Allan U. Bevier, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 10, 1957

118 N.L.R.B. 1335 (N.L.R.B. 1957)

ALLAN U. BEVIER, INC. 1335
Allan U. Bevier, Inc. and United Electrical , Radio and Machine
Workers of America (UE). Case No. 5-RC-39211. September 10,
1957
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor
Relations Act, a hearing was held before Sidney Smith, hearing
officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free
from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board
has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-
member panel [Chairman Leedom and Members Murdock and
Rodgers].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the Act.
2. The labor organization involved claims to represent certain
employees of the Employer.
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section 9
(c) (1) andSection 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The Employer is engaged in the manufacture and sale of steel
storage tanks and petroleum-handling equipment. The Petitioner
seeks a plantwide unit. The Employer agrees with the proposed unit,
except that it would include, and the Petitioner would exclude, the
categories discussed below.
Outside salesmen: The Employer employs four salaried salesmen
who spend the majority of their time in the field in contacting cus-
tomers and promoting the sale of the Employer's products. While
in the field, they make minor repairs to products which they have
previously sold. They also spend some time in the plant performing
mechanical adjustments on company products. During this time,
they may work with production employees. From the above it is clear
that although there is some contact with plant workers, the outside
salesmen work primarily under different conditions and have no
substantial community of interest with production and maintenance
employees. We shall exclude them.'
Inside salesman: This employee, Horz, works in the stockroom
adjacent to the production area, where he receives orders for the
Employer's products. In addition, he purchases supplies, dispatches
and loads the Employer's and customer's trucks, issues tools and
'Dependable Parts, Inc., 112 NLRB 581; Ozark Manufacturing and Supply Co., 108
NLRB 1476, 1477.
118 NLRB No. 176.
1336 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
equipment to production workers, and, on occasion, performs manual
tasks in the production area. He may not order supplies valued at
more than $25 without the approval of higher management. As the
inside salesman spends a substantial part of his time in the plant, and
is essentially a plant employee, we shall include him in the production
and maintenance unit.2
Storeroom clerk and material control clerk : These employees work
in the storeroom adjacent to the production area, where they receive
and distribute supplies to production workers. Each also spends a
substantial part of his time in production work. We find that these
employees have a substantial community of interest with production
workers and we shall include them in the unit.
Meter mechanic: This individual, assisted by a helper, repairs
customer's meters at their place of business or in the plant. Only 5
to 10 percent of his time is spent in work outside the plant. He con-
sults with the vice president of the Employer on service problems
about 1 percent of this time. He has no authority to hire, discharge,
or discipline his helper. The Petitioner would exclude him as a direct
representative of management; however, we find that he is not so
closely allied with management as to warrant his exclusion. Accord-
ingly, we shall include him.
Alleged supervisors : The Petitioner would exclude as supervisors,
Joseph Kaplan, George Revere, Archie Saby, Richard Bowser, and
M. D. Tice. The record shows that these employees have conferences
with the plant superintendent and receive instructions which they
transmit to the men with whom they work. They perform manual
tasks virtually all of their time, are hourly paid at a slightly higher
rate than their coworkers and have no authority to hire, discharge,
discipline, or otherwise affect the status of other employees or effec-
tively to recommend changes in such status. We find that they are
not supervisors and we shall include them.'
We find the following employees at the Employer's Baltimore,
Maryland, plant, comprise a unit appropriate for purposes of collec-
tive bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act:
All production and maintenance employees, including the inside
salesman, the storeroom clerk, the material control clerk, and the
meter mechanic, but excluding the outside salesmen, office clerical
employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.]
2 Segari & Co ., 114 NLRB 1159, 1160.
3 The parties disagree as to the unit placement of the draftsman . As, at the time of
the hearing, the Employer had no employees in this category, we find it unnecessary to
pass upon this issue.