Private Labor Arbitration Award, April 2010

On April 21, 2010, Partner Matt Wakefield received a favorable arbitration award on behalf of a limited service hotel in Detroit, Michigan. The hotel discharged an engineer for making threats and directing vulgar remarks toward his manager and another employee. The union representing the engineer grieved the discharge, arguing that he was engaged in protected activity as a shop steward, his profane language was merely “shop talk,” and his conduct did not warrant discharge. The arbitrator denied the grievance, finding that the hotel proved the employee engaged in “serious acts of misconduct” which constituted just cause for discharge.