quo," since
plaintiffs were not employees seeking
relief from threatened changes in the
employment relationship, but applicants
for admission to defendant's program.
A few courts have drawn a distinction
on this basis, see footnote 7, supra,
but differential treatment is not justi-
fied by the policies invwulved: if a
preliminary injunction is otherwise
appropriate, it makes no difference tc
the injured plaintiff or to the enforce-
ment of Title VII that the injury is to
be imposed by inaction rather than by
action. Finally, plaintiffs arguably
sought more than interim relief pending
ye
E-37
4
4
d
administrative disposition, since the
EEOC had prematurely issued its final
right-to-sue letter, thus terminating
the administrative phase. See EEOC v.
Pacific Press Publiching Association,
535 F.2d 1182, 1186 (9 Cir. 1976).
However, the EEOC had certified that it
would be unable to reach the case with-
in the 180-day period. Thus, no admini-
strative disposition was to be antici-
pated. Moreover, the prospects of in-
formal settlement are unlikely to have
been impaired by the initiation of the
suit for permanent relief to any greater
extent than they would already have been
impaired by the filing of the motion for
a preliminary injunction. To hold that
the action was barred by an EEOC error
having no effect on statutory policy
would indeed be pointless. Had the
parties known that the 180-day period
would be interpreted as jurisdictional,
E-38
they could have limited their initial
prayer to preliminary relief, waited 180
days, obtained a right-to-sue letter,
and sought permanent relief, all without
any significant substantive effect.
Although the Court thus concludes
that jurisdiction was properly taken over
the claims for preliminary relief, this
conclusion does not in itself justify
the assumption of jurisdiction over the
underlying claim. That jurisdiction can
only be justified if the lapse of 180
days between the EEOC's assumption of
jurisdiction and the hearing on a motion
to dismiss can cure the initial failure
to meet that jurisdictional requirement.
It is settled that subsequent receipt of
a right-to-sue letter can cure the juris-
diction in a suit initially filed with-
out one, Berg v. Richmond Unified School
District, supra, 528 F.2d at 1212, but
the differing policies involved make it
be cae ate aa
i\ ' 4
E-39 4
less clear that the mere passage of time, .
absent a dismissal and a refiling with
the EEOC, should ordinarily be permitted
to cure the jurisdictional defect of pre-
mature filing. Compare Budreck v. Crocker
National Bank, supra, 407 F.Supp. at 647
n. 19, with Berg v. LaCrosse Cooler Co.,
548 F.2d 211, 213 (7 Cir. 1977), and Troy
v. Shell Oil Co., 519 F.2d 403 (6 Cir.
1975). Where the parties were properly
before the Court in the first instance
on motions for pre*iminary relief, how-
ever, the Court concludes that no policy
would be served by a dismissal. The only
departure from proper procedures was the
premature issuance of the right-to-sue
letter and the resulting premature fil-
ing of a complaint for permanent reliel.
To dismiss now would not deter other
litigants from seeking judicial action
in circumstances where preliminary relief
may be appropriate, and thus would not |
n ge MENTE CP ares
E-40
serve the policy of promoting informal
settlement prior to the onset of litiga-
tion. It would no doubt discourage the
EEOC from divesting itself of claims
prematurely, and thus would serve the
congressional purpose of providing ample
opportunity for administrative action.
Where the backlog of cases prevents an
administrative disposition in any case,
however, this result has insufficient
practical impact to justify the imposi-
tion of hardship in a particular case.
III. RULE 19
It is no doubt true, as plaintiffs
argue, that a joint apprenticeship com-
mittee cannot avoid liability under
Title VII by delegating the responsibi-
lity for screening applicants to a third
party. See Crockett v. Green, 388 F.Supp.
912 (E.D.Wis. 1975), aff'd 535 F.2d 715
(7 Cir. 1976). The relief contemplated
in this case, however, will have
4 J Right.
E-41
substantial impact on both the employers
who must hire apprentices if they are to
receive on-the-job experience and the
unions which pursuant to collective bar-
gaining agreement are responsible for
the dispatch of all employees to jobs
10 ses
with signatory employers. Rule 19
not, of course, require joinder of all
part‘es who may be affected by an order.
10 Rule 19 provides in part:
"“(a) Persons to be Joined if Feas-
ible. A person who is subject to ser-
vice of process and whose joinder will
not deprive the court of jurisdiction
over the subject matter of the action
shall be joined as a party in the action
if (1) in his absence complete relief
cannot be accorded among those already
parties, or (2) he claims an interest
relating to the subject to the action
and is so situated that the disposition
of the action in his absence may (i) as
a practical matter impair or impede his
ability to protect that interest or (ii)
leave any of the persons already parties
subject to a substantial risk of incur-
ring double, multiple, or otherwise in-
consistent obligations by reason of his
Claimed interest. If he has not been so
joined, the court shall order that he be
made a party. If he should join as a
plaintiff but refuses (continued)
E-42
The issues are, first, whether employer
or union involvement is of such a nature
that without them complete relief cannot
be accorded those already parties, Rule
19(a) (1), and second, whether their in-
terests are such that to proceed in
to do so, he may be made a defendant, or,
in a proper case, an involuntary plain-
tiff. If the joined party objects to
venue and his joinder would render the
venue of this action improper, he shall
be dismissed from the action.
"(b) Cetermination by Court Whenever
Joinder not Feasible. If a person as
described in subdivision (a) (1)-(2) here-
of cannot be made a party, the court
shall determine whether in equity and
good conscience the action should pro-
ceed among the parties before it, or
should be dismissed, the absent person
being thus regarded as indispensable.
