Kelso v. Consolidated Beverages, Inc.

Farris, A.C.J.

Mr. Kelso, a truck driver, was discharged from employment after his employer, Famous Brands, conveyed its beer and wine distributorship in the Seattle area to three dealers, including Consolidated Beverages. The central issue in the case is the interpretation to be given to a provision of a collective bargaining agreement to which Mr. Kelso’s former union and Famous Brands and Consolidated Beverages were parties. Section 19(b) of this agreement provides:

In the event that an employer absorbs, purchases, merges or takes a new brand of beer from another distributor, all men that…