Dain Manufacturing Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 5, 1941

32 N.L.R.B. 307 (N.L.R.B. 1941)

In the Matter of DAiN MANUFACTURING COMPANY and LoDGE No.
1465, INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MACHINISTS-A. F. or L.
Case No. R-2125
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : run-off election directed.
SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION
AND
SECOND DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
June 5, 1941
On February 11, 1941, the National Labor Relations Board, herein
called the Board, issued a Decision and Direction of Elections in
the above-entitled proceeding,' directing that separate elections by
secret ballot be conducted among the tool and die makers, machinists,
specialists, helpers, apprentices, and tool-crib attendants and among
the production and maintenance employees of Dain Manufacturing
Company, Ottumwa, Iowa, herein called the Company. Pursuant to
the Decision and Direction of Elections, elections by secret ballot
were conducted on February 27, 1941, under the direction and
supervision of the Regional Director for the Eighteenth Region
(Minneapolis, Minnesota). On March 1, 1941, the Regional Director,
acting pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Rela-
tions Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, prepared
and duly served upon the parties an Election Report.
As to the balloting and its results, the Regional Director reported
as follows:
Machinists
Total number of ballots cast -------------------------------- 42
Total number of votes counted ------------------------------ 38
Total number of ballots cast for Lodge 1465, International
Association - of Machinists (AFL) ------------------------- 17
Total number of ballots cast for Local 117, Farm Equipment,
Workers Organizing Committee (CIO)-------------------- - 13
Total number of votes cast for Independent Farm Implementt t
Workers -------------------------------------------------- 7
Total number of votes cast for none of the above organizations- 1
Total number of blank ballots___ ___ _ _________________ 0
l Total number of void ballots ------- --__- ----------------- 0
Total number of challenged ballot---------------------------- , 4
129 N. L. R. B. 526.
32 N. L: -R. B., No. 70.,
443692-42-vol. 32-21
307'
308 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Production and Maintenance
Total number of ballots cast-------------------------------- 232
Total number of votes counted ------------------------------ 224
Total number of ballots cast for Local 117, Farm Equipment,
Workers Organizing Committee (CIO)------ -------------- 98
`Total number of ballots cast for Independent Farm Implement
Workers-------------------------------------------------- 108
Total number of ballots cast for neither of the above
organizations --------------------------------------------- 17
Total number of blank ballots------------------------------- 0
Total number of void ballots------------------------------- _ 1
Total number of challenged ballots------------------------- 8
On March 7 , 1941, Local , 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organ-
izing Committee , herein called the F. E. W. O. C., filed formal
requests for run-off elections to be held by the Board among both
groups of employees set out above . On March 8 , 1941, Independent
Farni Implement Workers, herein called the Independent, filed
Objections , to the Conduct of the Ballot. On March 12 , 1941, Lodge
No. 1465, International Association of Machinists , herein called the
I. A. AT., filed a formal request for a run-off election among the
machinists . " On March 13 , 1941, the Regional Director issued a
Report on Objections , and Recommendation for Run-Off Elections,
finding ' that inasmuch as he recommended that run -off elections be
held it was not necessary to inquire into the Objections . We have
considered the Objections filed by the Independent and the Regional
Director's Report thereon and find-that the Objections raise no sub-
stantial or material issue with respect to the conduct of the ballot or
the Election Report. The. Objections are hereby overruled.
On April 18 , 1941, the Regional' Director issued a Supplemental
Election Report. On April 24, 1941 , the F . E. W. O. C. filed Ob-
jections to Supplemental Election Report. , On May 9, 1941, the
Regional Director issued a Report on Objections to Supplemental
Election Report. The Regional Director reported in his Supple-
mental Election Report that the challenged ballots in the balloting
among the machinists were those of G. L . Myers, J. S. Potoroff, Louis
Krafka, and Russell Boyles . Myers was challenged by the Inde-
pendent and the other three by the F. E. W. O . C. Myers and
Potoroff were challenged on the ground that they are supervisory
employees' and Krafka and Boyles on the ground that they are
clerical workers. The Regional Director reported that Myers and
Potoroff function in a supervisory capacity and that Krafka and
Boyles are clerical workers. He overruled the challenges to their
ballots on the ground that supervisory ' and clerical employees were
not specifically excluded from the election among the machinists.
The F. E. W. O. C. objected to the Regional Director 's ruling with
respect;,to the ballots of Potoroff , Krafka, and Boyles.
LAIN MANUFACTURING COMPANY 309
We have considered the facts surrounding the challenges to the
ballots of Myers, Potoroff, Krafka, and Boyles, the Objections filed
by the F. E. W. O. C., and the Regional Director's Report thereon.
We provided for a separate election for the tool and die makers,
machinists, specialists, helpers, apprentices and tool-crib attendants
and stated that the determination of the appropriate unit or units
would depend on the outcome of this election. There is no objec-
tion to the Regional Director's finding that Myers and Potoroff are
supervisory employees and that Krafka and Boyles are clerical em-
ployees. It is clear that had the F. E. W. O. C. won the election
among the machinists, as well as the election among the production
and maintenance employees, it would have been certified as the ex-
clusive representative of the employees in the unit requested by it,
which, excluded supervisory and clerical employees. Myers, Potor-
off, Krafka, and Boyles are such supervisory or clerical employees.
