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MICHIGAN — A federal judge has ordered snack food giant Kellanova to enter arbitration with Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers & Grain Millers Union Local 70, ruling that the dispute over worker promotions stems from contract terms that remain enforceable despite the collective bargaining agreement's expiration.

U.S. District Judge Robert J. Jonker issued the ruling Friday in the Western District of Michigan, siding with the union in a case involving two grievances tied to Kellanova’s alleged failure to promote transitional employees to full-time status under a contract that expired in April 2021.

The Kellanova union arbitration dispute stems from grievances filed in August 2021, in which the union claimed a group of workers had accrued the right to be elevated from transitional to regular employees based on seniority and existing promotion criteria.

Obligation to Arbitrate Survives Expired Contract

Though the 2017–2021 agreement has since been replaced, Judge Jonker ruled that arbitration is still required due to surviving obligations and the need to interpret contract language from the previous deal. “The company has been under an uninterrupted [collective bargaining agreement] obligation to arbitrate unresolved grievances from at least May 1, 2017, to the present,” he wrote.

Kellanova argued that the complaints were moot since they relate to a now-defunct agreement, but the judge disagreed, emphasizing that the promotion mechanism in question represented a vested benefit for workers who had already met the criteria before the agreement expired.

Using a vivid metaphor, Judge Jonker compared the situation to “cars waiting on an on-ramp to merge onto a busy highway,” arguing that these workers had fulfilled their waiting period and should not be penalized simply because the on-ramp closed. “The waiters can either get in a new line with everyone else or simply accept access to the highway on new and different terms,” he added.

Union Pushed for Arbitration After Two-Year Delay

The union said it made renewed arbitration demands in January 2024, after two years of unsuccessful discussions. The court found that arbitration is appropriate under multiple successive contracts, all of which have retained mandatory arbitration clauses.

Judge Jonker noted that the successor contract eliminated the transitional employee promotion path, replacing it with a system based on hire dates. Still, whether those previously eligible had their “merge window” closed remains a question for an arbitrator—not the court—to decide.

Kellanova, the company behind brands such as Pringles and Cheez-It, is currently in the process of being acquired by Mars Inc. in a $36 billion deal expected to close later this year.

Case Details and Legal Representation

• The union is represented by Erin L. Dornbos of Pinsky Smith PC.

• Kellanova is represented by Keith E. Eastland and Erica L. Quigley of Miller Johnson Snell & Cummiskey PLC.

The case is Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers & Grain Millers Union Local 70 v. Kellanova, case number 1:24-cv-00489, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan.

Both parties did not immediately respond to requests for comment as of Monday.