Private Labor Arbitration Award, August 2012

On August 17, 2012, Partner Matt Wakefield received a favorable arbitration award on behalf of a luxury resort in Southern California. The resort outsourced the function of providing golf lessons to a third party. The union representing an affected employee grieved the resort’s decision, arguing that the outsourcing violating the collective bargaining agreement. The resort argued that golf lessons had been removed from the bargaining unit 10 years earlier. The resort also argued that even if golf lessons could still be considered bargaining unit work, the resort retained the right to outsource. The arbitrator agreed with the resort and denied the grievance. In viewing the resort’s actions in a light most favorable to the union, the arbitrator determined that the resort acted reasonably because only one employee was affected and “business considerations other than the cost of labor” drove the resort’s decision.