Under the circumstances, we hereby overrule the .Regional Director's
rulings on the challenged ballots in the machinists' election and find
that the challenges to the ballots of Myers, Potoroff, Krafka, and
Boyles should be sustained.-
As noted above, eight challenged ballots were cast in the elec-
tion among the production and maintenance employes. The Re-
gional Director ruled in his Supplemental Election Report that the
ballot of one Lloyd Salter was challenged by the Company on the
ground that he was not employed during the pay-roll period im-
mediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election. The
Regional Director found that Salter was not so employed and ruled
that the challenge to his ballot be sustained. There is no objection to
the Regional Director's ruling on this challenged ballot. No rul-
ings on the other seven challenged ballots are necessary in view of
the fact that they could not change the results of the election.
Although none of the competing labor organizations in the ma-
chinists' election and neither of the competing labor organizations in
the production and maintenance employees' election received a ma-
jority of the votes cast, the results of the elections show that a sub-
stantial majority of employees voting in each of the elections desire
to bargain collectively with the Company. Accordingly, we shall
direct a run-off election among the tool and die makers, machinists,
specialists, helpers, apprentices, and tool-crib attendants in which
the eligible employees will be given an opportunity to decide whether
they desire to be represented by Lodge No. 1465, International
Association of Machinists, affiliated with the American Federation
of Labor, by Local 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organizing Com-
2 See Matter of The Cudahy Packing Company and Local 55, United Packinghouse
Workers of America, of Packinghouse Workers Comantttee, C. 1. 0., 32 N. L. R. B. 72.
310 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
mittee, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or
by Independent Farm Implement Workers, for the purposes of col-
lective bargaining. We will also direct a run-off election among the
production and maintenance employees in which the eligible em-
ployees will be given an opportunity to decide whether they desire to
be represented by Local 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organizing
Committee, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations,
or by Independent Farm Implement Workers, for the purpose of
collective bargaining. However, if no labor organization receives
a majority of the votes cast in the run-off election among the ma-
chinists, we shall not hold any further elections among them; nor
shall we certify, any representative for them. If the election among
the production and maintenance employees result in a tie vote, we
shall dismiss the petition herein.
SECOND DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
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, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Sections 8 and
9, 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 purposes of collective bargain-
ing with Dain Manufacturing Company, Ottumwa, Iowa, elections
by secret ballot shall be conducted as soon as possible, but not later
than thirty (30) days from the date of this Second Direction of
Election, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Di-
rector for the Eighteenth 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 :
1. Among the employees described in paragraph 1 of the Direc-
tion of Elections issued on February 11, 1941, but excluding those
who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine
whether they desire to be represented by Local No. 1465, International
Association of Machinists, affiliated with the American Federation
of Labor, by Local 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organizing Com-
mittee, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by
Independent Farm Implement Workers, for the purposes of
collective bargaining; and
2. Among all employees described in paragraph 2 of the Direction
of Elections issued on February 11, 1941, but excluding those who
have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether
they desire to be represented by Local 117, Farm Equipment Work-
DAIN MANUFACTURING COMPANY 311
ers Organizing Committee, affiliated with the Congress of Indus-
trial Organizations, or by Independent Farm Implement Workers,
for the purposes of collective bargaining.
MR. EDWIN S . SMITH, dissenting :
I dissent from the majority holding that a run-off election should
be held among the machinists at this time.
The F. E. W. O. C. and the Independent requested that an in-
dustrial unit, including the machinists, be found appropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining. The I. A. M. asked that the ma-
chinists be designated as a separate appropriate unit. The majority
of the Board, after considering the evidence in support of the re-
spective claims of the F. E. W. O. C., the Independent, and the
I. A. M., concluded that the machinists "could thus function either
as a separate unit or as part of a single industrial unit." I dis-
sented from the Board's determination in this respect, stating that
I saw no justification for granting employees in the unit urged by the
I. A. M. the privilege of splitting themselves off from the indus-
trial unit. It will be noted that the Board's Decision made no ex-
press provision for the disposition of the machinists under the
circumstances here present, namely, where no labor organization
received a majority of the votes cast in the election among them.
It appears to me that where a union seeks an industrial unit, in-
cluding craft employees, and the craft employees do not vote them-
selves out of an industrial unit by designating the craft union in
the separate election provided by the Board, they should then be
considered a component part of the industrial unit.5 This is par-
ticularly true where, as here, a majority of the craft employees have
already voted to have an industrial union represent them.' Under
all the circumstances here present I would include the machinists in
the industrial unit and direct a run-off election among all the em-
ployees in the industrial unit, including the machinists, to determine
whether they desire to be represented by the F. E. W. O. C. or by
the Independent for the purposes of collective bargaining.
3 See my dissenting opinion in Matter of The Cudahy Packing Company and Local 55,
United Packinghouse Workers of America, of Packinghouse Workers Organizing Con-
oaittee, CIO, 32 N. L. It. B. 72.
* Since the F. D. W. 0. C. and the Independent, both industrial unions, are on the ballot
in each of the run-off elections directed by the Board, it is apparent that the elections may
result in the anomalous situation where one industrial union represents the employees in
a craft unit and another industrial union represents the remaining employees, a situation
which would be contrary to the majority expression already indicated in the election which
has been held, that the industrial rather than the craft form of representative is preferred.