The NLRB and arbitration: Some impressions of the practical effect of the Board’s Collyer policy upon arbitrators and arbitration

An examination, by NLRB General Counsel, of the NLRB’s rules for deferring to labor arbitration in unfair labor practice cases. The history of the deferral doctrine is traced from the 1955 Spielberg decision through the 1971 Collyer decision. The discussion includes the potential impact of deferral on the arbitration process, the role of the arbitrator, and the standards under which an award will be found “repugnant to the Act.” James Barden discusses the potential impact on the formality of the arbitration proceedings. C. Paul Barker discusses judicial approval of the doctrine and the burdens it imposes on unions. Edwin Teple discusses the parties’ responsibility to educate the arbitrator, and Herbert L. Sherman, Jr. rebuts arguments advanced against the doctrine. An audience discussion reflects concerns with the doctrine and its burden on unions, and notes and that the arbitrator’s duty is to the contract and not to a statute.