Decatur Iron & Steel Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Nov 10, 1942

45 N.L.R.B. 504 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In the Matter of DECATUR IRON & STEEL COMPANY, SHIPBUILDING
DIVISION,. and ,UNITED, BROTHERHOOD OF WELDERS, CUTTERS AND
HELPERS OF AMERICA
Case No. R-4325.-Decided November 10, 1942
Jurisdiction : shipbuilding industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re-
fusal to accord either of competing unions recognition until certified by the
Board; election necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : welders, cutters (burners), and
helpers, including lead men, but excluding quarter men.
• Mr. John H. Peach, of Decatur, Ala., for the Company.
Mr. James E. Weaver, of Hartselle, Ala., for the United.
Mr. H. G. B. King, of,_Chattanooga, .Tenn., for, the. Boilermakers.
Mr. William C. Baisinger, Jr., of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by United Brotherhood of Welders,
Cutters and Helpers of America, herein called the United, alleging
that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the rep-
resentation of employees of Decatur Iron & Steel Company, Ship-
building Division, herein called the Company, the National Labor
Relations,Board provided for an appropriate be,, upon due notice
before Merle D. Vincent, Jr., Trial Examiner. Said hearing was
held at Decatur, Alabama, on September 30, 1942. The Company,
the United, and International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron
Shipbuilders, Welders and Helpers of America, herein called the
Boilermakers, appeared, participated, and were afforded full op-
portunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and
to introduce evidence bearing on the issues. At the hearing, the
Trial Examiner reserved ruling on motions by the Company and
Boilermakers to dismiss the United's petition for the reason that the
unit alleged by the United therein is inappropriate. For the reasons
45 N.L.R B., No 74
504
DECATUR IRON & STEEL COMPANY 505
.set forth below, the motions are hereby denied. The Trial Ex-
aminer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error
and are hereby affirmed.
On October 15, 1942, the Boilermakers filed a brief which the
Board has considered.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Decatur lion and Steel Company is an Alabama corporation with
its main office at Decatur, Alabama. It is engaged in the production,
of structural and ornamental steel and has recently built and is now
operating a shipbuilding plant at Decatur,, Alabama. The shipbuild-
ing division of the Company is the only plant involved in this proceed-
ing. The Company purchases approximately 14,000 tons of raw ma-
terials, consisting of steel bars, shapes, plates and sheets, per year.
Approximately 30 percent of these materials is purchased by the Com-
pany outside the State of Alabama. The ships built by the Company
are sold and delivered to the United States Navy through its repre-
sentatives in Decatur, Alabama. The Company admits it is engaged
in interstate commerce within the meaning of the National Labor
Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOL\ED
United Brotherhood of Welders, Cutters and Helpers of America
is an unaffiliated labor organization. It admits to membership em-
ployees of the Company.
International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Shipbuilders
Welders and Helpers of America, is a labor organization affiliated with
the American' Federation- of Labor. It admits to membership-
em-ployees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
In June and August of 1942 the United requested the Company
to recognize it as the bargaining agent for all the Company's weld-
ers, cutters (burners) and helpers, including lead men and quarter
men, which it contends constitute an appropriate bargaining unit. In
May 1942, the Boilermakers requested recognition as bargaining agent
for all production and maintenance employees of the Company. The
Company refused to recognize either union unless and until one of
them had been certified bftlie Board.
506 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
A statement by a Field Examiner of the Board indicates that the
United represents a substantial number of employees in the appro-
priate unit.'
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of the employees of the Company within the mean-
ing of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6), and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The United contends that all welders, cutters (burners) and help-
ers, including lead men and quarter men, employed at the Company's
shipbuilding plant, comprise an appropriate unit because such em-
ployees constitute a skilled craft.
The Boilermakers contends that all production and maintenance
employees of the Company's shipbuilding plant, including the em-
ployees sought by the United, but excluding office and clerical em-
ployees, supervisors and watchmen, constitute an appropriate unit.
In support of its contention that a plant-wide unit is appropriate,
the Boilermakers argues that the United's proposal to establish
welders and cutters as a separate bargaining unit, would create
jurisdictional disputes and labor controversies within the plant and
further that a plant-wide unit is appropriate because the duties of
the welders and cutters and the other production and maintenance
employees of the Company are closely correlated.
