Crane Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 23, 1942

41 N.L.R.B. 206 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In the Matter of CRANE CO. AND CRANE Co. OF MINNESOTA and INTER-
NATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS , CHAUFFEURS, WAREHOUSE-
MEN AND HELPERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL UNION No. 190
Case No. R-3772.-Decided May 23, 19/.
Jurisdiction : plumbing fixtures sales industry.
Practice and'Procedure : petition dismissed without prejudice to filing of a new
,one when Company resumes normal operations , where due to War Production
Board orders Company had curtailed operations and had only one full-time
employee within the scope of the unit.
Mr. Horace S. Davis and Air. G. H. Downs, of Billings, Mont., for
the Company.
Mr. Ed Achstetter, of Billings, Mont., for the Union.
Mr. Louis Cokin, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
ORDER
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition and amended petition duly filed by International
Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers
of America, Local Union No. 190, herein called the Union, alleging
that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of Crane Co., and of Crane Co. of Minnesota,
both of Billings, Montana, herein collectively called the Company,
the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate
hearing upon due notice before Paul S. Kuelthau, Trial Examiner.
Said hearing was held at Billings, Montana, on April 24, 1942. The
Company and Union appeared, participated, and were afforded full
opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses,
and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues. The Trial Examin-
er's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and
are hereby affirmed. -
41 N. L. R. B., No. 46.
206
CRANE CO. 207
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board. makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Crane Co. is an Illinois corporation with its principal offices in
Chicago, Illinois. Crane Co. of Minnesota is a Minnesota corpora-
tion engaged in the operation of warehouses and sales branches for
plumbing fixtures and fittings. The latter corporation is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Crane Co. We are here concerned with the
Billings, Montana warehouse of Crane Co. of Minnesota. During
1941, the Company sold merchandise from its Billings warehouse
valued at about $600,000, approximately 20 percent of which was
shipped outside Montana. During the same period the Billings ware-
house obtained approximately 98 percent of the merchandise sold by
it from outside Montana.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehouse-
men and Helpers of America, Local Union No. 190, is a labor organi-
zation affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to
membership employees of the Company.
III. TIIE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union urges that all order clerks and warehouse employees of
the Company, excluding supervisors, salesmen, stenographers, general
office clerks, and watchmen, constitute an appropriate unit. At the
present time this unit would include three employees; an order clerk,
shipping clerk, and receiving clerk. The Company took no position
with respect to the unit, but indicated by its examination during the
hearing that it questioned the propriety of a unit composed of the
employees asked for by the Union.
When the Union filed its petition herein, the Company was operat-
ing under normal conditions and employed a full complement of
warehouse employees. However, at the time of the hearing, due to
War Production Board orders, the Company had drastically curtailed
its operations, so that the only employee in the warehouse was the
.hipping clerk who had formerly been in complete charge of all
einployees in the warehouse. The present receiving clerk was an
oui'side salesman for the Company, but due to lack of work was
brocight into the office of the Company. The order clerk makes out
all oir•der forms that are sent to the warehouse and sits at a desk in
the fi out offices of the Company. He also waits on showroom
customCrs.
208 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Thus, it appears that at the present time there is only one full-
time warehouse employee. Moreover the employees claimed by the
Union are only temporarily assigned to their present duties as a
result of the decline in the Company's normal operations. We find
that the unit sought to be established by the Union is not appropriate
for the purposes of collective bargaining. We shall, therefore, dis-
miss the petition without prejudice to the filing of a new petition
at such time as the Company resumes normal operations.
IV. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REVRESENTATION
Since, as pointed out in Section III above, the bargaining unit
sought to be established by the petition is inappropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining at this time, we find that no question
has arisen concerning the representation of employees in an appro-
priate bargaining unit.
ORDER
Upon the. basis of the above findings of fact, the Board hereby
orders that the petition for investigation and certification of repre-
sentatives of employees of Crane Co. and Crane Co. of Minnesota,
Billings, Montana, filed by International Brotherhood of Teamsters,
Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America, Local Union No.
190, be, and it hereby is, dismissed without prejudice.
MR . GERARD D. REILLY took no part in the consideration of the
above Decision and Order.