Fairchild Engine & Airplane Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 13, 1941

31 N.L.R.B. 833 (N.L.R.B. 1941)

In the Matter of FAIRCHILD AIRCRAFT - DivisioN of FAIRCHILD
ENGINE & AIRPLANE CORPORATION and INTERNATIONAL ASSN. of "
MACHINISTS (AFL)
Case No. R-2520.-Decided May 13, 1941'
Jurisdiction : airplane manufacturing industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: con-
flicting claims of rival representatives ; election necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production and maintenance
employees, stock chasers, shipping and receiving employees, storeroom em-
ployees, inspectors employed in the plant or plants of the Company in the
Hagerstown area, including production employees, at the flying field and
truck drivers, but excluding executives, sales personnel, accounting office em-
ployees, general clerical employees, personnel employees, office employees,
supervisory employees, chemists, metallurgists, tool designers, outside service-
men, pilots, watchmen, guards, time and production clerks, time-study and
production estimating and planning personnel, engineers, drafting employees,
detailers, and powerhouse employees ; agreement as to.
Mr. William P. Lane, Jr., and Mr. F. A. Galligan, of Hagerstown,
Md., for the Company.
Mr. Paul R. Hutchings, of Washington, D.'C., and Mr. J. E. Poulton,
1 of Hagerstown, Md., for,the I. A. M.
Mr. Charles F. Wagaman, Mr. W. A. Schuping, and Mr. J. E. Keller,
all 'of Hagerstown, Md., for the Independent. -
Mr. Frank J. Bender, of Baltimore, Md., and Mr. Robert F. Glenn,
of Hagerstown, Md., for the United.
Mr. Eugene M. Purver, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On January 30, 1941, and on February 18, 1941, respectively, Inter
national Association of Machinists (A. F. L.), herein called the I. A.
M., filed with the Regional Director for the Fifth Region (Baltimore,
Maryland) a petition and an amended petition alleging that a ques-
tion affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of
employees of Fairchild Aircraft Division of Fairchild Engine & Air-
. 31 N. L. R. B, No. 13T.
833
834 DECISO[ON 'S OF N'ATTONAL LABOR RELATION 'S BOARD
plane Corporation , Hagerstown , Maryland, herein called the Com-
pany , and requesting an investigation and certification of represen-
tatives pursuant to Section . 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act,
49 Stat. 449 , herein called the Act. On April 11 , 1941, the National
'Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pursuant to
Section 9 ( c) of the Act and Article III, Section 3, of National Labor
`Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, or-
dered an investigation and authorized the Regional Director to conduct
it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice.
On April 16, 1941 , the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing,
later amended , copies of which were duly served , upon the Company
the I . A. M., Independent Aircraft Workers, Inc., herein called the
Independent; and United Automobile Workers of America, Aircraft
Division , affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations,
herein called the United ; labor organizations claiming to represent
employees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to notice,
a hearing was held at Hagerstown , Maryland , on April 29 , 1941, before
Albert P. Wheatley , the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief
Trial Examiner . The Company , the I . A. M., the Independent, and
the United were represented and participated in the hearing. Full
opportunity to be -heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and
to introduce evidence bearing upon the issues was afforded all parties.
During the course , of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several
rulings on motions . The Board has reviewed the, rulings of the Trial
Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The
rulings are hereby affirmed. -
Upon the entire record in the case, the- Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Fairchild Engine & Airplane Corporation is a Maryland corporation
engaged in the manufacture, sale, and service of aircraft engines and
airplanes, at Hagerstown, Maryland, and Farmingdale, Long Island.
These proceedings are concerned only with the Fairchild Aircraft Divi-
sion located at and about Hagerstown, Maryland.' During the year
-ending December 1940 the Company purchased in excess of $1,500,000
of wood and aluminum, and other metals, of which over 50 per cent were
purchased and shipped from points outside the State of Maryland.
During the same period, the Company manufactured and sold in excess
of $2,000,000 worth of airplanes and parts, of which over 50 per cent
were sold and shipped to purchasers outside the State of Maryland.
FAIRCHILD AIRCRAFT DIVISION _ 1 835
II. THE'ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
International, Association of Machinists, affiliated with the American
Federation of Labor, is a labor organization admitting to membership
employees of-the Company:
Independent Aircraft Workers, Inc., unaffiliated, is a labor organiza-
tion admitting to membership employees of the Company.
United Automobile Workers of America, Aircraft Division, affili-
ated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, is a labor
organization admitting to membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company refuses to recognize the I. A. M., the petitioner herein,
in the absence of proof that it represents a majority. The I. A. M.,
the ,Independent, and the United each, claim to be the designated col-
lective bargaining agent for employees of the Company.
At the hearing a report prepared by the Field Examiner concerning
claims of authorization for the-purpose of representation was intro-
duced in evidence showing that each of the'labor organizations repre-
sents a substantial number of the employees within the unit found in
Section V, infra, to be appropriate.'
We find that •a question has arisen concerning the representation
of employees of the Company.