The factors to be considered by the
court include: first, to what extent a
judgment rendered in the person's ab-
sence might be prejudicial to him or
those already parties; second, the ex-
tent to which, by protective provisions
in the judgment, by the shaping of re-
lief, or other measures, the prejudice
can be lessened or avoided; third,
whether a judgment rendered in the per-
son's absence will be adequate; fourth,
whether the plaintiff will have an ade-
quate remedy if the action is dismissed
for non-joinder.
So
a 2
~~ fea
E-43
their absence may as a practical matter
prejudice them or subject the parties
already before the Court to a substan-
tial risk of incurring inconsistent ob-
ligations, Rule 19(a)(2). If either of
these conditions is shown, Rule 19 (a)
requires that the absent parties be
joined if to do so will not deprive the
Court of jurisdiction over the subject
matter. If a party cannot be joined as
required, Rule 19(b) calls for a second
inquiry to determine whether in equity
and good conscience the action should be
dismissed.
Plaintiff's initial contention is
that when no relief is sought against
absent parties, those parties cannot be
regarded as "indispensable." This argu-
ment is wholly without merit. By defi-
nition, parties to be joined under Rule
19 are those against whom no relief has
formally been sought but who are so
E-44
situated as a practical matter as to im-
pair either the effectiveness of relief
or their own or present parties’ ability
te protect their interests. The cases
cited by plaintiffs are not to the con-
trary. Each merely lists the failure to
seek relief against the absent parties
as one factor in a decision that joinder
was not required, in cases where no in-
volvement or participation by those par-
ties in che challenged discriminatory
practices had been alleged. Hibbler v.
Miller's of Birmingham Bankhead Highway,
Inc., 496 F.2d 1171, 1172 (5 Cir. 1974);
Waters v. Heublein, Inc., 11 E.P.D.
q10,620 at 6587 (N.D.Cal. 1975), rev'd
on other grounds, 547 F.2d 466 (9 Cir.
1976), cert.denied, 45 U.S.L.W. 3840
(1977). In contrast, the involvement of
both employers and unions in the subject
matter of this action is evident on the
face of the amended complaint.
E-45
In a similar vein, plaintiffs con-
tend that complete relief can be accord~
ed by an order against the JATC alone,
since pursuant to the trust fund agree~-
ment it is solely responsible for estab-
lishing and maintaining apprenticeship
programs, since no particular procedure
for selecting apprentices is enshrined
in any agreement to which absent parties
are signatories, and since it alone se-
lected and can abolish the “hunting
license" system, subject to state appro-
val. This argument misconceives the
nature of the issues under Rule 19(a) (1).
Although the legal position of the pre-
9 sent defendant and its theoretical abi-
lity to comply with an order are rele-
vant, they may be outweighed by a find-
ing that absent parties may as a practi-
a
¥ cal matter prevent the full realization
¥.
h: of the intended relief. The Court must
~
guard against the formulation of "'paper'
E-46
decrees which neither adjudicate nor, in
the end, protect rights." Schutten v.
Shell Oil Co., 421 F.2d 869, 874 (5 Cir.
1970). Thus the contractual rights and
duties relied on by plaintiffs are only
a starting point for a full considera-
tion of the actual role of each party in
the formulation of the practices complain-
ed of and the stake each has in maintain-
ing them. See LeBeau v. Libby-Owens-Ford
Co., 484 F.2d 798, 800 (7 Cir. 1973).
A. The Employers
Employers are not obligated to hire
beginning apprentices by either the master
collective bargaining agreements govern-
ing the trade}
or the trust fund agree-
ment itself. They need only employ one
apprentice (at any experience level) if
five journeymen are employed, and one
1 [sic] See note 2, supra.
7s +t mt te
tes 3 ee hr
i 4
E-47
additional apprentice for each five
journeymen thereafter. Master Agreement
§40. When an employer does request a be-
ginning apprentice, he retains the right
to reject the individual dispatched “for
any reason," Master Agreements §49(9),
subject only to liability for two hours
"show-up time" to be paid to the appli-
cant, Master Agreements §30. No new
system of referral adopted by the JATC
could either require contractors to em-
ploy beginning apprentices, other than
those necessary to meet the contractual
minimum, or compel those who do so to
accept any particular individual. Nor
could such an obligation be created by
any decree fashioned by this Court in
their absence. Employers could refuse
to hire beginning apprentices or refuse
to hire women when referred without vio-
lating the terms of a decree ordering
the JATC to adopt a revised referral
ae eee oz 7 :
. Dy ee, ‘ ins a. ly he, cos - hg
a. ; My A Beer ta ee cers ¥ ¥8 Fi “x : 5 ESE
Z 2 ie ee Pl St See Dae ee ee me Oe ee ce See Te ee
E-48
system. Although such actions could
violate an order requiring the imple-
mentation of an affirmative action plan
to promote the indenturing of women, the
employers are not sufficient*y "“identi-
fied * * * in interest" with the JATC to
be bound by such a decree as non-party,
participants under Rule 65(d), Fed.R.Civ.
P. Regal Knitwear Co. v. Board, 324 U.S.
9, 13-14 (1945); see Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission v. Local Union No.
3, International Union of Operating
Engineers, No. C-71-1277-RFP (N.D.Cal.
March 16, 1977).
Employers thus have the ability to
defeat any relief ordered in this action
in three ways. First they may refuse to
hire new apprentices at all, if they do
not wish to accept individuals without
first interviewing them. Under a revised
referral system, the absence of appli-
cants actively seeking to convince
a a % a a -
E-49
employers to hire beginning apprentices
may tend to encourage this result. Of
course, such action would eventually re-
sult in a reduction of the total number
of apprentices, and some employers would
ultimately be forced to hire new appren-
tices in order to maintain the appren-
tice-journeyman ratios specified in the
collective bargaining agreements and in
the California statute governing projects
undertaken pursuant to contracts with
state and local government entities. Cal.
