American Can Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Mar 23, 1948

76 N.L.R.B. 945 (N.L.R.B. 1948)

in the Matter of AMERICAN CAN COMPANY, ENirLoYER and INTER-
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MACHINISTS , LODGE 304, PETITIONER
Case No. 2-R-7652
SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION
AND
ORDER AMENDING VOTING GROUP
Mai c/i /948
On January 27, 1948, the National Labor Relations Board issued
its Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceed-
ing,' in which it provided that tool and die makers, their helpers and
apprentices and machinists, their helpers and apprentices at the Em-
ployer's Hudson plant, excluding tool crib attendants and supervisors,
should constitute a voting group and, pending the election results, a
unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargainuig, should they
so desire.
Thereafter, on February 11, 1948, all parties signed and filed with
the Board's Regional Director a "Request for Board Approval of
Consent of Parties as to Voting Group and as to Extension of Time
for Conduct of Election"; on February 24, 1948, this motion reached
the Board's Washington office.2
The stipulation of the parties, in effect, proposes a modification of
the voting group established by the Board in its decision in this pro-
ceeding (1) by deleting the classifications of tool and die makers'
helpers and machinists' helpers on the ground that no such classifica-
tions exist on the Employer's pay roll; (2) by including within the
voting group "tool grinders and their helpers" on the ground that
these employees are a "type," of machinist; and (3) by including within
the voting group "production mechanics and production mechanics-
in-trailing" on the ground that employees in these classifications
perform the same type of work at the plant as the production ma-
' 75 N L R B 1127 In that Decision and Direction of Election, the Board denied
a place on the ballot to the Intervenor , Federal Union No 23393, because it had failed to
comply with Section 9 ( f) and ( h) of the Act . Thereafter , on February 16, 1948, the
Board, having been informed that the Intervenor had "complied ," issued an Order Amend-
ing Decision and Direction of Election , permitting the Intervenor to participate in the
election
30n February 24, 1948, the Board extended the time for holding the election to sixty
(60) days from the date of issuance of the Direction of Election
76 N. L. R. B., No. 131.
945
946 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
chinists whom the Board included among machinists in the voting
group already established.
The Board has considered the stipulation of the parties, its decision
respecting the voting group, and the entire record in this proceed-
ing, and makes the following findings :
1. As to "helpers": Inasmuch as tool and die makers' helpers and
machinists' helpers do not appear as job classifications on the pay roll
at the Employer's Hudson plant, we shall delete these categories from
the description of the voting group.
2. As to "tool grinders and their helpers": Tool grinders are not
skilled craftsmen. We shall therefore not include tool grinders and
their helpers in the voting group inasmuch as this voting group may
become a separate craft unit of tool and die makers and machinists,
who are clearly craftsmen of cognate skills.
3. As to "production mechanics and production mechanics-in-
training": Production mechanics are essentially set-up men, and do
not generally acquire the technical skill and knowledge of machinists,
much less the greater precision of tool and die makers. Production
mechanics-in-training receive some instruction from machinists. In-
asmuch as production mechanics and production mechanics-in-train-
ing are not apprentices to machinists or to tool and die makers, we are
of the opinion that they should not be included in a voting group which
may develop into a craft unit which should properly include only craft
employees. Accordingly, we shall exclude production mechanics and
production mechanics-in-training from the voting group and the craft
unit which may result from the election.
In order that there may be no misunderstanding with respect to the
inclusion in the voting group of production machinists, shop machin-
ists, and maintenance machinists in the voting group which includes
machinists, we shall specify the inclusion of these various types of
machinists.
In accordance with the foregoing, we issue the following order :
ORDER
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the description of the voting group as set
forth in the Decision and the Direction of Election issued in this
proceeding on January 27, 1948, be, and it hereby is, amended to read
as follows :
. . . all tool and die makers and their apprentices and shop,
maintenance, and production machinists and their apprentices at
the Employer's Hudson plant, excluding tool crib attendants, tool
grinders and their helpers, production mechanics and production
mechanics-in-training and supervisors as defined in the Act.