Rejected Benefit Fund Contribution Suit Belongs With Labor Board

A dispute between a highway repair company and a group of operating engineers benefit funds won’t move forward in federal court because the company’s claims belong with the National Labor Relations Board.

Rieth-Riley Construction Co.‘s lawsuit accuses various benefit funds associated with the Operating Engineers’ Local 324 union of wrongly refusing to accept its contributions after the parties’ bargaining agreement expired. These allegations essentially argue that the funds violated the National Labor Relations Act, which means the case is preempted under a legal doctrine requiring federal courts to defer to the NLRB on questions of compliance with the statute, ...