Labor Code §1777.5 (West Supp. 1977).
However, no evidence has been submitted
to demonstrate the impact of these limi-
tations on the hiring of new apprentices,
in light of the large number of exper-
_ienced apprentices presently unemployed,
the inapplicability of the contractual
provision to employers using less than
five journeymen, and the numerous exemp-
tions created by the statute.
¥
E-50
Second, employers may, with the co-
operation of union locals, hire unregis-
tered, non-union apprentices, who may
obtain sufficient experience and skill
to be classified as journeymen and thus
be accorded equal treatmeat at the hir-
ing hall without regard to participation
in defendant's program. Such scuichoait Cripis
would not, however, satisfy either the
contractual or the statutory obligation
to hire apprentices in specified ratios.
See Master Agreements §40. Cal.Labor
Code §1777.5, supra. Moreover, under
United States Department of Labor regula-
tions all contracts covering federally
financed and assisted construction must
include a clause requiring non-registered
apprentices to be paid at a rate deter-
mined by the Secretary of Labor for the
class of work actually performed, rather
than the lower rate permitted for regis-
tered apprentices. 29 C.F.R. §5.5(a) (4)
E-51
(1976). Again, no evidence as to the
overall impact of these provisions on the
trade is before the Court.
Finally, assuming that these provi-
sions will motivate employers to hire
significant numbers of beginning regis-
tered apprentices, female applicants may
still be rejected at a cost of two hours’
pay, which may be estimated from the wage
scale effective June 16, 1976, at approx-
12 Plaintiffs have sub-
imately $21 each.
mitted substantial evidence which appears
to show that it is the employers, not the
JATC, who are responsible for the dearth
of women in the carpentry trade. There
12 The schedule of wages attached to
the Northern California Home Builders
Conference Master Agreement, Appendix 7
to Defendant's Memorandum in Opposition
to Plaintiffs’ Motion for Summary Judg-
ment, filed September 9, 1976, shows a
wage rate for beginning apprentices of
$6.75 per hour and a schedule of contri-
butions for fringe benefits totalling
$3.80 per hour, for a total of $21.10 for
the two hours of show-up time.
a
vn - va % - nal Kak! YY. tee ,
t a : é
E-52
is nothing in the record to indicate that
the reasons presently given by employers
for rejecting women would not persuade
them to continue rejecting them at this
13 It is not clear
slight additional cost.
whether this tactic would violate any
contractual obligation owed to the JATC,
but even if it would, there is no sugges-
tion in the record that the JATC has en-
forcement authority adequate to force re-
calcitrant employers to accept female
applicants.?4
13 Defendant has suggested that the
use of a closed list may have motivated
local JATC employees to accelerate ef-
forts to indenture minority apprentices
in order to return to the free selection
system once quotas were attained. This
factor would almost certainly be out-
weighed in this case, however, by the
documented reluctance of employers to
hire women.
14 Defendant has stated that the JATC
has some police authority and can with-
draw the use of apprenticeship (continued)
—s
¢e tips
E-53 ie
The record does not reveal whether E-.
an applicant who is dispatched and re-
jected by the employer would become a
registered apprentice. Assuming that he
would, the ability of employers to re-
ject those dispatched would not impede
attainment of plaintiffs’ announced goal
of entry into defendant's program. It
would, however, prevent any meaningful
participation in that program, since only
facilities from employers who hire unin-
dentured apprentices. Memorandum of
Points and Authorities RE: Indispens-
able Parties and the Jurisdiction of the
Court, filed March 18, 1977, at 5. Wo
document evidencing this authority is
before the Court, and it is unclear
whether the JATC could withdraw facili-
ties from employers who do not bypass
the referral system entirely but simply
refuse to accept certain individuals.
Even if this sanction is available, any
attempt to impose it would place the JATC
in the difficult position of having to
prove the iliegal motive of discrimina-
tion or face liability for refusing to ~
provide services merely because the on
employer had exercised his contractual =
right to reject applicants “for any :
reason." Master Agreements §49 (9). e
i. Saat - ae
Pe ka he a ¥4 y ee : ob Se eae PMs «*
aes oe * Vv * a ot) . es Se | R ~~ aoe. he
gta
wear Wg™ St er bb iis: PUL RE ST otha he os
E-54
schooling, not on-the-job training, would
be available to women. Thus, the relief
obtained in this lawsuit would serve only
to swell the ranks of unemployed appren-
tices. This surely cannot be the “com-
plete relief" contemplated by Rule 19(a).
It is no answer to these problems
to say that plaintiffs seek limited re-
lief in order that women may gradually
integrate the trade, and that if future
employer discrimination excludes women
from the full benefits of apprenticeship,
such women may seek legal redress against
the responsible parties. The plain fact
is that the opportunity to gradually in-
tegrate the trade exists now to the same
extent and subject to the same obstacles
as it would under any decree that could
be fashioned against the JATC alone.
There is no evidence that the change in
referral system sought here will have any
effect on the apparent source of the
E-55
discrimination alleged -- the absent em-
ployers. More women might indeed attain
the status “registered apprentice," but
to obtain jobs they would have to bring
to court precisely the same parties who
would be sued in the absence of any de-
cree against the gare, ?> Although the
plaintiffs' motive -- to avoid unneces-
sarily taxing judicial resources -- is a
laudable one, the Corrt must conclude
that it would be a misuse of those re-
sources to pursue this action to a con-
clusion in the absence of rarties with-
out whom any relief would quite probably
be a futile gesture.
