City Cab Co.,

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Oct 5, 1967

167 N.L.R.B. 681 (N.L.R.B. 1967)

CITY CAB CO. 681
City Cab Company, and its Members and Taxi Cab
Drivers, Maintenance and Garage Helpers Union
Local 902 , Affiliated with International Brother-
hood of Teamsters , Chauffeurs , Warehousemmen
and Helpers of America , Ind., Petitioner. Case
7-RC-8033
October 5, 1967
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF
ELECTIONS
By MEMBERS FANNING,JENKINS, AND ZAGORIA
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9(c) of
the National Labor Relations Act, as amended,
hearings were held before Hearing Officer Shlomo
Sperka. The Employer and Petitioner have filed
briefs in support of their respective positions.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the
National Labor Relations Act, as amended , the Na-
tional Labor Relations Board has delegated its
powers in connection with this case to a three-
member panel.
The Board has reviewed the Hearing Officer's
rulings made at the hearing and finds that they are
free from prejudicial error . They are hereby af-
firmed.
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board
finds:
1. City Cab Company is a nonprofit membership
corporation incorporated for the purpose of provid-
ing services for its approximately 54 members, who
own and operate taxicabs in the city of Detroit. The
parties stipulated that in 1966 the combined gross
revenue received by all members as fares for taxi-
cab services exceeded $500,000, and that a mini-
mum of $ 2,500 of this amount was received from
customers transported " to or from terminals in
interstate commerce.
In a prior case' involving City Cab, the Board
found that it and its members were joint employers
in a common enterprise since the Company had
substantial control over the day-to -day conduct of
the drivers . At that time the Company employed a
driver-superintendent with authority to call cabs off
the street for violations of rules drawn up by City
Cab and approved by its members. Additionally,
there was a board of review which met once a week
to consider complaints against drivers.
While the position of driver-superintendent has
been abolished , as has the board of review, City
Cab represents itself to the public as a single-in-
tegrated enterprise . Cabs belonging to members are
marked with a distinctive stripe and shield and a
common dispatch service is maintained for all mem-
bers. Also, there is central administration of charge
accounts for five companies which make use of City
Cabs.
The individual members hire their own drivers,
but City Cab, rather than any individual member,
stamps a driver's application to the police depart-
ment for a public vehicle license. All drivers receive
the same rate of pay and a resolution has been
adopted by the members calling for uniform
hospital and vacation benefits for drivers. Drivers.
may not change employers within the Company
without clearance by City Cab's central office.
Although the president of City Cab testified that
the only sanction applied against its members is to
take them off calls for failure to pay dues, the Board
has previously determined' that the bylaws, which
remain unchanged, provide for the expulsion of a
member for cause. It is apparent, therefore, that
City Cab can wield effective power over its mem-
bers.
Upon all of the foregoing, we find that City Cab
and each of its members is a joint employer in a
common enterprise. In reaching this conclusion, we
rely particularly on the fact that City Cab
represents itself to the public as a single-integrated
enterprise and the evidence of a uniform labor pol-
icy for City Cab and all of its members. Ac-
cordingly, we deem it appropriate to combine the
gross revenues of all of its members for jurisdic-
tional purposes.3 As the revenues thus combined
exceed $500,000, and as legal jurisdiction is clearly
present, we further find that it will effectuate the
policies of the Act to assert jurisdiction.
2. The labor organization involved claims to
represent certain employees of the Employers.
3. A question affecting commerce exists con-
cerning the representation of employees of the Em-
ployers within the meaning of Sections 9(c)(1) and
2(6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The parties stipulated to the appropriateness
of the units set forth below, and have agreed that
any drivers who worked at least 2 days per week in
8 of the last 10 full weeks preceding the date of the
Direction of Elections set out below are regular
part-time drivers, and we shall include them in the
drivers' unit.
It is Board policy, however, that no election may
be held without a proper showing of interest.4 Since
there is some question as to whether there has been
an adequate showing of interest in the units deter-
mined as appropriate, the elections hereinafter
directed among these employees and the participa-
' City Cab Company, 141 NLRB 113 3
2 141 NLRB 1133
'Checker Cab Co , 141 NLRB 583, enfd 362 F 2d 692 (C A 6), cert
denied 385 U S 1008
4Avco Corporation, 131 NLRB 921; Du-Wei Decorative Company,
125 NLRB 31
167 NLRB No. 97
682 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL
tion of the labor organizations are contingent upon
an adequate showing of interest being made among
these employees.5
In view of the stipulation of the parties and the
entire record , we find that the following employees
constitute units appropriate for the purposes of col-
lective bargaining within the meaning of Section
9(b) of the Act.
Unit 1: All gas station attendants employed by
City Cab Company, Detroit , Michigan , excluding
office clerical employees , guards, and supervisors,
as defined in the Act, and all other employees.
Unit 2: All dispatchers employed by City Cab
Company, Detroit , Michigan , excluding office cleri-
5 Local 10, Transporttation Services and Allied Workers , Seafarers In-
ternational Union of North America, AFL-CIO, a labor organization,
made a showing of interest in the originally proposed overall unit but did
not enter an appearance at the hearing Upon notifying the Regional
Director , within 5 days of this Decision and Direction of Elections, of its
desire to participate in the elections directed and upon making an
adequate showing of interest , that organization will be placed upon the
ballot or ballots
6 An election eligibility list, containing the names and addresses of all
the eligible voters , in each of the respective units in which an election is
hereby directed , must be filed by the Employer with the Regional Director
LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
cal employees, guards, and supervisors as defined
in the Act, and all other employees.
Unit 3: All full time and regular part-time
drivers of cabs owned by persons, partnerships,
corporations , and associations who are members,
senior, associate, or otherwise of City Cab Com-
pany, Detroit, Michigan, excluding office clerical
employees, member-drivers, guards, and super-
visors as defined in the Act, and all other em-
ployees.
[Direction of Election 6 omitted from publica-
tion.]
for Region 7 within 7 days after the date of this Decision and Direction of
Election The list may initially be used by the Regional Director to assist
in determining an adequate showing of interest The Regional Director
shall make the list available to all parties to the election when he shall have
determined that an adequate showing of interest among the employees in
the unit found appropriate has been established No extension of time to
file this list shall be granted by the Regional Director except in extraordi-
nary circumstances Failure to comply with this requirement shall be
grounds for setting aside the election whenever proper objections are
filed Excelsior Underwear Inc, 156 NLRB 1236