Furthermore, the court stated that the Fair Labors Standard Act supersedes any previous customs or agreements which excluded such travel time from the compensable work week.

In his dissent, Justice Jackson argued that majority opinion invalidates or ignores collective bargaining agreements between unions and employers, which he said was contrary to the legislative intent of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The coal company later filed a petition for rehearing on the grounds that the miners were represented by Crampton P. Harris, who was Justice Black’s former law partner and personal lawyer.

Justice Jackson objected to a per curiam denial of rehearing and filed a concurring opinion, which disassociated himself from the ruling and, by implication, criticized Black for not addressing the conflict of interest.

The infighting between Black and Jackson may also have played a role in the death of Harlan F. Stone two weeks before this ruling, and the nomination of Fred M. Vinson to the Court instead of a current Associate Justice.