15 In fact, a decree establishing a
closed list referral system could hamper
the process of obtaining relief against
discriminating employers. Under the
amended Annex C-1, any woman may seek
work as a carpenter and file suit against
each employer who rejects her because of ‘
her sex. Under the type of system sought 7
by plaintiffs, the class of potential | :
plaintiffs who may sue a given discrimi- bd
nating employer will be far more limited. d
oy
; \ He 4
:
7 i. ; : + x
ot r ' eae pier da als he aes bas {ek
eee IME Ath tao 5 Bah Ea Ae me Se fake Ral) an Cee Be
E-56
None of the authorities cited by
aplaintiffs [sic) supports a contrary
result. The Court has been directed to
only one case in which relief was aff .rded
against a party which had used a non-
party's discriminatory action as the
vehicle for its own discrimination.
Crockett v. Green, supra, 388 F.Supp. 912.
There, the City of Milwaukoe was ordered
to suspend a requirement that skilled
tradesmen have completed a formal appren-
ticeship and a designated amount of jour-
neyman experience prior to hiring, be-
cause past discrimination had prevented
blacks from obtaining those qualifica-
tions. Since the effectiveness of that
relief did not depend in any way on union
participation, Crockett provides no pre-
cedent for the relief sought here. The
Y analogy would be more apt if the City had
there been ordered to require the union
oy, to accept more blacks into apprenticeship.
. . |
i ? - yy
Baas ty : vat “ 4 : }- v so : at agit
fe »ae mt” i se? wee td 2» me 7. * ~- WER, Ve ) a ey 2 a
E-57
Plaintiff relies on decisions hold-
ing that relief may be granted against
unions to modify discriminatory job re-
ferral systems in the absence of the af-
fected employers. Kaplan v. Intern.
Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees
and Motion Picture Machine Operators, 525
F.2d 1354 (9 Cir. 1975); United States v.
Sheet Metal Workers Intern. Ass'n, Local
Union No. 36, 416 F.2d 123, 132 n.16
(8 Cir. 1969); United Minority Workers v.
Intern. Union of Operating Engineers, 10
E.P.D. 410,581 (D.Ore. 1975); Butler v.
Local No. 4 and Local No. 269, Laborers’
Intern. Union, 308 F.Supp. 528 (N.D.I11.
1969). None of these decisions, however,
involved allegations of discriminatory
conduct by the employers, a fact on which
the courts expressly relied in both
Kaplan, supra, 525 F.2d at 1361, and
United Minority Workers, supra, 10 E.P.D.
at 6402. Where, as in those two cases
Se
: n -
7 v , +
> Z a 2
et pe Are ¢ J “ey * 4 7 @hth . ‘
bi Pi, ods 0 Sitka ute ver oe Re ae Ser 1) |. eel deta’:
2 ae
7 -
ys
E-58
and in Butler, supra, only internal union
16 there was no
policies were challenged,
reason to fear that the relief would not
be complete. A more substantial question
was presented in Sheet Metal Workers,
supra, in that the changes in referral
practices ordered by the court required
modifications in the collective bargain-
ing agreement and thus were not possible
without the cooperation of the employers.
In apparent recognition that such relief
could not be ordered against the unions
alone, the Court of Appeals stated that
compliance could be achieved by discon-
tinuing those practices which were found
16 In Butler v. Local No. 4 and Local
No. 269, Laborers’ Intern. Union, owes.
the court expressly rejected the union
defendants’ assertion that plaintiffs
sought the creation of a hiring hall, a
remedy which would have required the co-
operation of non-party employers. In-
stead, the court found that plaintiffs
had alleged the existence of a de facto
hiring hall and sought only to end the
unions' discriminatory practices within
that framework. 308 F.Supp. at 532.
oe ee a ae §
E=59
to violate Title VII, presumably by aban- ‘
doning the referral system altogether. In i
this case, no such resolution is possi-
ble, because the defendant's effective
abandonment of its responsibility for
referral is precisely the act complained
of, and the underlying job requirement
cannot be eliminated without altering
the nature of the apprenticeship program
itself.
Of more relevance to the instant
case are decisions in which courts have
found evidence suggesting that the ab-
sent party may have been responsible for
the alleged discrimination, and have
therefore ordered joinder. Gilmore v.
Kansas City Terminal Railway Co., 509
F.2d 48, 52-53 (8 Cir. 1975); Evans v.
Sheraton Park Hotel, 503 F.2d 177, 181
(D.C.Cir. 1974). Cf. Wright v. Stone
4“:
Container Corp., 524 F.2d 1058, 1062
(8 Cir. 1975) (doubting adequacy of
be
E-60 "
class representative who failed to join
J union whose policies contributed to
creation of suspect practices); Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission v.
Eagle Iron Works, 8 E.P.D. 49541, at
5356 (S.D.Iowa 1974) (mere signatory of
collective bargaining agreement not in-
dispensable party where no suggestion it
has engaged in unlawful practices);
Ostapowicz v. Johnson Bronze Co., 369
F.Supp. 522, 531-532 (W.D.Pa. 1973),
modified on other grounds, 541 F.2d 394
(3 Cir. 1976) (union need not be joined
where discriminatory effect of coilec-
tive bargaining agreement is caused
solely by employer actions). See also
Haas v. Jefferson National Bank, 442
F.2d 394, 397-398 (5 Cir. 1971) (absent
party who participated in alleged unlaw-
ful conversion should be joined). Even
where no responsibility for unlawful con-
duct is alleged, courts have recognized
E-61
that relief may be ineffective where ab-
sent parties are “active participants"
without whom a program challenged as
oe 7
ats
‘* «
rs
4"
i
%
o
discriminatory could not operate. Spirt
v. Teachers Ins. and Annuity Ass'n of
America, 416 F.Supp. 1019, 1022 {S.D.N.Y.
oar
1976); McDonald v. General Mills, Inc.,
387 F.Supp. 24, 38 (E.D.Cal. 1974). In
this case, the employers are not only
participants in the apprenticeship pro-
gram but indeed the allegedly principal
cause of the discrimination complained
of. Plainly here, as in Evans v.
