Douglas Aircraft Co., Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jul 8, 1943

51 N.L.R.B. 161 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

In the Matter of DOUGLAS AIRCRAFT COMPANY, INC. (EL SEGUNDO DIVI-
SION) and INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MACHINISTS AERONAUTICAL
DISTRICT LODGE 22
In the Matter of DOUGLAS AIRCRAFT COMPANY, INC. and INTERNATIONAL
UNION, UNITED AUTOMOBILE, AIRCRAFT AND AGRICULTURAL IMPLE-
MENT WORKERS OF AMERICA (UAW-CIO)
Cases Nos. R-5188 and R-5189 respectively.Decided July 8, 1943
SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION
SECOND DIRECTION OF ELECTION
AND
CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
On June 8, 1943, pursuant to the Decision and Direction of Elections
issued by the Board herein on May 17, 1943,1 and an amendment there-
to on June 5, 1943, separate elections by secret ballot were conducted
at the Company's El Segundo Division and Vernon plant, respectively,
under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the
Twenty-first Region (Los Angeles,' California).
Thereafter, on June 8, 1943, in accordance with the Rules and Reg-
ulations of the Board, a Report on Ordered Election in Case No.
IR-5188, covering the election held at the El Segundo Division of the
Company, was issued and served upon the parties. As to the ballot-
ing and its results among the employees involved in Case No. R-5188,
the Regional Director reported as follows :
Percentage of those eligible casting ballots_________________ 88.2
Percentage of ballots cast that were counted as valid votes 4_ - 94.9
Percentage of votes cast for International Union, United
Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers
of America (UAW-00) --------------------------------- 16.0
Percentage. of votes cast for International Association of
Machinists, Aeronautical District Lodge 22_______________ 39.3
Percentage of votes cast for neither_______________________ 44.7
149 N. L.R.B 819
2 The Report states that a certain number of the ballots cast were challenged and that
an additional number were void ballots. The number of such ballots, approximating 5.1
percent of the total ballots cast, has been omitted herein. °
51 N. L. R. B., No. 36.
161
162 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
On or about June 16, 1943, the International Association of Ma-
chinists, herein called the I. A. M., filed a motion with the Board for
a new election, or in the alternative, for a run-off election. In sup-
port of its motion for a new election, the I. A. M. alleged that con-
fusion had resulted in the balloting as a result of the following
circumstances :
After the issuance of the Decision and Direction of Elections
herein, and on or about May 31, 1943, the I. A. M. withdrew its
affiliation from the American Federation of Labor. The Board, hav-
ing been advised of this action by the international president of the
I. A. M. and having been requested by him on behalf of said organ-
ization "that in all matters in which the International Association
of Machinists is involved and which are presently before the Board,
the Board refers to our organization as the International Associa-
tion of Machinists, making no reference to affiliation with the Amer-
ican Federation of Labor," on June 5, 1943, amended the Direction
rof Elections to conform with this request. It appears that the local
representatives of the I. A. M. at El Segundo had no advance notice
that this amendment had been requested, and first received notice of
the amendment on the afternoon of Saturday, June 5, 1943. Prior to
the amendment, the I. A. M. had been notified by a representative
of the Board's Regional Office that the designation "A. F. L." would
have to appear with its name on the ballot, and sample ballots con-
taining such designation had been posted at the plant. In view of
the fact that the election had been scheduled for June 8, 1943, there
was insufficient time to print new sample ballots, and, upon receipt
of notice of the amendment, the Regional Office posted supplemen-
tary notices alongside of the posted sample ballots, stating that
at the request of the I. A. M., "the letters `A. F. L.' will not appear
on the official ballot to be cast at the election." The I. A. M. con-
tends that the posting of these supplementary notices coupled with
the failure to delete the letters "A. F. L." from the sample ballots
(although they were deleted from the official ballot) caused great
uncertainty among employees. The I. A. M. states that its affiliation
with the A. F. L. had been stressed throughout its organizational
campaign which began in April 1942; that members of A. F. L.
