Cannon Manufacturing Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 31, 1942

46 N.L.R.B. 592 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In, the Matter Of CANNON MANUFACTURING CORPORATION AND CANNON
ELECTRICAL DEVELOPMENT COMPANY and UNITED ELECTRICAL, RADIO
& MACHINE WORKERS OF'AMERICA,"LOCAL 1421, C. I. O.
Case No. R-4601.Decided December 31,1942
Jurisdiction : electrical supplies manufacturing industry:
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : `existence of question : re-
fusal to accord recognition because of existing contract ; contract which-had
,run a year and was terminable upon 30 days' notice held no bar to; election
necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all employees engaged in main-
tenance and production , excluding office workers ( including production control
employees), guards, cafeteria workers, matrons, nurses , and supervisory em-
ployees. ,
Mr. Howard^F. Brady, of San Marino, Calif., for the Company.
Mr. Leo Gallagher, of Los, Angeles, Calif.,,for the Union.
Mr. Joseph Lewis, of Los Angeles, Calif., for the Association.
Mr. David V. Easton, of counsel-to,the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon, petition duly filed by United Electrical, Radio '& Machine
Workers of America, Local 1421, C. I. 0., herein called the Union,
alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the
representation of employees of Cannon Manufacturing Corporation
and Cannon Electrical Development Company, Los Angeles, Cali-
fornia, herein collectively called the Company, the National Labor
Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice
before Daniel J. Harrington, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held
at Los Angeles, California, on November 25, 1942. The Company, the
Union, and Cannon Employees Association, herein called the Associa-
tion, appeared, participated, and were afforded full opportunity to be
heard, to examine.and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evi-
dence bearing upon the issues. The Trial Examiner's rulings made
at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
46 N. L. R. B, No. 69
592
CANNON MANUFACTURING CORPORATION 593
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. • THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Cannon Manufacturing Corporation, a California corporation,*and
James H. Cannon, an individual doing business as Cannon Electrical
Development Company, are engaged in the manufacture of cable con-
nections and electrical specialties, at a plant in Los Angeles, California.
During the period from January 1, 1942, to October 1, 1942; the Com=
pany purchased $3,000,000 worth of materials to be used at said plant,
of which approximately $500,000 worth was obtained from points
outside the State of California. During the same period the Company
had gross sales of approximately $11,000,000. Approximately 85 per-
cent of these sales were made to aircraft companies having- contracts
with the United States Government.
The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, Local
1421, is a labor organization affiliated with-the Congress of Industrial
Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the Company.
Cannon Employees Association is an independent labor organization,
admitting to membership employees of the Company. ' .
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On September 9, 1941, the Regional Director of the Twenty-first
Region conducted a consent election among the employees of the Com-
pany in a unit described as "All employees.... but excluding engineer-
ing, clerical and supervisory employees..." The, same labor organ-
izations as are herein involved were on the ballot. The Regional
Director certified that of 703 eligible employees, 646 valid 'votes were
counted; that the Association received 370 votes, and the Union
received 263.
On October 24, 1941, the Company and the Association entered into
an agreement which provided that the Association be recognized
as, the exclusive bargaining representative of all hourly paid, non-
supervisory employees, excluding all employees classified as foremen,
assistant foremen, subforemen, supervisors, employees of cost, per-
sonnel; accounting, and pay roll, or any other official who could hire
or discharge. The agreement further provided for a closed shop. By
504086-43-1 01. 46-38
594 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL -LABOR -'RELATIONS'-BOARD
its terms, the agreement was for a year's duration, automatically re-
newable if not changed by that time, and thereafter terminable upon 30
days' notice by either party. On August 29, 1942, during discussions
between the parties pertaining to revisions of the agreement the Union,
by letter, notified the Company that it represented a majority of the
employees and requested that discussion with the Association be broken
off. On September 21, 1942, the Union notified the Company by tele-
gram that it had filed the petition in the' instant case. Meanwhile,
discussions on the revisions of the afore-mentioned contract were dis-
continued. '
The Association asserts that the above-mentioned contract is a bar
to the present proceeding. Since the contract is terminable by either
party upon 30 days' notice, we find that it is not a bar to a present
determination of representatives.