Sheraton Park Hotel, supra, the Court
should decline the invitation to grant
“rather ineffective symptomatic relief,
leaving the root * * * to continue.”
£93 F.2d at 181.
This determination alone is suffi-
cient to require joinder. However, it
should be noted that the second factor
to be considered under Rule 19(a), the
Oe) a
ee
re.
< = >. -—ee 5 “a gee yy
ww we
4 ty” ae
E-62
interest of the employers in the subject
matter of the action, supports joinder
as well. Under the present system enm-
plovers enjoy the right to select their
own beginning apprentices subject only
to the requirement that the applicant
be listed with the JATC in localities
where the original Annex C-1 is in ef-
fect. Even where there are no objective
qualifications for a job, the interest
of an employer in selecting those who,
for any non-discriminatory reason, he
believes to be more highly motivated or
more compatible with his existing work
force, is not an insubstantial one. Nor
does recognition of that interest re-
quire any assumption that women dis-
patched under a revised system would be
less motivated or qualified in any way
than men: the employer's interest in
selecting an employee of his own choos-
ing would be violated by the dispatch
- 7 4
, 5 w -—- | - Zz. a “a { - va.
or Sy aS re Ce) oo 4 ee | rs Ba Ab ea R= Pe? “Sey
aa) esas “Ses
7 ; te
of an undesirable man as much as by that
of a similar woman. It is no doubt true
that the "‘unstandardized and subjec-
tive'" judgments presently being made
""*lend themselves to arbitrary and dis-
criminatory hiring'", Waters v. Furnco
Construction Corp., 551 F.2d 1085, 1089
(7 Cir. 1977), quoting Reed v. Arlington
Hotel Co., Inc., 476 F.2d 721, 724 (8
Cir.), cert.denied, 414 U.S. 854 (1973),
and plaintiffs have suggested that such
results have occurred in this case.
Nevertheless, the employers are entitled
to their day in court to contest these
allegations before the Court issues an
order abolishing the prerogatives they
presently enjoy.
Plaintiffs maintain that the em-
ployers here gave up their ability to
protect this interest when they agreed
to be bound by the trust agreement and
thus delegated to the JATC the authority
wes a
Pi 2
<1 o, ; .
Ser : ’
+ Sag t | Pee , — ;
Ror a ORR gate ee ee
: £Ree: . pie SKS _ bo 7. Ta 7 ae Re er. x et td ty pt ais irs
Re, . |
E-64
to establish apprenticeship programs.
Although the terms of the instrument are
unclear on this point, we may assume
that the employers did thereby agree to
submit to any teferral system adopted by
the JATC. Even so, they retained a sig-
nificant measure of control over the
system selected, since they appoint half
the members of the JATC and may bargain
with the remaining union members. A
court order instituting a new referral
system will deprive them of this control.
Of course, such an order would not wholly
eliminate wmployer freedom to select ap-
prentices, since they are always entitl-
ed to reject applicants referred. That
freedom would, however, be constrained
in two ways: it could be exercised only
at the price of show-up time; and the
pool of applicants would be limited to
those referred, one at a time, by the
union. Any conceivable decree would thus
pe AAS
‘% eat
ho a —..
E-65_
tal
practically impair the employer's abi-
lity to protect a significant interest
in selectivity in hiring.
The fact that this interest stems
from a collective bargaining agreement
does not, as plaintiffs suggest, render
it irrelevant for purposes of Rule 19.
None of the decisions cited for that
proposition establishes any such per se
rule: each court has examined the cir-
cumstances of the case to determine the
actual effect of the action on the ab-
sent party, and a key consideration has
been that the discriminatory conduct
alleged is limited to the named defen-
dant. Waters v. Heublein, Inc., supra,
11 E.P.D. at 6587; Rosario v. New York
Times Co., 10 E.P.D. 410,155, at 7704
(N.D.Ga. 1975); Equal Employment Oppor-
tunity Commission v. Eagle Iron Works,
supra, 8 E.P.D. at 5356; Ostapowicz v.
Johnson Bronze Co., supra, 369 F.Supp.
ec aie
at 522, 531-532.
: Nor does the presence of a party
who is already defending employer in-
terests to some extent obviate the need
for joinder. Though frequently mention-
ed, this factor has merely been one
among many considered in determinations
pursuant to Rule 19. See United States
v. Navajo Freight Lines, Inc., 525 F.2d
1318, 1322 (9 Cir. 1975) (internationai
and local unions); United States v.
T.I.M.E.-D.C., Inc., 517 F.2d 299, 310
(5 Cir. 1975), vacated on other grounds,
45 U.S.L.W. 4505 (1977) (international
and local unions); United States v. St.
Louis - San Francisco Railway Co., 52
F.R.D. 276, 280 (E.D.Mo.), rev'd on
other grounds, 464 F.2d 301 (8 Cir. 1971),
cert.denied, 409 U.S. 1107, 1116 (1973)
(union and its members); United States v.
Enterprise Ass'n of Steamfitters, 360
F.Supp. 979, 995 (S.D.N.¥. 1973) (trade
eae
3 1.
-*
_ ~*
, ie
ee *
fy
‘elk eee
E-67
association and its members). Here the
JATC is a legal entity separate and dis-
tinct from the employers and unions
which created it. No agency relationship
has been alleged, and the JATC's inter-
ests are not identified with those of
the employers as are those of the enti-
ties dealt with in the cases cited
above. In fact, the JATC has no inde-
pendent interest in defending employer
selectivity. Here, as in Grogg v. Gen-
eral Motors Corp., 12 E.P.D. 411,204
(S.D.N.Y. 1976), there simply are not
adequate assurances of the unity of the
various parties to hold joinder unneces-
sary on that ground. 12 E.P.D. at 5542.
