Forest City Manufacturing Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Oct 24, 1940

27 N.L.R.B. 1100 (N.L.R.B. 1940)

In the Matter of FOREST CITY MANUFACTURING; COMPANY and INTER-
NATIONAL LADIES! GARMENT `YORKERS' UNION
Case No. R-R070.Decided October 0/, 19/0
Jurisdiction : garment manufacturing industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question. re-
fusal to accord recognition to union ; election necessary.
An agreement between an employer and the sole labor organization in-
volved, which by its terms provides for arbitration of disputes between the
contracting parties, held not to constitute a bar to representation proceedings.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production employees exclud-
ing foremen, foreladies and assistant foreladies, all other supervisory employees,
office and clerical employees, timekeepers, floorgiris and instructors, work dis-
tributors, employees who stamp bundle tickets or work cards, all shipping-
department employees, truck drivers and helpers, machinists, porters and
janitors, and all other maintenance employees.
Floorgirls and instructors excluded from unit since they oversee and in-
struct the other -employees, have authority to recommend hiring and dis-
charging, are paid a weekly salary rather than on a piece-work basis obtaining
among the employees they direct, and are ineligible to membership in the sole
labor organization.
'vVoi k distributors excluded from unit since they are paid a weekly salary
rather Phan on piece-work basis as is true of the production employees and
are ineligible to membership in the sole labor organization
Employees who stamp bundle tickets and work cards excluded from unit
since they are paid a weekly salary rather than on a piece-work basis, perform
clerical work, and are ineligible to membership in the sole labor organization
involved.
Mr. L. N. D. Wells, Jr., for the Board.
Mr. Hyman G. Stein, of St. Louis, Mo., for the Company.
Cllr. Morris J. Levin, of St . Louis. Mo., for the I . L. G. W.
Mr. Ben Law, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STA7 EMENT OF THE CASE
On September 11, 1940, International Ladies' Garment Workers'
Union, herein called the I. L. G. W., filed with the Regional Director
for the Fourteenth Region (St. Louis, Missouri) a petition alleging
27 N. L R. B., No. 177.
1100
- FOREST CITY MANUFACTURING COMPANY 1101
that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning ,the represen-
tation of employees of Forest City Manufacturing Company, St. Louis,
-Missouri, herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation
and certification of representatives pursuant ,to Section 9 (c) of the
National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On
September 20, 1940, 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, ordered an investigation and authorized the Re-
gional Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing
upon due notice. On September 23, 1940, the Regional Director issued
a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company
and the I. L. G. W.
Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on September 26, 1940,
at St. Louis, Missouri, before Horace A. Ruckel, the Trial Examiner
duly designated by the Board.,- At the start of the hearing the Com-
pany filed a written motion to dismiss the petition and the I. L.
G. W. objected to the filing of the motion. The Trial Examiner
overruled the objection of the I. L. G. W. The Board has con-
sidered the Company's motion to dismiss the petition and its argu-
ment in support thereof. The motion is hereby denied.2 During
the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made various rulings
upon objections to the admission of evidence, upon certain offers of
proof, and upon a notion. The Board has reviewed the rulings of
the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were com-
mitted. The rulings are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
'At the hearing the Company and the I L G W stated that they raised no question
as to due and tunely set % ice of the notice of hearing
2 lu support of its motion to dismiss the petition the Company alleged in substance in
the motion and at the hearing
(1) that by filing its petition with the Board and b3 all of its actions and proceedings
pursuant to the petition the I L G \v violated and was violating the terms of an agree-
ment executed Diarch 20, 1939, between itself and the Company by which a Commission
iias created with the express duty and authority to consrdei, pass upon and finally decide
all matteis of dispute between the parties
(2) that the Board is not entitled to and should not lend itselt to an effectuation by
the I L G \V" of such it i iolation of its agreement with the Company ; and
(3) that the petition does not present a question concerning representation affecting
commerce because the agreement between the parties provides for it peacetul method of
settling all disputes between the parties without niteiterence iiith the flow of goods in
inter state commerce
We find that the agieeinent of Maich 20, 1939, between the parties is no bar to the
present liioceeding There is no showing on the record that at the time of execution of
the agreement the I L G 11' represented a mom ity of the employees in an appropriate
unit at the Colluisnlle plant The agreement does not contain any provision by which
the Company recognized the 1 L G W as the exclusive representative for purposes of
collective bargaining of such employees A question concerning representation affecting
commerce has clearly arisen The Company agrees that where such it question exists the
Board has jurisdiction which it iuay exercise at its discretion The Board considers this
case a proper one -for the exercise of its fur isdiction
1102 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Forest City Manufacturing Company, is a. Missouri corporation
engaged in the manufacture, sale, and distribution of ladies', misses',
and junior frocks and dresses. It owns and operates two plants, one
located in St. Louis, Missouri, and the other in Collinsville, Illinois.
