Automatic Electric Co.Download PDFNational Labor Relations Board - Board DecisionsSep 21, 195196 N.L.R.B. 314 (N.L.R.B. 1951) Copy Citation 314 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD 5. The Petitioner would permit any employee in the unit who has worked one full day or 8 hours for the Employer during the past year to vote in the election. The Employer takes no position on -this matter. Although the periods of employment afforded many of the nonfixed actors involved herein are relatively brief, we believe that a single day's employment is too casual to establish the collective bargaining interest of a prospective voter. We shall therefore adopt a 2-day elig- ibility requirement. All employees within the appropriate unit shall be eligible to vote who have had 2 or more days or 16 hours of employ- ment during the 12 months immediately preceding the date of this Decision and Direction of Election.6 I [Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this volume.] 6 Cf. Television Film Producers Association, et al., supra. AUTOMATIC ELECTRIC COMPANY and ENGINEERS , DRAFTSMEN AND TECHNICIANS ASSOCIATION, LOCAL 144, INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF TECHNICAL ENGINEERS , ARCHITECTS AND DRAFTSMEN 'S UNIONS, AFL, PETITIONER . Case No. 13-RC-2025. September 21, 1951 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 Irving M. Friedman, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. 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 organizations involved claim to represent certain employees of the Employer. 3. The Intervenor, Technical Engineers, Architects and Drafts- men's Association, Local 90-A, which was certified by the Board on January 17, 1950, claims that its contract with the Employer of Janu- ary 25, 1950, with supplements executed January 27, 1950, November 2, 1950, and November 28, 1950, and automatically renewed for 1 year . on March 2, 1951, is a bar to this petition. The Petitioner disagrees, alleging that a schism exists. The Employer is neutral. The Intervenor is a so-called amalgamated local, having members among employees in various plants, including the Employer's. The Intervenor has organized its members in the Employer's plant as Chapter 8, which chapter elects its own officers and holds regular meet- ings for the conduct of its affairs in relation to the Employer. 96 NLRB No. 45. AUTOMATIC ELECTRIC COMPANY 315 At the time that the Intervenor was certified, it was affiliated with International Federation of Technical Engineers, Architects and Draftsmen's Unions, AFL. On April 11, 1950, the Intervenor was suspended by the International for financial irregularities: At a regular meeting of Chapter 8 on May 14, 1951, the purpose of which was well publicized in advance, the members of Chapter 8 unani- mously voted to disaffiliate from the Intervenor and organized them- selves into an independent union with the same officers. Of the ap- proximately 200 members, 102 attended this meeting. Moreover, apparently authentic petitions signed by an additional 92 members later indorsed the change of affiliation. On May 15, 1951, the new organization applied for, and on May 17, 1951, was granted, affiliation with the International as Local 144. It requested recognition from the Employer on May 21, 1951, but its request was refused because of the certification and contract of the Intervenor. In view of these circumstances, we find that a schism exists which removes the current contract as a bar to a representation election." We find that a question affecting commerce exists concerning the repre- sentation of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Sec- tions 9 (c) (1) and 2 (6) and (7) of the Act 2 4. We find, in accordance with the agreement of the parties and with our Decision and Certification,3 that the following employees of the Employer constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collec- tive bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act: All professional employees and those employees in the.process of becoming professional employees employed by Automatic Electric Company, Chicago, Illinois, including those who are classified by the Employer as engineers, technicians, and draftsmen in the Engineering Organ- dzation of the Employer under the supervision of the Superintendent of, Engineering which includes only systems engineering, apparatus engineering, production engineering, technical publications, and the drafting department; and also those classified by the Employer as engineers and technicians in the Quality Control Organization of the Employer under the supervision of the factory superintendent; and also those technicians in the pay station department, and draftsmen in the patent department; but excluding all office and clerical em- ployees, time-study men and rate setters, managerial employees, sales ' United Specialties Company, 89 NLRB 605; Acme Quality Paints, Inc., 95 NLRB 1025; The Electric Storage Battery Company , 94 NLRB 1308 . ( Cf. Columbia River Salmon and Tuna Fish Packers Association, 91 NLRB 1424 , where there was no formal action to change affiliation.) I In view of this finding , we find it unnecessary to resolve other issues raised with re- spect to the validity of the contract between the Employer and the Intervenor. 3 Automatic Electric Company , Case No. 13-RC-909, not reported in printed volumes. 316 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD coordinator, temporary employees, trainees, guards, and all other employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act. [Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this .volume.] MEMBER STYLES took no part in the consideration of the above Deci- sion and Direction of Election. WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC CORP. and LOCAL 410, WESTINGHOUSE PLANT GUARDS, PETITIONER. Case No. 2-RC3583. September 21, 1951 Decision and Direction of Elections Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, a hearing was held before Eugene M. Purver, 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 [Members Houston, Reynolds, and Murdock]. 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. The question concerning representation : The Petitioner seeks two units of plant guards. The Employer alleges that the Petitioner is presently affiliated with the labor organ- ization which currently represents the Employer's production and maintenance employees and that therefore under Section 9 (b) (3) of the Act, it is ineligible to be certified as the collective bargaining representative of the guards here requested. The production and maintenance employees at the Employer's Belle- ville and Bloomfield, New Jersey, plants have been covered by collec- tive bargaining agreements for a number of years, separate agreements having been executed for the employees in each plant. The contract unit in each plant included guards until sometime in 1950. On March 29, 1950, the Board issued a Decision and Direction of Elections in a case involving the Employer, in which it found, inter alia, that the production and maintenance employees at each of the afore- mentioned plants excluding guards constituted separate appropriate units., The elections in each plant were won by Westinghouse Local 1 89 NLRB 8. 96 NLRB No. 50. Copy with citationCopy as parenthetical citation