Finally, decisions rejecting the
Claim that employers must be joined in
suits seeking the elimination of discri-
minatory union referral practices are
inapposite. In each such case the en-
ployers had already completely siete up
:
as
“a
.
i
their right to selectivity when they
agreed to accept those persons dispatch-
ed ow the union and retained no control
over union methods of referral.!? No
case has been found which orders a union
or apprenticeship committee to establish
a hiring hall or adopt other measures
limiting employer selectivity in hiring
in the absence of the affected employers.
17 In Kaplan v. Intern. Alliance of
Theatrical and Stage Employees and Mo-
tion Picture rators, supra, 525 F.2d
, the Court to some extent modi-
fy procedures for operation of a refer-
ral system which were set forth ina
collective bargaining agreement, and
thus not beyond employer control. How-
ever, the order affirmed in Kaplan mere-
ly required that the female plaintiff be
placed on an existing roster which en-
titled photographers to preference in
hiring, without altering the system of
hiring or the degree to which employers
were free to select their own employees.
The only possible prejudice from the
addition of one individual to a pool
to which employers had already agreed
to give preference was potential lack
of qualification, and the evidence in-
dicated that employers considered the
plaintiff qualified. 525 F.2d at 1361.
B. The Union Locals
The role of the union locals in the
subject matter of this action is limited
to the dispatch of beginning apprentices
at the request of employers. Defendant
argues that their presence is required
by Rule 19(a) (1), because they are in a
position to frustrate the effectuation
of any relief by simply ignoring new JATC
procedures and continuing to dispatch
those individuals requested by employers.
Although the extent of the unions‘ con-
tractual obligation to abide by proce-
dures adopted by the JATC is unclear, in
practice it appears that the JATC can
enforce its selection of new apprentices
by refusing to indenture any wrongly
dispatched individual. Thus, to the ex-
tent that employers desire registered
apprentices, the unions would be unable
to satisfy that demand without complying
with the JATC procedures. The relief
E-70
ordered in this action could be frustrat-
ed only to the extent that unregistered
apprentices satisfy employer needs.
With respect to Rule 19(a)(2), the
unions have an interest in the maincen-
ance of an effective apprenticeship and
training program which produces adequate
numbers of competent apprentice and
journeyman members. If, for the reasons
discussed in Part II, A, supra, the de-
cree of the Court were to result in
either a significant decline in the num-
ber of apprentices employed or an in-
crease in unemployment among apprentices,
that interest would be significantly im-
18
paired. Moreover, on these assumptions
(W.D.N.Y. b ot Here,
18 Contrary to plaintiffs' assertion,
the impairment of union interests goes
beyond the mere dissatisfaction of "“majo-
rity" employees that may be anticipated
in any Title VII case. See Phillips v.
Carborundum [»., 361 ee. 3 » 1020
oy order may
prevent the satisfaction of obligations
to all the unions’ apprentice members
and to the union itself.
E-71
the unions would be entitled to demand
that the JATC fulfill its obligation
under the trust fund agreement to main-
tain an adequate apprenticeship program.
The JATC would then be placed in the
untenable position of choosing between
two mutually exclusive obligations: to
assure the indenturing of women pursuant
to court order, and to maintain the pro-
gram as required by contract.
On the present state of the record
it is impossible to say with certainty
that the relief sought here will reduce
the total number of apprentices employ-
ed or increase unemployment among ap-
prentices, thus requiring joinder under
Rule 19(a) (2), or increase the demand
for unregistered apprentices, thus re-
guiring joinder under Rule 19(a) (1).
However, in light of plaintiffs' alle-
gations and supporting affidavits to the
effect that employer reluctance to hire
E-72
women is the real source of the discri-
mination alleged, the Court concludes
that employer action leading to one or
more of these results is sufficiently
likely as to require joinder of the af-
fected union locals.
IV. JOINDER
Defendant argues that joinder is
barred by failure to name the absent par-
ties in charges filed with the EEOC and
failure to file suit against those par-
ties within 90 days of receiving notice
of right to sue, as required by 42 U.S.C.
§2000e-5(f) (1). Neither of these omis-
sions can prevent joinder in this case.
Title VI's policy of encouraging
conciliation and voluntary settlement in
the first instance has led courts to
formulate a rule that parties not named
in an EEOC charge are not subject to suit.
Thornton v. East Texas Motor Freight, 497
F.2d 416, 423 (6 Cir. 1974); LeBeau v.
E-73
Libby-Owens~-Ford Co., supra, 484 F.2d at
799; Bowe v. Colgate Palmolive Co., 416
F.2d 711, 719 (7 Cir. 1969). This policy
based rule is, however, subject to numer-
ous exceptions in favor of conflicting
policies, two of which are relevant here.
First, since EEOC charges are fre-
quently filed without legal assistance
at an early stage of the proceedings, it
would frustrate the goals of Title VII
to require procedural exactness in stat-
ing the charges. Kaplan v. Intern.
Alliance of Theatricai and Stage Em-
ployees and Motion Picture Machine
Operators, supra, 525 F.2d at 1359.
Thus, charges are to be construed with
the utmost liberality, and parties named
in the factual statement in sufficiently
specific terms to apprise the EEOC of
the source of the alleged discrimination
may subsequently be joined in judicial
proceedings. Id.; Sanchez v. Standard m
E-74
Brands, Inc., 432 F.2d 455, 562-463
(5 Cir. 1970). Here, both plaintiffs
alleged that they were being denied
membership in the “carpenters’ union.”
