ENDICOTT -- Endicott Interconnect is appealing a National Labor Relations Board directive ordering it to rehire Rick White, disputing the finding that he was fired for union activities.

WHITE

That means White's reinstatement at the company has been put on hold while the case winds its way through the United States Court of Appeals in Washington D.C.

James F. Sullivan, vice president of human resources at Endicott Interconnect, confirmed on Tuesday that the company had initiated an appeal of the ruling forcing the company to rehire White. He declined further comment.

"Realistically, I expected that they would appeal," White said Tuesday from the Endicott offices of Alliance@IBM, which spearheads an effort to unionize workers at Endicott Interconnect and IBM Corp. "I would love to have my job back. It could be a great company to work for. They're doing state-of-the-art stuff. I don't think they want me."

After the NLRB issued the ruling in September, the only option for Endicott Interconnect other than rehiring Rick White and compensating him for three years of lost salary and benefits, was to appeal the 2-to-1 decision against the company to the federal Court of Appeals.

It's unclear how long the appeals process could take. In its response, lawyers for the labor relations board, which represents White, asked the court to enforce its order against the company.

Endicott Interconnect has repeatedly argued that White was fired for insubordination. They say he directly disobeyed orders from the company's executives to halt his public criticism of the company.

This is the second appeal for Endicott Interconnect. It first appealed an administrative judge's 2003 ruling in White's favor.

When the full NLRB decision was first released last month, Sullivan hinted that the company was leaning toward appeal because the sole vote against White's reinstatement came from the NLRB commissioner who had a strongly worded minority opinion in support of the Endicott Interconnect's argument.

In the 2-to-1 ruling, the board said White's comments about the company in two public forums were protected in his capacity as a union organizer, and the company could not use the comments as basis for his firing. White, an engineering technician, had transferred to Endicott Interconnect in November 2002 after 28½ years with IBM.

The company dismissed White in December 2002, one month after taking over the Endicott microelectronics operations of IBM Corp.

White openly questioned management's decision to lay off 200 people two weeks after taking over operations from IBM. The company said his critical statements undermined the company's credibility. White claimed his statements were made to present the union's side of the argument against the layoffs.

^^  Back to top | E-mail this story to a friend | Subscribe Now

Return to Business index | Next Story

© 2005 Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin
Use of this site signifies your agreement to the Terms of Service (updated 12/17/02)

Problem with this site, please contact the webmaster.