Des Rochers Motor Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 14, 1950

92 N.L.R.B. 709 (N.L.R.B. 1950)

In the Matter of M. M. DES ROCKERS, D/B/A DES RocnERs MOTOR CoM-
PANY, EMPLOYER and INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS,
CHAUFFEURS, WAREHOUSEMEN & HELPERS, LOCAL UNION No. 936,
A. F. OF L., PETITIONER
Case No. 10-RC-9419.-Decided December 14, 1950
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor
Relations Act, a hearing was held before John C. Carey, Jr., hearing
'officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board
has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member
panel [Chairman Herzog and Members Murdock and Styles].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in the business of selling and servicing,
automobiles at Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It has a franchise from the
Chrysler Corporation for the sale of Plymouth and De Soto automo-
biles. During the year preceding the date of the hearing, the Em-
ployer purchased more than $168,000 worth of automobiles and
automobile equipment, of which approximately 63 percent was shipped
to it from points outside the State. During the same period, the
Employer's sales totaled more than $223,000, all of which represented
sales to customers within the State.
We find contrary to the contention of the Employer, that it is
engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act. In view of our
policy as recently announced in Baxter Bros.,' to assert jurisdiction
over franchised automobile dealers, we find that it will effectuate the
policies of the Act to assert jurisdiction in this case.
2. The labor organization involved claims- to represent certain
employees.of the Employer.
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section
9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The parties agree that a unit composed of all the employees in
the Employer's service department, including mechanics, laborers,
191 NLRB 1480.
92 NLRB No. 125.
709
710 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
and the seat cover employee, is appropriate. There is disagreement,
however, as to the inclusion of the service department manager and
the parts man, the Employer contending that these individuals should
be included and the Petitioner contending that they should be
excluded.
The, service .manager.-This individual is in charge of the Em-
ployer's service department. He receives the automobiles that are
brought to the department for repairs and servicing, makes out shop
orders, and assigns work to the employees in the service department.
The bulk of his time, however, is 'devoted to making repairs on cars
and assisting the mechanics in their jobs. He has the authority
effectively to recommend changes in the status of the employees whose
work he supervises. We find that the service manager is a supervisor
within the meaning of the Act, and we shall therefore exclude him.
The parts employee.-This individual works in the Employer's
parts department which is separated from the service department by
a counter. His duties consist of receiving, selling, and keeping records
of automobile parts and accessories, and of issuing parts to the me-
chanics in the service department. He also installs accessories on the
cars of customers. About 80 percent of the time of the parts employee
is devoted to issuing parts to the service department employees. In
view of these circumstances and the fact that.the parts employee and
the service department employees together constitute their Employer's
physical employees as distinct from the office and clerical employees
and salesmen, we shall include the parts employee.2
We find that all the Employer's service department employees, in-
cluding mechanics, laborers, the seat cover employee, and the parts
employee, but excluding office and clerical employees, and the service
manager, all other supervisors as defined in the Act, constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within. the
meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this
volume.]
2 Rowan Motor Company, et al., 90 NLRB No. 156.