As respondent, Ms. Eldredge named
“carpenters Local 46, J.A.T.C.," and
Ms. Mazur named "Union 46, Curpenters
Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee.”
These statements were plainly sufficient
to apprise the EEOC of the union's in-
volvement in the alleged discrimination
and thus to support joinder in this ac-
tion.
Second, when application of the pro-
cedural bar would prevent joinder pur-
suant to Rule 19(a), important policies
favoring enforcement of Title VII, judi-
cial economy, and the rights of liti-
gants would be frustrated by an inflex-
ible rule. In such cases, considerations
of "“vnaiformity * * * [and! of the time,
effort and expense invol#* in duplication,
o
3
‘.
q
is ean
SR A: ee
E-75
with the possibility of inconsistent re-
sults” demand that the entire matter be
disposed of in one proceeding. Bremer
v. Saint Louis Southwestern Railroad Co.,
310 F.Supp. 1333, 1340 (E.D.Mo. 1969).
Joinder is thus plainly appropriate
where nc purpose of conciliation could
have been served if the parties had been
named. See Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission v. MacMillan Bloedel Contain-
ers, Inc., 503 F.2d 1086, 1095 (6 Cir.
1974). Several courts have so held in
situations where the absent party was
not alleged to have been responsible
for any discrimination, or would natu-
ally have become involved in any efforts
to conciliate. Grogg v. General Motors
Corp., supra, 12 E.P.D. at 5542; Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission v.
Braswell Motor Freight Lines, Inc., 8
E.P.D. 49714 (N.D.Tex. 1974); Equal Em-
ployment Opportunity Commission v.
.
s&s Suge . +> * y
E-76
Brotherhood of Painters, Decorators and
Paperhangers, 384 F.Supp. 1264, 1268
(D.S.D. 1974); Hochstadt v. Worcester
Foundation for Experimental Biology, 425
F.Supp. 313, 323 (D.Mass.), aff'd, 545
F.2d 222 (1 Cir. 1976). Here, it may be
noted that no conciliation was attempted;
consequently the failure to name the em-
ployers had no practical effect on this
policy. Such a finding is not necessary
to joinder, however, for numerous courts
have found that the interests represented
by Rule 19 and by enforcement of Title
VII simply outweigh the interest in
conciliation:
“However, we are not con-
vinced that the value of con-
ciliation supersedes the value
of enforcement, to the end that
after a charge has been pro-
cessed before the EEOC and court
action commenced, the district
court is powerless to order
joinder under Rule 19(a) and
is further required to dismiss
the action under the indispens-
able party provisions of Rule
19(b). Where, as here, the
E-77
chartering International was
an obscure party, requiring
court action to determine
whether or not its presence
in the action was necessary
for complete relief among
those already parties, to deny
jcoinder under 19(a) would crip-
ple the rights of the charging
party as well as those of the
party charged.” Evans v.
Sheraton Park Hotel, supra,
503 F.2d at 183.
The absent employers here were
"obscure" parties in the sense that plain-
tiffs apparently did not know them to be a
source of discrimination until long after
the EEOC charges were filed. Even after
the employers’ role was identified, it
was not unreasonable, in the absence of
knowledge of the relationships among the
parties, to assume that complete relief
could be obtained from the JATC alone.
That the absent parties were “obscure"
in this sense has not, however, general-
ly been found to be a prerequisite to
joinder pursuant to Rule 19{a) despite
the failure to name parties before the
—
E-78
EEOC. Macklin v. Spector Freight Systems,
Inc., 478 F.2d 979, 993 n.25 (D.C.Cir.
1973) (dictum); Equal Employment Oppur-
tunity Commission v. McLean Trucking Co.,
525 F.2d 1007, 1012 (6 Cir. 1975) ("in-
dispensable parties joined for purpose
of interpreting collective bargaining
agreement); Held v. Missouri Pacific
Railroad Co., 373 F.Supp. 996, 999 (S.D.
Tex. 1974) (dictum that “indispensable”
parties may be joined); Equal Employ-
ment Opportunity Commission v. Rexall
Drug Co., 9 E.P.D. 49936, at 6931 (E.D.
Mo. 1974); Ostapowicz v. Johnson Bronze
Co., supra, 369 F.Supp. at 531 (dictum) ;
Reyes v. Missouri~Kansas-Texas Railroad
Co., 53 F.R.D. 293, 297 (D.Kan. 1971);
Torockio v. Chamberlain Manufacturing
Co., 51 F.R.D. 517, 519 (W.D.Pa. 1970)
(joinder pursuant to Rule 21 where in-
sufficient facts for Rule 19 joinder);
-
ad
a
Z
7]
cme
Bremer v. Saint Louis Southwestern Rail-
road Co., supra, 310 F.Supp. at 1340.
This line of authority disposes of de-
fendant's claim that failure to name the
employers in charges before the EEOC is
fatal to joinder under the circumstances
presented here.
The same policies dispose of defen-
dant's second contention: that joinder
is barred by plaintiffs’ failure to add
the employers and unions within 90 days
of receipt of a ekatt-botiees letter.
Defendant has cited no authority for the
proposition that this statute of limita-
tions will bar joinder of necessary par-
ties pursuant to Rule 19. None of the
decisions dealing with failure to name
parties in EEOC charges, supra, address-
ed this issue, despite the fact that the
statutory period will have run in most
cases by the time a court has determined
E-89
that absent parties must be joined. The
Court concludes that the policies under-
lying Rule 19, which have been held to
override the conflicting Title VII policy
of conciliation, must also override the
policy of finality expressed in this
short limitations period.
Of course, a plaintiff cannot amend
his complaint to allege an entirely new
cause of action and add the parties ne-
cessary thereto after the period of
limitations has passed. See Marlowe v.
