Chrysler Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Apr 8, 1947

73 N.L.R.B. 217 (N.L.R.B. 1947)

In the Matter of CHRYSLER CORPORATION , EMPLOYER and INTERNA-
TIONAL UNION , UNITED AUTOMOBILE , AIRCRAFT & AGRICULTURAL
IMPLEMENT WORKERS OF AMERICA (UAW-CIO), PETITIONER
Case No. 'I'-R-,0413.-Decided April 8,1947,
Rathbone , Perry, Kelley ci Dr ye, by Mr. Donald L. Hastings, of New
York City, for the Employer.
Maurice Sugar and Ernest Goodman , by Messrs . Ernest Goodman
and Joseph Rubin, of Detroit, Mich., for the Petitioner.
Mr. Herbert C. Kane, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, hearing in this case was held at Detroit,
Michigan, on October 22, 1946, before Woodrow J. Sandler, 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 the case, the National Labor Relations
Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. TILE 13USINESS OF TILE EMPLOYER
Chrysler Corporation, a Delaware corporation having its executive
offices in Detroit, Michigan, is engaged in the manufacture of automo-
biles and trucks in plants located in various parts of the United States.
Among these plants is one located at 8505 West Warren Avenue, Dear-
born, Michigan, the only plant involved in this proceeding. The Em-
ployer annually manufactures and sells products having a value in
excess of $625,000,000. It annually uses in its operations raw mate-
rials having a value exceeding $250,000,000. A substantial portion of
the raw materials and the finished products is transported across State
lines.
The Employer admits and we find that it is engaged in commerce
within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
73 N L R B., No. 37
217
218 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
The Petitioner is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress
of Industrial Organizations, claiming to, represent employees of the
Employer.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Employer refuses to recognize the Petitioner as the exclusive
bargaining representative of employees of the Employer until the
Petitioner has been certified by the Board in an appropriate unit.
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Employer, within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. TI-1E APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Petitioner seeks a unit of all production, maintenance and pow-
erhouse employees at the Warren Avenue plant. The Employer con-
tends that (1) no unit is appropriate at this time due to the limited
scope of the operations at the plant, and (2) if the Board should find
a unit appropriate, it should be confined to the powerhouse employees.
On May 14, 1946, the Employer purchased the Warren Avenue plant
from Graham-Paige Motors Corporation subject to a lease of the
United States Government, and assumed certain service contracts
which Graham-Paige had with the Government. The plant is pres-
ently used by the Government, particularly by War Assets Adminis-
tration, for the storing of Government properties. Approximately
370,000 square feet of the more than 1,000,000 square feet in the plant
has been released by the Government to the Employer. The Employer
is presently using this space for storage purposes in connection with the
operations of its nearby DeSoto plant.
The Employer has approximately 100 employees in the Warren
Avenue plant. About 85 of them are material handlers, checkers, and
gas truck drivers; the remaining 15 are powerhouse and maintenance
employees. The material handlers, checkers, and gas truck drivers are
engaged in'handling material stored by the DeSoto Division; they are
carried on the DeSoto pay roll, supervised by officials of the DeSoto
Division, and represented for collective bargaining purposes by the
labor organization which represents the production and maintenance
employees at the DeSoto plant.' The powerhouse and maintenance
employees operate the powerhouse and perform the usual maintenance
work. They are supervised by the staff engineer of .the Employer;
they are not on the DeSoto pay roll and they are at present unrepre-
sented by any labor organization.
1 Local 227 of the Petitioner is the bargaining representative.
CHRYSLER CORPORATION 219
The Employer objects to the establishment of any unit at this time
because of the possibility that operations at the plant may expand in
the future. The Employer revealed no plans for such expansion. The
Government's lease runs to December 31, 1947, and from year to year
thereafter until 1955. It may be terminated at the option of the Gov-
ernment only, on 1 year's notice. No such notice has been served by
the Government. The possibility of expanding operations in the im-
mediate future, therefore, appears remote at this time. Under these
circumstances, we shall make a unit finding and direct an immediate
election. We shall limit the unit to the categories of employees pres-
ently employed, that is, powerhouse and maintenance employees. We
shall exclude material handlers, checkers, and gas truck drivers inas-
much as they are presently included in the DeSoto Division unit.
Accordingly, we find that all powerhouse and maintenance em-
ployees at the Employer's Warren Avenue plant, excluding material
handlers, checkers, gas truck drivers, and all supervisory employees
with authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise
effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively recommend
such action, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collec-
tive bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the pur-
poses of collective bargaining with the Chrysler Corporation, Detroit,
Michigan, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as early as
possible, but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of this Di-
rection, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director
for the Seventh Region, acting in this matter as agent for -the Na-
tional Labor Relations Board, and subject to Sections 203.55 and
203.56. of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-
Series 4, among the employees in the unit found appropriate in Sec-
tion IV, above, who were employed during the pay-roll period imme-
diately 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 temporarily laid off, and including employees in the armed
forces of the United States who present themselves in person at the
polls, but excluding those employees who have since quit or been dis-
charged for cause and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the
date of the election, to determine whether or not they desire to be rep-
resennted by International Union, United Automobile, Aircraft & Agri-
cultural Implement Workers of America (UAW-CIO) 5 for the pur-
poses of collective bargaining.
CHAIRMAN HERZOG took no part in the consideration of the above De-
cision and Direction of Election.