Chrysler Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jan 9, 1941

28 N.L.R.B. 1038 (N.L.R.B. 1941)

III the Matter of CHRYSLER CORPORATION and INTERNATIONAL UNION,
UNITED AIITOMOBILE, WORKtRS OF AMERICA, AFFILIATED WITH THE
CONGRESS OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS
Case No. R-2209.-Decided January 9, 1941
Jurisdiction : automobile accessory manufacturing industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence' of question ; con-
flicting claims of rival representatives; contract about to expire, no bar to;
election necessary.
Unit appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em-
ployees at one of the Company's plants excluding foremen, assistant foremen,
timekeepers, plant-protection employees, office employes, confidential salaried
employees, and salaried engineers ; agreement as to
Larkin, Rathbone di Perry, by Mr. T. R. Iserman and Mr.- J. D.
Leary, of New York City, for the Company.
Mr. Maurice Sugar and Mr. Ernest Goodman, of Detriot, Michigan,
and Mr. Clay R. Stin. on and Mr. Cliborne, of Evansville, Ind., for
the UAW-CIO.
Mr. J. A. Cotton and Mr. W. Barr, of Evansville, Ind., for the
UAW-AFL.
Mr. Louis Cokin,-of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE -
On November 4, 1940, International Union, United Automobile
Workers of America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Or-
ganizations, herein called the U. A. W.-C. I. 0., filed with the Re-
gional Director for the Eleventh Region (Indianapolis, Indiana) a
petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen con-
cerning the representation of employees of Chrysler Corporation,
Evansville, Indiana, herein called the Company, and requesting an
investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to- Section
9 (c) of the National Labor Relations, Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called
the Act. On December 7, 1940, the National Labor Relations Board,
herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act
28 N. L It. B , No. 154.
1038
CHRYSLER CORPORATION 1039
and Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Relations Board Rules
and Regulations-Series 2, as amended,' ordered an investigation and
authorized the Regional Director to conduct it, and to provide for an
appropriate hearing upon due notice.
On December 7, 1940, the Regional Director issued a notice of
hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the
.U. A. W.-C. I. 0. and United Automobile Workers of America,
affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the
U. A. W.-A. F. L., a labor organization claiming to represent em-
ployees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to notice, a
hearing was held on December 12, 1940, at Evansville, Indiana, be-
fore Arthur R. Donovan, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the
Board. At the commencement of the hearing the Trial Examiner
granted a motion to intervene filed by the U. A. W.-A. F. L. The
Company, the U. A. W.-A. F. L., and the U. A. W.-C. I. 0. were
represented by counsel and participated in the hearing. Full op-
portunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and
to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was accorded all parties.
During the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several
rulings on motions and. on objections to the admission of evidence.
The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds
that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby
affirmed.
. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Chrysler Corporation, a Delaware corporation, is engaged in the
manufacture of automoblies, parts, and accessories. Its principal
office is in Detroit, Michigan, and it has plants in the States of Michi-
gan, Indiana, and. California. -Approximately 45 per cent by value
of the raw materials used by the Company at its plants, valued at
more than $240,000,000, annually, and approximately 75 -per cent
by value of the finished and partly finished products of the Company,
valued at approximately $625,000,000, annually, are transported in
interstate commerce. This proceeding is concerned solely with the
Evansville, Indiana, plant of the Company.
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
International Union, United Automobile Workers of America, is
,a labor organization, affiliated with, the Congress of Industrial Or-
ganizations. It admits to membership all production and\ mainte-
1040 • DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
nance employees at the Evansville plant of the Company, excluding
supervisory employees, timekeepers, plant-protection employees, office
employees, confidential salaried employees, and salaried engineers.
United Automobile Workers of America is a labor organization
affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. It admits to
membership the same classes of employees of the Company as the
U. A. W.-C. I. 0.
III. I THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company is operating under an exclusive bargaining contract
with the U. A. W.-A. F. L. which expires on December 31, 1940.
The U. A. W.-C. I. 0. and the U. A. W.-A. F. L. stated at the
hearing that they desire an immediate election in this case. It is
clear that the contract does not preclude the Board from investigating
and certifying a bargaining representative for the purpose of negoti-
ating a new agreement for the period following December 31, 1940,
if such is desired The Company, the U. A. W.-C. I. 0., and the
U. A. W.-'A F. L. stipulated at the hearing that the U. A. W.-
A. F. L. and the U. A. W -C. I. 0. each represent a substantial
number of the, employees in the Evansville plant of the Company.
