California State Brewers Institute

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Aug 2, 1950

90 N.L.R.B. 1747 (N.L.R.B. 1950)

In the Matter Of MEMBERS OF THE CALIFORNIA STATE BREWERS INSTI-
TUTE, SOUTHERN DIVISION : Los ANGELES BREWING COMPANY, GRACE
BROTHERS BREWERY, LTD., LUCKY LAGER BREWING COMPANY, EM-
PLOYERS and INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MACHINISTS, LODGE 311.
Case No. U-RC-1017.Decided August 9, 1950
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
Upon an amended petition duly filed, a hearing in this matter was
held on April 20, 21, 27, and 28, 1950,'before Daniel J. Harrington,.
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 2 finds :
1. The Employers are engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the Act.
2. The labor organizations involved claim to represent certain em-
ployees of the Employers.
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employers within the meaning of Section
9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The Petitioner seeks a single multiemployer unit of all machinists,
and all mechanics ,' their helpers and apprentices, excluding engineers,
production employees, office and clerical employees, guards, watchmen,
professional employees, and employees in units already certified by the
Board.4 The Employers are neutral . However, the Intervenor op-
' At the hearing, the Petitioner moved without objection from any of the parties, to
exclude from the name of the Employers , the name of Stewart McKee and Company, upon
the ground that this concern had permanently suspended business operations , which motion
was referred to the Board.
The hearing officer permitted the intervention of Millwright and Machine Erectors Local
1.607, United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America , AFL, herein called the
Intervenor , and International Union of Operating Engineers , Local 63 , AFL, upon the
basis of their respective interests in this proceeding . Subsequently , the Operating En-
gineers moved to withdraw from the proceeding and disclaimed any further interest therein,
which motion was also referred to the Board.
The several motions which were referred to the Board are hereby granted.
2 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
[ Members Reynolds , Murdock , and Styles].
'The record shows that the employee classification of mechanics as used here by the
Petitioner is the same category of employee classification ( millwrights ) as that claimed
by the Intervenor.
The unit appears as amended at the hearing.
90 NLRB No. 209.
1747
1748 DECISIONS Or NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
poses the unit and contends (1) that such unit, insofar as it includes
millwrights, is inappropriate because jurisdiction over the millwright
employees sought*to be represented by the Petitioner was awarded by
the AFL to the Intervenor; and (2) that there is no basis for the single
multiemployer unit which is, therefore, inappropriate. The several
members of the institute together with the nonmembers do not oppose
the Petitioner's request for a single multiemployer unit.
As regards the Intervenor's contention based on the fact of a juris-
dictional award by the AFL, we have previously held that the exist-
ence of a jurisdictional award does not, in our opinion, constitute a
valid reason for our refusal to permit the employees to decide which of
the competing unions they desire should represent them through the
election processes of the Board.'
So far as the issue of a multiemployer unit is concerned, the record
discloses that California State Brewers Institute, herein called the
Institute, is a California corporation having as members producers of
brewery products in California and representing various of its lnem-
bers together with nonmembers 6 in collective bargaining negotiations
since 1936 with various labor organizations for separate units of pro-
duction and maintenance employees respectively. Although the In-
stitute signs contracts on behalf of its members and does not sign
contracts for the nonmembers who on their own behalf sign the same
contracts as those signed by the Institute for its members, the members
and nonmembers are equally represented in joint bargaining negotia-
tions which are conducted by the Institute as the joint bargaining rep-
resentative of both groups.
We have held that participation in joint bargaining negotiations and
the uniform adoption of the agreement resulting from such nego-
tiations by the participants in the negotiations indicated a desire on
the part of said participants to be bound by joint rather than individ-
ual action and therefore warranted the establishment of a niultiem=
ployer unit., In view of the foregoing, we believe, that apart from
the right of any craft group to sever therefrom, a single multiemployer
unit may be appropriate.
There remains for consideration whether the millwrights sought
by the Intervenor are the type to which the Board ordinarily grants
separate representation as a craft group. The employees in question
perform the work of erecting, installing, securing, aligning, disman-
See Association of Motion Picture Producers, Inc., et al., 85 NLRB 902, and cases
cited therein.
'The nonmember for whom the Institute has collectively bargained is Grace Brothers
Brewery, Ltd. On the other hand, the record shows that Los Angeles Brewery Company
participates in the bargaining negotiations conducted by the Institute for its members.
Air Conditioning Company of Southern California , et at., 81 NLRB 946.
CALIFORNIA STATE BREWERS. INSTITUTE 1749
tling, and moving machinery. The Petitioner and the Intervenor
each claim this category of employees under different names. Thus,
the Petitioner refers to them as mechanics, and the Intervenor refers
to them as millwrights. For purposes of clarity we shall refer to
them here as millwrights.
In previous decisions, we have accorded millwrights performing
substantially the same duties the right of separate representation on a
