Case, Crane & Kilbourne Jacobs

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 18, 1942

41 N.L.R.B. 20 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In the Matter Of CASE, CRANE & KILBOURNE JACOBS and STEEL
WORKERS ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Case No. R-3755.--Deeided May 18, 19.42
Jurisdiction : wheeled floor truck and related devices manufacturing industry>
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of-question: re-
fusal to accord petitioner recognition unto , certified by tlIe Board ; election
necessary.
'Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em-
ployees at two of Company's plants, excluding the superintendent , foremen,
assistant foremen, supervisory employees in charge of any class of labor, any
employees having the right to hire or discharge , all salaried employees , clerical
workers, and watchmen ; stipulation as to all except watchmen , who are
excluded since they devote the majority of their time to plant-anti -property-
protection duties.
Mr. A. J. Alexander and Mr. K. B. Norton, of Columbus, Ohio, for
the Company.
Mr. Philip M. Curran, of Pittsburgh, Pa., and Mr. Howard N_
Porter, of Columbus, Ohio, for the Union.
Mr. Harry H. Kuskin, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by Steel Workers Organizing Committee,
affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, herein called
the Union, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen
concerning the representation of employees of Case, Crane & Kil-
bourne Jacobs, Columbus, Ohio, herein called the Company, the Na-
tional Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing
upon due notice before Alba B. Martin, Trial Examiner. Said hear-
ing was held at Columbus, Ohio, on April 21, 1942. The Company
and the Union appeared and participated.' All parties were afforded
full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses,
i On April 17, 1942, International Association of Bridge , Structural and Ornamental
Iron workers , affiliated with the American Federation of Labor , was notified of the
date of hearing and of the steps necessary to be taken if it desired to participate or
move to intervene in the proceeding. It did not appear at the hearing.
41 N. L R B., No. 6.
20
CASE, CRANE & KILBOURNE JACOBS 21
and to introduce evidence -bearing on the issues. The Trial Ex-
aminer's rulings, made at the hearing, are free from prejudicial error
and are hereby affirmed. I . I -
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF TILE COMPANY.
Case; Crane & Kilbourne Jacobs is an Ohio corporation which is
engaged in the State, of Ohio in the manufacture and sale, chiefly of
wheeled floor trucks, and also of wheeled dish trucks, scrapers, barrel
skids, and wheelbarrows. The principal materials used in the Com-
pany's manufacturing operations are steel and lumber, 50 percent of
which came from outside the State of Ohio during 1941. Approxi-
mately $800,000 worth, or 80 percent, of its finished products was
shipped outside the State of Ohio during the same period. - The Com-
pany operates, one plant on Curtis Avenue and another on Lincoln
Street in Columbus, Ohio. Both plants are involved in this proceed-
ing. ' The Company employs, about 40-production and maintenance
employees at the Curtis Avenue plant, and about 105 production and
maintenance employees at the Lincoln Street plant. It admits that,
it is engaged in commerce, within the meaning of the National Labor
Relations Act.
II. TILE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED,,
Steel Workers Organizing Committee is a labor organization affili=
ated' with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting' to'
membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The parties' stipulated that on March 18, 1942, the, Union in-
formed the Company. that it 'reptesented • a majority of. the Com-
pany's employees at both plants' and requested the Company to bar-
gain ,'with it as the representative of the employees, but that the
Company-,refused to,do so until and unless the Union is certified as
such representative'by- the-^Board: . -
'A statement of the Field Examiner, .introduced into evidence at the
hearing, shows that the Union represents a substantial .number, of
employees in the unit herein found to be appropriate 2
2 The Field Examiner reported that the Union submitted 80 authorization cards ; that
77, of -the cards bore signatures which appeared to be genuine ; that the names on 65 of the
77 cards with apparently - genuine signatures appeared on the pay roll of the Company
showing hourly paid production and maintenance employees in the Company's employ
in both plants on April 9, 1942 ; and that, of the 65 cards bearing names -appearing on
the pay roll , 60,were ,-dated between January and April 1942, and, 5 were undated. The
record does not show the number of employeesappearing on'^he , palj roll, on,April 9, 1942.
22 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR ' RELATIONS BOARD
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company, within the meaning.
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act:-
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union contends that all production and maintenance employees
of the, Company at the Curtis Avenue and Lincoln Street plants,
excluding the superintendent, foremen, assistant foremen, supervisory
employees in charge of any class of labor, any employees having the
right to hire or discharge, all salaried employees, clerical workers, and'
watchmen, constitute an appropriate unit. The Company agrees that
this is an appropriate unit, except that it wants the six-watchmen in
its employ included in the unit.
The Union's position is that`the watchrrieii,°are-neither, production
nor maintenance employees. It appears from the record that the
watchmen devote practically all of their working time to plant- and
property-protection duties, and spend only 10 percent of their work-
ing time in janitorial work. Under the circumstances, we shall
exclude' watchmen from the unit herein found' to be appropriate.3
'We find that all production and maintenance employees of the
Company at its Curtis Avenue and Lincoln Street plants in Columbus,
Ohio, excluding the superintendent, foremen, assistant foremen, super-
visory employees in charge of any class of labor, any employees
having the right to' hire or' discharge, all salaried employees, clerical
workers, and watchmen, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes
.of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the
Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF RRPRE,5ENTATIVES
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen can best be resolved by an: election by secret ballot.
The Union requests, without objection by the Company, that the
pay roll of April-18, 1942, be used to determine the eligibility of
employees to vote in any election. • We shall direct that the employees
of the Company eligible to vote in the election shall be those in the
appropriate unit whose names appear on the Company's pay roll of
April 18, 1942, subject to the limitations and additions,set forth An
the Direction. . '
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 Reli=
3 See Matter of Mai Zeagler & Bros, the and Steel Workers-Organizing Committee,
affiliated with the C I. 0., 38-N L. R. B. 540.
CASE, CRANE & KILBOU,RNE JACOBS .23
tions Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, 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 Case, Crane &
Kilbourne Jacobs, Columbus, Ohio, an election by secret ballot shall
be conducted 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 Ninth Region, acting in this matter
as agent for the National Labor Relations Board and subject to,
Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among the
employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, whose
names, appear on the Company's pay roll of April 18, 1942, including
employees who did not work during the pay-roll period ending on
that date because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military
service or training of the United States or temporarily laid off, but
excluding employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause,
to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by Steel
Workers Organizing Committee, affiliated with the Congress of In-
dustrial Organizations, for the purposes of collective bargaining.