We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation
of employees of the Company.
1V. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON
COMMERCE
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen, occurring in connection with the opera6oris of the Company
described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial
relation to trade, traffic, and commerce among the several States and
tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce
and the free flow of commerce.
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The U. A. W.-C. I. 0. ,and the U. A. W.-A. F. L. agreed at the
hearing that the 'appropriate unit should consist of all,-production
and niaintenance employees at the Evansville plant of the, Company;
excluding foremen, assistant foremen, timekeepers, plant-protection
employees, office employees, confidential salaried employees, and
salaried 'engineers.', The Company stated that, it has no objection
to this unit.
1 This unit is the same as provided for in the contract between the U. A. W -A F L. and
the Company.
CHRYSLER CORPORATION 1041
In a previous case 2 we certified the U. A. W.-C. I. O. as the ex-
clusive representative of the employees in an appropriate bargain-
ing unit copsisting of 12 plants of the Company. In the same
proceeding we certified the U. A. W.-A. F. L. as the exclusive repre-
sentative of the persons employed in the Evansville plant of the
Company, the plant involved in this proceeding. The U. A. W.
C. I. 0: now asks that in the event that it is selected as exclusive
bargaining representative of the employees at the Evansville plant
of the Company it desires that the Evansville plant be included in
a unit composed of all the other plants of the Company where the
U. A. W.-C. I. 0. has been selected as exclusive bargaining agent by
the employees. Since no representative has yet been certified by
the Board as the result of this proceeding, and no request made upon
the Company to bargain on behalf of the employees in the Evansville
plant along with the employees in its other plants, we will deny the
request of the U. A. W.-C. I. 0. at this time without passing upon
the merits of it.
We find that all production and maintenance employees at the
Evansville plant of the Company, excluding foremen, assistant fore-
men, timekeepers, plant-protection employees, office employees, con-
fidential salaried employees, and salaried engineers, constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, and that said
unit will insure to employees of the Company the full benefit-of their
right to self-organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise
effectuate the policies of the Act.
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question which has arisen concerning the repre- _
sentation of employees of the Company can best be resolved by means
of an election by secret ballot. The U. A. W.-C. I. 0. and the U. A.
W.-A. F. L. agreed that in the event the Board directed an election,
eligibility of employees to'vote should be determined by the Com-
pany's pay roll of December 7, 1940. The Company stated that it
had no objection to the use of this pay roll. We find that those em-
ployees of the Company within the appropriate unit whose names ap-
pear on the Company's pay roll of December'7, 1940, shall be eligible
to vote, including employees who did not work-during such pay-roll
period because they were ill or on vacation and employees who were
then or have since been temporarily laid off, but excluding those
employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause.
Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire
record in the case, the Board makes the following
2 17 N. L R B 737
1042 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
CONCLUSIONS . OF LAW
1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre--
sentation of employees at the Evansville plant of Chrysler Corpora-
tion, Evansville , Indiana, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and
Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All production and maintenance employees at the Evansville
plant of the Company, excluding foremen, assistant foremen, time-
keepers, plant-protection employees, office employees, confidential
salaried - employees, and , salaried engineers , constitute a- unit appro-
priate for the purposes of collective bargaining, Within the meaning
of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act.
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 Re-
lations 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 authorized by the Board
to ascertain representatives for the purpose of collective bargaining
with Chrysler Corporation, Evansville, Indiana, 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 Eleventh 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
all production and maintenace employees at the Evansville plant of
the Company whose names appear on the Company 's pay roll of
December 7, 1940, including employees who did not work during
-such ^ p'ay-roll -period because they were ill or on vacation and em-
ployees Who were then or have since been temporarily laid off, but
excluding foremen, assistant foremen, timekeepers , plant-protection
employees,-office employees , confidential salaried employees,' salaried
engineers , and employees who have since quit or been discharged for
cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by Inter-
national Union, United Automobile Workers of America, affiliated
with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by United Auto-
mobile Workers of America, affiliated with the American Federation
of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither.
CHAIRMAN HARRY A. MILLIS took no part in the consideration of
the above Decision and "Direction of Election.