A statement of a Field Examiner, introduced into evidence during
the hearing, indicates that both the Union and the Association repre-
sent a substantial number of the employees in the unit hereinafter
found to be appropriate.' -
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company within the mean-
ing of Section,9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.,
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union contends that the appropriate unit consists of all pro-
duction and maintenance employees of the Company, excluding guards,
office workers (including production control employees), supervisors,
foremen, assistant and subforemen, cafeteria workers, matrons, nurses,
and any employee who has the right to hire or discharge.
The Association contends that the appropriate unit is one com-
posed of all non-supervisory hourly paid employees of the Company,
including production control employees, cice workers, guards, cafe-
teria workers, matrons, and nurses, but excluding,.officeworkers en-
gaged in cost, personnel, accounting and pay-roll work, foremen,
assistant and subforemen, supervisors, or any employee who has the
right to hire or discharge.
The Company takes no position on the appropriate unit other than
its desire to have guards excluded.
i The Field Examiner reported that the Union submitted 548 authorization cards, 125 of
said cards dated prior to August 1942 , 414 dated subsequent to August 1942 , and 9 undated ;
that all signatures affixed to said cards appeaied to be genuine signatures; and that 394
of said signatures were the names of persons on the Company's pay roll of October 31,
1942 Said pay roll lists a total of 1,772 employees, of which 1,528 are allegedly within
the appropriate unit
The report further stated that the Association is under a closed-shop contract with the
Company.
-'CANNON-',- MANUFACTURING CORPORATION' " : 595
As appears above, the Union and the Company would exclude
guards, whereas the Association wished to include them on the ground
that some of them formerly worked in the plant and were members
of the Association. The-Association did not bargain with the Com-
pany on their behalf. The Company, itself, did not employ guards
at the time of the consent election: We shall exclude them.
The Union would exclude production control employees on the
ground that they are clerical employees. The Association would
include them, basing its contention upon the fact-that the contract
of October 24 included them, and that it has bargained with the Com-
pany- on their behalf. This group did not participate in the consent
election . - We shall exclude them.
The Union, would exclude office employees from the unit on the
ground that their problems are dissimilar to those of production and
maintenance employees. The Association has included all but those
engaged in pay-roll, accounting, personnel, and cost work, in the
contract with the Company, and has bargained for them. Office em-
ployees were not included in the unit agreed upon for the consent
election. We shall exclude this group from the unit.
Cafeteria workers were not included in the contract, nor has the
Association bargained for them. This group was not in existence
at the time of the consent election. We shall exclude them.
The record does not disclose whether the matrons and nurses voted
in the consent election. Both groups are included within the con-
tract between the Company and the Association, and the latter has
bargained for them. :However, the problems arising from the nature
of their work are dissimilar to those of the large majority of employees
at the plant. Under these circumstances we shall exclude them.
We find that all employees of the Company engaged in maintenance
and production, excluding office workers (including-production con-
trol employees), guards, cafeteria workers, matrons, nurses, and su-
pervisory employees (including foremen, assistant,and subforemen,
and any employee-who has the right to hire or discharge), constitute
a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, within
the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen can best be resolved by an election by secret ballot. In accord-'
ance.with our usual practice, we shall direct that the employees of
the Company eligible to vote in the election shall be those in the
appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period im-
mediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein, sub-
ject to the limitations set forth in the Direction.
596 DECISIONS ' OF NATIONAL-,LABOR : RELATIONS ', BOARD'
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National
Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela-
tions Act, and pursuant to -Article III, Section 9, of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series°2, as amended, it is
hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Cannon Manu-
facturing Corporation and Cannon Electrical Development Company,
Los Angeles, California, an election by secret ballot shall be con-
ducted as early as possible, but not later than- thirty (30) -days, from
the date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision of the
Regional Director for the Twenty-first Region, acting in this matter
as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to
Article III, Section 10, of said Rules and Regulations, among the
employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the
date of this Direction, including employees who did not' work during
said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or tempo-
rarily laid off, and including employees in the armed forces of the
United States who present themselves in person at the polls, but
excluding employees who have since quit or been discharged for
cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by United
Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, Local 1421, affili-
ated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by Cannon
Employees Association, for purposes of collective bargaining, or by
neither.