IV. THE EFFECT " OF •THE QUESTION CONCERNING
REPRESENTATION UPON COMMERCE
We find. that the question concerning representation which has
arisen; occurring in connection with the operations of the- Company
described in Section I above, has 'a close, intimate, and substantial
relation, to trade, traffic, and' commerce among the several States
and tends .to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing com-
merce and the free flow of commerce:
1 The statement of the Field Examiner , concerning claims of authorization for the purpose
of representation- shows that:
(1) The1I. A. M. submitted 287'authorization cards of which 221 bearing apparently
genuine signatures of persons whose names appear on the Company's pay roll of Feb-
ruary 4, 1941. -All these cards were dated between July 1940 and March 1941
(2) The Independent submitted 376 application cards bearing apparently genuine
signatures Thirty-one of these cards were undated , and the remainder dated during
1940 and 1941. Three hundred and sixty of these signatures are names which appear
on the Company 's pay roll of February,4, 1941 -
(3). .The United submitted 63 application cards bearing apparently genuine signs-
tures, 31 of which were undated and 32 of which were dated in 1940 and 1941 Fifty-
six of these cards bear - names which appear on the Company's pay roll of February 4,
1941.
There were approximately 1,210 ,employees on the Company's pay roll of February
18, 1941, including 125 to 150 supervisory and clerical employees.
441843-42-vol. 31-54
836 DECISIONS 'OF NATIONAL LABOR RE'LATION'S BOARD
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The parties agreed at the hearing that the appropriate unit should
consist of all production and maintenance employees, stock chasers,
shipping and receiving employees, storeroom employees, inspectors
employed in the plant or plants of-the Company in the Hagerstown
area, including production employees, at the flying field, and
truck drivers, but excluding executives, sales personnel, accounting
office employees, general clerical employees, personnel employees, of-
fice employees, supervisory employees, chemists, metallurgists, tool de-
signers, outside servicemen, pilots, watchmen, guards, time and pro-
duction clerks, time-study and production estimating and planning
personnel, engineers, drafting employees, and detailers. The parties
also agreed that powerhouse employees be excluded from the unit.2
The Company contends that any unit found to be appropriate
should be limited to the Company's present operations. The labor or-
ganizations desire that the unit found by the Board include employees
in a plant now under construction at Hagerstown. We are concerned
in the present proceeding, however, only with the employees in the
Company's plant now in operation.
We find that, all production ,and maintenance employees, stock
chasers, shipping and receiving employees, storeroom employees, in-
spectors employed in the plant or plants of the Company in the
Hagerstown area, including production employees, at the flying
field, and truck drivers, but excluding executives, sales personnel,
accounting office employees, general clerical employees, personnel
employees, office employees, supervisory employees, chemists, metallur-
gists, tool designers, outside servicemen, pilots, watchmen, guards, time
and production clerks, time-study and production estimating and
planning personnel, engineers, drafting employees, detailers, and
powerhouse employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes
of collective bargaining, and that said unit will insure to employees
of the Company the full benefit of their, right-to self-organization
and collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the
Act. '
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question which has arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of the Company can best be resolved by an
election by secret ballot. We shall direct that those eligible to vote
in the election shall be the, employees within the appropriate unit who
were employed by the Company during the pay-roll period immedi-
z We so interpret an ambiguous statement made by the representative of the United and
agreed to by the other parties.
FAIRCHILD AIRCRAFT DIVISION 837
ately preceding the date of our Direction of Election , subject to such
limitations and additions as are set forth in the Direction.
Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire
record in the case , the Board makes the following :
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of Fairchild Aircraft Division of Fairchild
Engine & Airplane Corporation, Hagerstown, Maryland, within the
meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
2. All the production and maintenance employees, stock chasers,
shipping and receiving employees, storeroom employees, inspectors em-
ployed in the plant or plants of the Company in the Hagerstown area,
including production employees, at the flying field, employees and truck
drivers, but excluding executives, sales personnel, accounting office em-
ployees, general clerical employees, personnel employees, office em-
ployees, supervisory employees, chemists, metallurgists, tool designers,
outside servicemen, pilots, watchmen, guards, time and production
clerks, time-study and production estimating and planning personnel,
engineers, drafting employees, detailers, and powerhouse employees,
constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining
within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
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 8, 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 bargaining
with Fairchild Aircraft Division of Fairchild Engine & Airplane
Corporation, Hagerstown, Maryland, 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 of Election under the direction and
supervision of the Regional Director for the Fifth Region, acting in
this matter as agent for the National Labor. Relations Boart and sub-
ject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among all
the production and maintenance employees_of the Company in the
Hagerstown, Maryland, area, who were employed during the pay-roll
period immediately preceding the date of this Direction, including
stock chasers, shipping and receiving employees, storeroom employees,
inspectors employed in the plant or plants of the Company in the
Hagerstown area, including production employees, at the flying field,'
838 DECISIONS OF A''ATTONAL LABOR RE'LATI'ONS BOARD
truck , drivers, and employees ',who did not work 'during , such 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 executives , sales personnel , accounting. office em-
ployees, general clerical employees, personel employees, office employees,
supervisory employees , chemists, metallurgists , tool designers , outside
servicemen , pilots, watchmen, guards, time and production clerks, time-
study and • production estimating and planning personnel , engineers,
drafting employees , detailers , and powerhouse empl'oyees ', and those
who have since quit or been discharged for cause , to determine whether
they, desire to be represented for the purposes , of collective bargaining
by International Association of Machinists , affiliated with the Ameri-
cart Federation of Labor, by Independent Aircraft Workers, Inc., un-
affiliated ,, or by United Automobile Workers ' of America , Aircraft
Division , affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or
by none of these labor organizations.