The Company is in accord with the Boilermakers and requests a
plant-wide unit. It argues that, if the United's unit is found appro-
priate, other crafts and groups would seek to be established as
separate units with separate representation, thereby hindering and
retarding production within the plant because the Company would
have to deal with a large number of bargaining committees.
Although the duties of the welders and cutters require that they
work throughout the plant in conjunction. with other employees,
they are a clearly identifiable group. Welders as well as cutters are
skilled employees and must pass rigid examinations before becoming
1 The statement of the Field Examiner shows that the United submitted to.him 117
authorization cards ,' 93 of which bore apparently genuine original signatures of persons
Whose names appear on the Company 's pay roll of August 27 , 1042, in the appropriate unit.
Said pay roll contains the names of 209 persons within the appropriate unit. These cards
were dated in July and August 1942.
The Boilermakers submitted to the Field Examiner 75 application -for-membership' cards
and 48 authorization cards , all of which appear to bear genuine original signatuies. Nine
of the 123 signatures are names of persons in the United 's proposed unit on the Company's
pay roll of August 27 , 1942 Eighty -seven of said signatures are names of persons on the
Company s pay ioll of August 27, 1942 , who were employed as production and maintenance
employees but not within the United ' s unit. It appears that the Company employs approxi-
mately 900 employees.
1
DECATUR IRON & STEEL CONIPANY '507
qualified in-their craft. There has been no collective bargaining, so
far as the record shows, on behalf of any employees in the plant
here involved, which has recently been placed in operation. As the
statement with respect to representation claims shows, the Boiler-
makers has made no substantial showing among employees in a plant-
wide :unit, nor has any organization petitioned for certification upon
an industrial basis. Under these circumstances, we believe that the
purposes of the Act will best be effectuated by making collective bar-
gaining an immediate possibility for the welders and cutters. We
find, accordingly, that the welders and cutters constitute an appro-
priate unit. Our finding in this respect, however, does not preclude
a later determination at another stage of self-organization that a
larger unit is appropriate.2
All parties would include lead men and quarter men in the unit.
The Company employs approximately 16 lead men. A lead man is a
working foreman in charge of approximately 10 welders. A substan-
tial portion of his time is spent in -working with the welders and he
has no authority to hire or discharge employees under him. Inas-
much as lead men appear to be working foremen, spend a substantial
portion of their time in manual labor, and do not have the authority
to hire or discharge employees under them, we shall include them in
the unit. The Company employs 3 quarter men at its ship building
plant. A quarter man is a subforeman. His duties are strictly super-
visory, and he has authority to hire and discharge. Each quarter
man has direct supervision of 5 or 6 lead men. - The duties of the
quarter men indicate that they are supervisory employees. We shall,
therefore, exclude them from the appropriate unit.
Accordingly, we find that all welders, cutters (burners) and helpers,
employed by the Company at its Decatur, Alabama, shipbuilding
plant, including lead men, but excluding quarter men, constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the
meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVE'S
We shall direct that the question concerning representation which
has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em-
ployees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-
roll period immediately preceding the date of our Direction of Election
herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direc-
tion.
2 See Matter of Ryan Aeronautical Co. and United Aircaaft Welders of America, Ind,
15 N. L. R B 812, Matter of Verson All-Steel Press Company and International Associa-
tion of Machinists, Shop Welders d Cutters of America, Local 1539, affiliated with the
A. P. ofL.,40N.L R. B 858.
508 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
The Boilermakers requested that its name be omitted from the ballot
in the event the Board ordered an election in the unit herein found
appropriate. We shall therefore not afford the Boilermakers a place
on the ballot in the election directed herein.
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 Relations Act,
and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series, 2, as amended, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Decatur Iron S
Steel Company, Shipbuilding Division, Decatur, Alabama, an elec-
tion 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 Tenth
Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations
Board, and subject to Articl"e'III, Section 10, of said Rules and Regula-
tions, among the employees in the unit found appropriate in Section
IV, above, who were employed during the pay-roll period,irnmediately
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 in the active military service or training of the United
States, or temporarily laid off, but excluding employees who have since
quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they
desire to be represented by United Brotherhood of Welders, Cutters
and Helpers of America for the purpose of collective bargaining.