LONGVIEW, Washington (From The Daily News) -- In a key victory for KapStone, a federal judge found the company acted legally when it fired union pickets in last year's strike.

The administrative law judge on Nov. 17 sided with the company that the workers acted unlawfully by blocking traffic and intimating contractors during the 12-day walkout in late August and early September last year.

The union has not decided whether it will appeal the decision, said Jim Anderson, area representative for Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers.

"We're discussing what to do next. Obviously, we're disappointed with the decision. We had prevailed initially" when the regional director of the National Labor Relations Board found merit in the union's charges, Anderson said.

The director wrote that the company was acting to "discourage employees from engaging in these (union) activities" when it fired the workers.

Federal labor law protects striking union workers' jobs unless they engage in misconduct. Attorneys for the NLRB, arguing on behalf of the union, said the workers picketed peacefully inside a public right-of-way and at times had to defend themselves against violence from contractors.

About 800 KapStone mill workers are still without a ratified contract more than two years after the old one expired. No contract talks have occurred in at least 10 months.

Union officials filed an unfair labor practice charge with the NLRB after the company fired striking union members James Froberg, Jon Bouchard, Melvin Elben, Mike Allen and Steve Blanchard.

The company agreed to give Allen his job back as part of a settlement earlier this year, but declined to extend the offer to Froberg, Bouchard, Elben and Blanchard. (Details of Allen's firing and reasons for reinstatement were unavailable.)

There are two incidents during the strike which led to Blanchard's termination. The first happened on Aug. 30, 2015, when he kicked the side of a GMC truck that belonged to Delta Fire, a contractor. The union's attorneys argued that it was a "split-second" kick that left an imprint of a shoe on a dirty truck. But the company argued that he dented and damaged the contractor's vehicle.

"By kicking the side of the truck, Blanchard intended to instill fear on the contractor's part, not to return to the mill during the strike," wrote administrative law judge Lisa Thompson.

About an hour later, Blanchard and about 10 to 15 other pickets stood outside the contractor's gate on Fibre Way and gathered in front of a Chevrolet Tahoe exiting the mill. As the Tahoe continued moving, Blanchard jumped on the hood of the vehicle. (The incident was captured in a cell phone video available on tdn.com.)

The driver, a contractor with a suspended license, then accelerated forward, sending Blanchard flying off the vehicle. He reportedly went to the emergency room with a head injury, but he left without treatment when he realized KapStone had cut off his medical insurance, according to the union.

The windshield was smashed in the process, although the two sides can't agree on whether Blanchard intentionally slammed his picket sign into the windshield. Blanchard said he jumped on the vehicle's hood to avoid being run over. Yet the judge sided with the company that Blanchard "jumped onto the hood of the truck in order to gain a tactical advantage and further intimidate the contractor."

The company fired the other three pickets after they stood in front of an 18-wheel semi-truck for 20 minutes until sheriff's deputies asked them to move aside, according to court documents. (There were no citations or arrests resulting from the incident.) Froberg, Bouchard and Elben said they were standing in a pedestrian right-of-way away near the mill exit and the truck encroached into the area, where deputies earlier had told them they could stand. But the judge and company said they intentionally blocked the vehicle in violation of a temporary restraining ordered imposed by a Cowlitz Superior Court Judge.

Thompson blasted the workers for offering "nonsensical explanations" and "inconsistent" testimonies during a March hearing, which she said undermined their credibility and at times contradicted video evidence.

Anderson, the union rep, maintained that the workers were illegally terminated.

"I do know our guys were standing where it was legal. They were not out blocking out traffic," he said.

Regarding the Tahoe incident, Anderson said, "When I saw the video I didn't see what the (judge) seemed to see. (Blanchard) did what he needed to do to not get pulled down underneath."

KapStone officials were unavailable for comment for this story.

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Join Jim Thompson on the 2nd Annual Papermakers Mission Trip to Guatemala, 22 - 29 July 17. Build houses, talk about the pulp and paper industry. For more information, email jthompson@taii.com with "Guatemala" in the subject line.