Fisher Body, 489 F.2d 1057, 1064 (6 Cir.
1973). But Title VII permits a claimant
to seek judicial relief for "any discri-
mination like or reasonably related to
the allegations of the EECC charge,"
without returning to the agency for ad-
ministrative consideration of the new
charges. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission v. Pacific Press Publishing
Association, supra, 535 F.2d at 1186;
ey eer ree
Subsahen ‘vs Rosey American nockwel) cor,
482 F.2d 569, 571 (9 Cir, 1973). The a
present charge of maintaining a is tie
minatory referral system differs ‘gignifi-
cantly from the original charge of dis- | ‘
criminatory practices in placement of :
applicants on lists. But the new charge $
does not change the plaintiffs' basic
contention: That discriminatory proce-
dures in admission to defendant's ap-
prenticeship program have drastically
limited the ability of women to enter
the carpentry trade. To anyone familiar
with defendant's procedures, the shift 2
in focus from the "list" to the "job" d
requirement for admission could reason-
ably have been expected to grow out of z
the original charge once information was eo
made available as to the operation of ie
4
the system. See Gamble v. Birmingham ”
Southern Railroad Co., 514 F.2d 678,
688-689 (5 Cir. 1975); Ostapowicz v.
E-82
Johnson Bronze Co., 541 F.2d 394, 399
(3 Cir. 1976). Thus, the amendment was
within the scope of the original char-
ges, and any parties necessary to the
adjudication thereof may be joined at
this time.
Although there is no procedural bar
to joinder of the absent parties, the
affected employers number in excess of
4500, and more than 60 local unions ap-
pear to be involved. Plaintiffs have
represented that joinder is feasible
without explaining how they intend to
proceed in light of these numbers. The
only alternatives appear to be certifi-
cation of defendant classes or joinder
of contractor associations in lieu of
individual employer members, and Dis-
trict Councils, the Carpenters 46
Northern out: tes Conference Board, or
the International itself in lieu of
union locals. That either of these
E-83
alternatives can provide a feasible and
adequate solution to the problems rais-
ed in Part II, supra, is open to serious
question. The former would raise a host
of questions under Rule 23, while the
latter would raise further questions un-
der Rule 19 as to whether individual em-
ployers and union locals remain indis-
pensable parties despite the joinder of
their representatives. Decision on
these issues must, however, await plain-
tiffs’ selection of a method of joinder
and the submission of information not
presently before the Court, including
the precise number of employers affect-
ed, the number belonging to trade as-
sociations, the nature of those associa-
tions, their ability to represent and
protect the interests of their members,
and the relationships and respective
roles of each of the various levels of
union organization. Absent these facts,
”
E-84
it is impossible to determine whether
joinder may be accomplished as required
by Rule 19(a).
If joinder cannot be accomplished,
the facts discussed in Part III, supra,
will require that the action be dis-
missed pursuant to Rule 19(b). Any re-
lief directed to the JATC alone would
create a substantial possibility of pre-
judice to both employers and unions, as
well as to the JATC itself. No form of
Gecree or protective provision suffi-
cient to avoid or reduce this prejudice
has been subbested, and the Court is aware
of none. Most significantly, there is no
evidence that a judgment rendered in the
absence of these parties would have any
significant effect on the evil complained
of in this action. Plaintiffs' alterna-
tive remedy is, unfortunately, burden-
some and expensive: to pursue in
individual lawsuits those employers
7
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nd
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E-85
alleged to have discriminated. However,
the Court cannot on this ground alone
countenance any further expenditure of
judicial resources in an action so un-
likely to lead to effective relief.
Plaintiffs have strenuously urged
that joinder be postponed until after
determination on the issue of liability.
Although the Court may have the power to
join parties to participate in the formu-
lation of relief, see United States v.
Chesapeake & Ohio Railway Co., 471 F.2d
582, 592-593 (4 Cir. 1972), cert.denied,
411 U.S. 939 (1973); Pegues v. Missis-
sippi State Employment Service, 57 F.R.D.
102, 105 (N.D.Miss. 1972), that proce-
dure is appropriate only where, as in
United States v. Chesapeake & Ohio Rail-
way Co., supra, the presence of those
parties cannot immediately be determined
to be necessary for complete relief un-
der Rule 19({a)(1). Where, as here, it
E-86
is clear from the outset that effective
relief is impossible in the absence of
the parties in question, it would be a
monumental waste of resources to adjudi-
cate the issue of liability before de-
termining whether those parties can be
joined. Moreover, where the absent par-
ties claim interests that may be affect-
ed by a decree or that may generate
relitigation, it is the exclusion of
those parties from the liability phase
of the litigation that may create the
harms anticipated by Rule 19(a)(2). The
proper course in such a case is plainly
immediate joinder in order that all the
issues may be litigated at one time. See
Pegues v. Mississippi State Employment
Service, supra, 57 F.R.D. at 105.
Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED
that defendant's motion to dismiss for
lack of jurisdiction over the subject
matter by reason of failure to exhaust
E-87
state and administrative remedies is
denied.
IT IS HEREBY FURTHER ORDERED that
the employer contributors to the Car-
penters Apprenticeship and Training
Trust Fund for Northern California, and
the local unions which refer apprentices
registered with the defendant JATC to
employment are indispensable parties in
whose absence the action cannot in
equity and good conscience proceed. If
they are not joined within sixty (60)
days of the date of this order, or such
further time as the Court may, on good
cause shown, allow, the action will be
dismissed.
Dated: November 2, 1977.
/s/ Charles B. Renfrew
arle . Renfrew
United States District Judge i
are
‘ Se: % 4 ae Me. te
This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.