Appeals Court Rejects XPO Bid to Invalidate Texas Union Vote
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected XPO Logistics’ bid to throw out an unfavorable union representation vote at Laredo, Texas, during 2014.
The ruling said that even though “there is no doubt that this election was imperfect,” the facts presented by XPO failed to raise a reasonable doubt about the election’s validity. The Teamsters' successful bid to represent workers at Laredo was the union’s first organizing win at Con-way Freight, part of the company acquired by XPO last year.
“This decision relates to a 2014 vote that predates XPO’s acquisition of Con-way and involves 105 individuals at a single location,” company spokesman Gary Frantz said. “The majority of our workforce understands the value of a direct relationship with management and that together we can deliver results that matter for our customers.”
While the union has persisted in organizing efforts since the Laredo vote, including two recent filings for representation elections, the company has won more elections than it has lost.
The company argued at the Appeals Court that the National Labor Relations Board failed to keep balloting secret, misrepresented some workers’ qualifications and allowed union electioneering as well as an atmosphere of “fear and intimidation” during balloting.
The vote was 55-49 in favor of union membership at Laredo. XPO ranks No. 3 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in the United States and Canada.
