Folger Coffee Company v. International Union, et a

Folger Coffee Company v. International Union (2010)

What Happened

Folger Coffee Company hired outside contractors to handle cap dumping work—a job previously done by its own unionized employees. The union filed a grievance arguing this violated their labor contract. An arbitrator (a neutral decision-maker) agreed with the union and ordered the company to give the work back to its union workers. Folger Coffee appealed, claiming the arbitrator had overstepped her authority.

The Court's Decision

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the union. The court upheld the arbitrator's decision, requiring Folger Coffee to reassign the cap dumping work to its unionized employees rather than outside contractors.

Why This Matters for Workers

This ruling protects union workers' right to maintain their jobs. It shows that when a labor contract protects certain work for union employees, companies cannot simply outsource that work to cheaper contractors. Courts will enforce arbitrators' decisions that defend workers' contractual job protections, even when employers challenge those decisions on appeal.