craft basis.s On the other hand, we have also held that millwrights
perform duties which are traditionally identified with the machinist's
cra.ft.9 In these, circumstances, the millwrights may, if they so de-
sire, constitute a separate appropriate unit, or in view of their com-
munity of interest with the machinists, be represented in a broader
craft unit for purposes of collective bargaining.
Although it appears that where craft employees have been covered
by collective bargaining upon a multiemployer basis,10 the Board
normally requires that craft severance be coextensive with an estab-
lished multiemployer unit,'1 in view of the fact that these millwrights
are employed only at the Los Angeles Brewery Company, one of em-
ployers involved herein, we shall permit the severance of these em-
ployees as a separate employer unit 12 However, we shall not make
any unit determination until we have first ascertained the desires of
the employees involved. If in this election the millwrights vote for
the Intervenor, they will be taken to have indicated their desire to
constitute a separate bargaining unit.13
We shall direct that separate elections by secret ballot be held among
the following employees in the voting groups indicated below:
(1) All machinists, their helpers and apprentices, employed by
Members of the California State, Brewers Institute, Southern Division;
Los Angeles Brewing Company, Grace Brothers Brewery, Ltd. ; and'
Lucky Lager Brewing Company, at these employers' plants, in and
near Los Angeles, California, excluding engineers, production em-
ployees, office and clerical employees, guards, watchmen, professional
employees, employees in units already certified by the Board, em-
ployees included in voting group (2) below, and supervisors as*defined
in the Act;
8 See Coosa River Newsprint Company, 90 NLRB No. 57 ; Sangamo Electric Company,
90 NLRB No. 20.
9 A. C.' Spark Play Division, General Motors Corporation (Milwaukee Plant), 88 NLRB
1214.
10 It would appear, although not conclusively established by the record, that the mill-
wrights have been covered by bargaining. on a multiemployer basis.
11 American Viscose Corporation, 79 NLRB 958.
12 Union Steel Castings Division of Blaw-Knox Company, 88 NLRB 209.
13 See Brown and Root, Inc., et at., 77 NLRB 1136 ; International Harvester Company,
73 NLRB 971. ; cf. Certain-Teed Products Corporation , 78 NLRB 910, wherein a unit of
machinists were "Globed" to determine whether they desired to be in the same unit with
millwrights or in a separate unit.
1750 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
(2) All millwrights employed by the Los Angeles Brewery Com-
pany at its Los Angeles, California, plant, excluding all other em-
ployees, and supervisors as defined in the Act.
ti. The Los Angeles Brewery Company contends that the mill-
wrights are temporary employees and therefore ineligible to partici-
pate in any election directed herein. The millwrights are presently
employed on the dismantling of an old and the installation of a new
conveyer system at the plant of the Los Angeles Brewery Company.
At the time of the hearing, the Employer estimated that this installa-
tion work would be completed within 30 to 60 days, at which time such
of the millwrights as were hired on a temporary basis,14 would be per-
manently laid off and would not be rehired. We have held that em-
ployees hired on a temporary basis for a particular assignment at the
conclusion of which their employment will be terminated are ineligible
to vote in a representation election.bo In these circumstances, we find
that the millwrights who were hired on a temporary basis are ineligible
to participate in the election. However, the record reveals that three
of the millwrights now presently working on the installation job were
previously employed as millwrights by the Los Angeles Brewing Com-
pany, on a permanent basis. Although not clear from the record, it
would appear that these employees may be retained by the Employer
upon completion of their present assignment. If they are, they will,
of course, be permitted to vote in the election which we will herein-
after direct 1e
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS 17
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with the Employer, separate elec-
tions 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 voting groups described above, who were employed during the
payroll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction,"'
including employees who did not work during the said payroll period
because they were ill or on vacation or temporarily.laid off, but ex-
14 This apparently includes all but three of'the millwrights now employed.
1s Belmont Radio Corporation, 81 NLRB 23.
11 In the event that there are not eligible employees employed as millwrights at the date
of the election, no election will be held for the members of this group.
17 Any participant in the elections directed herein may, upon its prompt request to, and
approval thereof by , the Regional Director, have its name removed from the ballot.
18 Although the Intervenor desires to have the eligibility date for the election fixed as of
the date of the hearing , we perceive no reason for departing from our usual eligibility rule.
CALIFORNIA STATE BREWERS. INSTITUTE 1751
cluding those employees who have since quit or been discharged for
cause and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the
election, and also excluding employees on strike who are not entitled
to reinstatement, to determine :
(1) Whether or not the employees in voting group (1) desire to
be represented by International Association of Machinists, Lodge 311,
for purposes of collective bargaining;
(2) Whether the employees in voting group (2) desire to be repre-
sented by Millwright and Machine Erectors Local 1607, United Broth-
erhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, AFL, or by Interna-
tional Association of Machinists, Lodge 311, for the purposes of
collective bargaining, or by neither.