C. A. Glass Co., Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Mar 31, 1955

111 N.L.R.B. 1366 (N.L.R.B. 1955)

1366 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
but excluding all other emloyees, guards, and supervisors as defined
in the Act.
If a majority of the employees in this voting group select the Peti-
tioner to represent them, they will be taken to have indicated their
desire to constitute a separate bargaining unit, and the Regional Di-
rector conducting the election is instructed to issue a certification of
representatives to the Petitioner for such unit, which the Board, in
these circumstances, finds to be appropriate for the purposes of col-
lective bargaining. If, however, a majority of the employees in this
voting group do not vote for the Petitioner, the employees in the group
will continue to be included in the production and maintenance unit
of which they are now a part and the Regional Director will issue a
certificate of results to that effect.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.]
C. A, GLASS COMPANY, INC., COACHELLA VALLEY DIVISION 1 and UNITED
PACKINGHOUSE WORKERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL 78, CIO,2 PETITIONER.
Case No. 01-RC-3177. March 31,1955
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 Fred. W. Davis, hearing offi-
cer. Subsequently, a reopened hearing was held before Leo Fischer,
hearing officer. The hearing officers' rulings made at the hearings are
free from prejudicial error and are hereby confirmed.3
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the Act, but contends that it will not effectuate the policies
of the Act for the Board to assert jurisdiction herein.
The Employer is engaged in the harvesting, packing, and selling
of carrots and corn for individual farmers. It charges the farmers
only the actual cost of the materials and labor of the harvesting and
packing operations. It receives a 10-percent commission of the gross
sale of the corn and carrots sold by it. Title to the corn and carrots
1 As amended at the hearing.
z By Order , dated November 9, 1954 , the Board granted the Petitioner 's motion to correct
name of Petitioner , by substituting the name appearing herein, for the name, United Fresh
Fruit & Vegetable Workers, LIU No. 78
3 The Employer 's motion to dismiss the petition on the grounds that the Petitioner's
showing of interest was not based on cards signed by individuals employed by the Em-
ployer at the time of the hearing , was referred to the Board . The motion is denied. A
petitioner's showing of interest is a matter for administrative determination and is not
litigable at a hearing. Moreover, we are administratively satisfied that the Petitioner
has made a sufficient showing of interest to support its petition . In any event, the ques-
tion concerning representation which exists among the Employer 's employees , as herein-
after found, can best be resolved by an election.
111 NLRB No. 208.
C. A. GLASS COMPANY, INC. 1367
remains in the farmers whose products are not commingled. During
1953 the Employer sold corn and carrots on a commission basis of the
value of approximately $500,000. Of this amount, corn and carrots
valued at approximately $74,000 was shipped by the Employer to cus-
tomers outside the State of California.
As the Employer shipped corn and carrots valued in excess of
$50,000 to points outside the State of California, we find that it will
effectuate the policies of the Act to assert jurisdiction herein.4
2. The labor organization involved claims to represent certain em-
ployees of the Employer.
3. The Employer contends that its employees are agricultural em-
ployees within the meaning of the Act and that therefore no question
concerning representation exists. We find no merit in this contention.
The employees sought by the Petitioner work only in the Employer's
packing shed, packing, loading, and shipping produce. The Employer
subcontracts its harvesting operation to independent contractors who
hire their own employees, none of whom work in the packing shed.
Accordingly we find that a question affecting commerce exists con-
cerning the representation of certain employees of the Employer with-
in the meaning of Section, 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of
the Act.
4. The Petitioner seeks to represent in a single unit all production
and maintenance employees employed during the Employer's carrot
season and corn season. The Employer contends that the unit should
be limited to the employees employed during the corn season. The
latter season runs approximately from May 20 to June 30, and the
carrot season is shorter in duration and occurs earlier in the year.
The Employer employs approximately 20 employees during the carrot
season, of which approximately 20 percent also are employed during
the corn season. The Employer's peak employment occurs during the
corn season, at which time approximately 45 employees are employed
at any one time. During the corn season the Employer, due to turn-
over of employees, employs about 120 employees. It does not appear
that the conditions of employment of the carrots packing employees
are substantially different from those of the corn packing employees.
In these circumstances we find that all production and maintenance
employees at the Employer's Indio, California, plant engaged in the
packing, loading, and shipping of carrots and in the packing, loading,
and shipping of corn, excluding office clerical employees and super-
visors as defined in the Act, constitute a unit appropriate for the pur-
poses of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b)
of the Act.'
' Jonesboro Grain Drying Cooperative Association , 110 NLRB 481 ; Earl Fruit Company,
Case No. 20-RC-2605. Not reported in printed volumes of Board Decisions and Orders.
5 Oregon Frozen Foods Company and Ore-Ida Potato Products , Inc., 108 NLRB 1668.
1368 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
5. The Employer contends that in view of the instability in its,
operations the Board should not conduct an election among its em-
ployees. We reject this contention. Though the Employer makes no
effort to rehire employees from season to season, the record shows that
from 20 to 25 percent of its employees employed during a particular
season are employed the following season. In view thereof we find
that it will effectuate the policies of the Act to direct an election
herein.6 Because of the greater length of the corn season and the
greater number of employees employed during that season, we shall
direct the holding of the election at or near the peak of the corn sea-
son operations,' on a date to be determined by the Regional Director
among the employees in the appropriate unit who are employed dur-
ing the payroll period immediately preceding the date of the issuance
of the notice of election by the Regional Director.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.]
MEMBER RODGERS took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision and Direction of Election.
e Oregon Frozen Foods Company and Ore-Ida Potato Products , Inc, supra.
v Oregon Frozen Foods Company and Ore-Ida Potato Products , Inc., 108 NLRB 1668.
JEWEL FOOD STORES , A DEPARTMENT OF JEWEL TEA CO., INC. and JEWEL
FOOD STORES EMPLOYEES UNION, INDEPENDENT . Cases Nos. 13-RC-
3597and 13-RC-3598. Marrch 31,1955
Decision Clarifying Certification of Representatives
On February 16, 1954, following a stipulation for certification upon
consent election executed by the parties on January 20, 1954,1 and an
election held on February 6, 1954, the Regional Director for the Thir-
teenth Region certified the Independent as bargaining representative
for all full time clerks employed by Jewel Food Stores at stores lo-
cated "in and around Chicago. . . ." Thereafter, on August 30, 1954,
the Employer filed with the Board its petition for clarification of the
aforesaid certification, claiming that two new stores located at Ham-
mond and Gary, in Lake County, Indiana, and any other stores that
may subsequently be opened within the same geographic area are in-
cluded within the unit for which the certification was issued. On Sep-
1 Prior thereto, on September 25, 1953, Food Handlers of Metropolitan Chicago, Local 55,
AFL, herein called the Butchers , had filed a petition in Case No . 13-RC-3597 . On Septem-
ber 28, 1953 , Retail Clerks International Association , AFL, herein called the Retail Clerks,
had filed its petition in Case No . 13-RC-3598 . The Butchers , the Retail Clerks, the Em-
ployer, and Jewel Food Stores Employees Union, Independent , herein called Independent,
which had been certified as bargaining representative for the Employer 's employees in
1946, were parties to the stipulation for certification upon consent election.
111 NLRB No. 207.