affiliates had been assured that they would be permitted to trans-
fer their membership to the I. A. M. without the payment of addi-
tional fees; and that in the brief space of time which elapsed be-
tween its withdrawal from the A. F. L. and the election, it did
not have sufficient time to make a complete report to its membership
concerning the effect ofeits withdrawal action. The I. A. M. sub-
mitted documentary proof indicating that following the amendment
to the Direction, the C. I. O. in its election campaign emphasized
DOUGLAS AIRCRAFT COMPANY, INC. 163
the deletion of the letters "A. F. L." from the I. A. M. space on
the ballot. The I. A. M. claims that in view of the intervening
Sunday during which printing establishments were closed and the
fact that it had signed an agreement with the C. I. O. not to dis-
tribute any literature on or after midnight June 7, 1943, it was
unable to issue any printed matter clarifying its position between
late Saturday, June 5, 1943, when notice of the amendment was first
received by its local representatives, and the date of the election. On
June 7, 1943, the I. A. M. requested a representative of the Board
to postpone the election date for several days, but this request was
denied.
Under all the circumstances, we are of the opinion that employees
may have been misled by the deletion of the letters "A. F. L." from
the ballot and that the I. A. M. may not have been afforded suffi-
cient opportunity to explain this deletion. We shall consequently
direct that a new election by secret ballot be held in Case No. R-5188
among the employees at the Company's El Segundo Division in the
unit at said division heretofore established by the Board in its
Decision and Direction of Election herein, dated May 17, 1943. We
shall further provide that those,eligible to vote will be those in the
appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period im-
mediately preceding the date of this Second Direction of Election,
subject to the limitations and additions set forth therein.
The motion of the I. A. M. for a run-off election is hereby denied.
On June June 8, 1943, in accordance with the Rules and Regu-
lations of the Board, a Report on Ordered Election in Case No.
R-5189, covering the election held at the Vernon plant of the Com-
pany, was issued and served upon the parties. As to the balloting
and its results among the employees involved in Case No. R-5189,
the Regional Director reported as follows :
Percentage of those eligible casting ballots_________________ 86.9
Percentage of ballots cast that were counted as valid votes'-- 99 0
Percentage of votes cast for International Union, United
Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers
of America (UAW-CIO) -------------------------------- 60:9
Percentage of votes cast for International Association of
Machinists, Aeronautical District Lodge 22_______________ 13.9
Percentage of votes cast for neither_______________________ 25.2
In view of the fact that no objections to the said Report, or to
the conduct of the ballot, have been filed by any of the parties, and
the motion of the I. A. M., to which reference was made above, does
not relate to the election held at the Vernon plant, we shall issue
a Certification of Representatives in Case No. R-5189.
3 There were no challenged ballots One percent of the ballots cast were void ballots. The
number of void ballots, set forth in the Election Report, is omitted herein.
540612-44-vol 51-12
164 -DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
SECOND 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 Rela-
tions 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 represent-
atives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Douglas Air-
craft Company, Inc., El Segundo, California, an election 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 Twenty-first Re-
gion, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations
Board, and subject to Article III, Section 10, of said Rules and
Regulations, among the employees of the El Segundo Division of the
Company in the unit found appropriate in Section IV of the De-
cision and Direction of Elections in this proceeding, dated May 17,
1943, who were employed in the pay-roll period immediately pre-
ceding the date of this Second Direction of Election, including
employees who did not work during said pay-roll period because
they were ill or on vacation or temporarily laid off, and including
employees in the armed forces of the, United States who present
themselves in person at the polls, but excluding those employees
who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine
whether they desire to be represented by International Association
of Machinists, Aeronautical District Lodge 22, or by International
Union, United Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement
Workers of America (UAW-CIO), for the purposes of collective
bargaining, or by neither.
CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National La-
bor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations
Act, and pursuant to Article III, Sections 9 and 10, of National La-
bor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended,
IT Is IIEREBY CERTIFIED that International Union, United Automo-
bile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers of America
(UAW-CIO) has been designated and selected by a majority of all
production and maintenance employees at the Company's Vernon
plant, including plant clerks, but excluding oxyacetylene, oxyhydro-
gen, and electric are welders employed to do fusion welding as gas-
torch cutters, and helpers and apprentice welders, executives, admin-
istrative, professional, office clerical, technical and engineering de-
DOUGLAS AIRCRAFT COMPANY, INC. 165
partment employees, guards, and supervisory employees above the
classification of leadman A, as their representative for the purposes
of collective bargaining, and that pursuant to Section 9 (a) of the
Act, the said organization is the exclusive representative of all such
employees for the purposes of collective bargaining with respect to
rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of
employment.