Auto-Lite Battery Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Aug 30, 1949

85 N.L.R.B. 1034 (N.L.R.B. 1949)

In the Matter of AUTO- CITE BATTERY CORPORATION (VINGENNES, IN-
DIANA, DIVISION), EIIl'Lo ER and INTERNATIONAL UNION, UNITED
AUTOMOBILE, AIRCRAFT & AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENT WORKERS OF
AMERICA (UAW,-CIO), PETITIONER
Case No. 35-RC-231.-Decided August 30, 1949
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before William P.
McGowan, 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 National Labor
Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with
this case to a three-member panel [Chairman Herzog and Members
Reynolds and Gray].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the National Labor Relations Act.
2. The Petitioner 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) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The appropriate unit :
The Petitioner seeks to represent a unit of all office and clerical
employees, including laboratory employees and checkers, but exclud-
ing supervisors. The Employer opposes the inclusion of the labora-
tory employees and checkers in the unit.
The Employer manufactures storage batteries at its Vincennes,
Indiana, plant. The plant is divided into a production section, a
laboratory, and an office. The Petitioner presently represents a unit
of production and maintenance employees, excluding office employees,
factory clericals, and supervisors.'
Laboratory employees: These employees make various chemical tests
,on new batteries and defective batteries returned from purchasers.
' This unit was established as a result of a consent election held on January 11., 1947.
85 N. L. R. B., No. 180.
1034
AUTO-LITE BATTERY CORPORATION 1035
There is no evidence as to whether they are chemists or the amount of
training and education 'required to perform their duties. They oc-
cupy a special section of the plant, are separately supervised by a
Chemical Engineer, and are not interchanged with the office and
clerical employees. In view of the dissimilarity of their duties and
their physical separation from 'the office and clerical employees, we
shall exclude them from the unit.
Checkers: The checkers are factory timekeepers who maintain the
time records of production employees. They work in various pro-
duction departments, are. hourly paid, and are supervised by the fore-
mail of the production department to which they are assigned. We
find that these employees are factory clericals. We shall therefore
exclude them from the office and clerical unit.2
We find that the following employees of the Employer constitute a
unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the
meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act:
All office and clerical employees at the Employer's Vincennes, In-
diana, plant, excluding laboratory employees, checkers, and super-
visors as defined in the Act.
5. The determination of representatives :
The parties disagree as to the eligibility to vote of 10 individuals
who, the Petitioner contends, were temporarily laid off, whereas the
Employer asserts they were permanently discharged. The record
contains insufficient facts to enable use to make a definitive finding at
this time as to the employment status of these individuals. We shall
therefore permit them to vote subject to challenge. If their ballots
become determinative of the results of the election, we will then fur-
ther investigate whether these individuals were properly eligible to
vote.4
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with the Employer, an election by
secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later than
30 days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and
supervision of the Regional Director for the Region in which this
case was heard, and subject to Sections 203.61 and 203.62 of National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations, among the employees
in the unit found appropriate in paragraph numbered 4, above, who
3 This exclusion is without prejudice to the Petitioner 's filing a separate petition re-
questing the inclusion of these employees in the production and maintenance unit.
' These employees are : Gayle Nolting, Jean Trueblood, Ruth Wells, Doris Wall, Walter
Juned , Joan Mattingly , June Lane , Glen Memering , Neomi Wilson , and William Carie.
4 11atter of Boland Manufacturing Company, 83 N. L. R. B. 1254.
1036 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the
date of this Direction of Election , including employees who did not
work during said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation
or temporarily laid off, but excluding those employees who have since
quit or been discharged for cause and have not been rehired or rein-
stated prior to the date of the election , and also excluding employees
on strike who are not entitled to reinstatement, to determine whether
or not they desire to be represented, for purposes of collective bargain-
ing, by International Union, United Automobile, Aircraft & Agri-
cultural Implement Workers of America ( UAWWT-CIO).