During the year 1939 raw materials having a value in excess of
$1,000,000' were used by the Company. More than 90 per cent of
these raw materials had their source in States other than Missouri
and Illinois and were transported to the Company's two plants.
During the same year the Company manufactured products having
a value in excess of $3,000,000. More than 90 per cent of such
products were transported for delivery to States other than Missouri
and Illinois. The Company admits that it is engaged in interstate
-commerce within the meaning of the-Act.
H. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
International Ladies' Garment. Workers' Union is a labor organiza-
tion. Local 186 of the I. L. G. W. admits to membership employees
of the Company at its Collinsville, Illinois, plant.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The parties stipulated at the hearing that the I. L. G. W. has re-
quested the Company to recognize it as exclusive representative for
purposes of collective bargaining of the production employees at the
.Collinsville plant and that the Company has refused such request,
basing its refusal on the contention that the I. L. G. W. did not
represent a majority of the employees at such plant. A statement
by the Regional Director which was introduced in evidence shows
that the-I. L. G. W. represents a substantial number of the Com-
pany's employees in the unit hereinafter found to be appropriate.'
3In her statement the Regional Director reported that the I. L G. W. had submitted for
her inspection :
(a) 73 signed authorization cards of which 60 were dated in 1939 , 1 was dated in 1937,
6 were dated with a day and a month, but no year indicated, and 6 were undated ;
(b) two signed membership record cards dated August 18 and September 8, 1938, re-
spectively ; and
(c) 134 signatures appearing upon petitions naming the Union as the collective bar-
gaining representative of the signers and dated either July 30, or August 16, 1940.
The Regional Director also reported that all of the 209 signatures so submitted appear
to be genuine and that 195 of them are the names of persons listed on the Company's pay
roll of August 16, 1940.
At the time of the hearing there were 354 persons employed at the Collinsville plant,
including clerical workers , mechanics , porters and maintenance workers, but excluding
managers and foreladies.
FOREST CITY MANUFACTURING COMPANY 1103
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.
r
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
- The I. L. G. W. contended at the hearing that an appropriate unit
consists of all production employees of the Company at its Collins-
ville, Illinois, plant, excluding foremen, foreladies and assistant fore-
ladies, all other supervisory employees, office and clerical employees,
timekeepers, instructors, work distributors, employees who stamp
bundle tickets, all shipping-department employees, truck drivers and
helpers, machinists, porters and janitors, and all other maintenance
employees. The Trial Examiner granted a motion by the I. L. G. W.
to amend its petition in accordance with the above-described unit.
The Company expressed no opinion as to whether or not a sepa-
rate unit of employees at the Collinsville plant is appropriate. The
evidence shows that the St. Louis and Collinsville plants are located
about 15 miles apart. Except on rare occasions there is no inter-
change of employees between them. Supervisory functions at the
Collinsville plant are handled entirely by officials of such plant.
subject only to the control of the general management and directors
of the Company. In the past such collective bargaining as there has
been at the two plants has been on the basis that they were separate
units. Local 186 of the I. L. G. W. admits to membership only
employees at the Collinsville plant. No other labor organization
disputes the claim of Local 186 that the employees at the Collinsville
plant constitute a separate unit. On the basis of the foregoing, we
find that a separate unit should be established at the Collinsville
plant. _
The position of the Company with respect to the particular classi-
fications of employees to be included within the appropriate unit is
not entirely clear. At the hearing, however, it disputed the conten-
tion of the I. L. G. W. that employees described as "floorgirls and
4 See footnote 2, supra. -
1104 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
instructors," 5 "work distributors," and "employees who stamp bundle
tickets and work cards" are properly excluded from the, unit.
At the time,,of the hearing the Company employed at its Collins-
ville plant 18 floorgirls and instructors, 2 work distributors, and 3
employees who stamp bundle tickets and work cards. It is the func-
tion of floorgirls and instructors to instruct other employees in the
making of dresses and otherwise to oversee and direct their work.
In addition, during slack periods, they do repair work on garments
completed by other employees. The floorgirls and instructors have
authority to recommended hiring and discharging and are paid a
weekly salary rather than on the piece-work basis obtaining among
the employees they direct. Local 186 of the I. L. G. W. does not
admit floorgirls and instructors to membership. We shall exclude
them from the unit.
The two work distributors assign bundles containing the various
parts of a garment prepared in the cutting department to the em-
ployees who sew the pieces together. They at times exercise a limited
'discretion in making such assignments. There .is evidence that a
sewer's pay, which is determined on a piece-work basis, may very
considerably according to the type of garment she is permitted to
work upon. The work distributors receive a weekly salary and are
ineligible to join Local 186 of the I. L. G. W. We shall exclude them
from the unit.
The three employees who stamp bundle tickets or work cards insert
the style, lot number, and wage rates of sewers upon tags which are
attached to garment bundles. The operator sewing the garment de-
taches the tags and turns them in to the timekeeper who determines
her pay accordingly. The employees in question are paid a weekly
salary, do clerical work; and are ineligible to join Local 186 of the
I. L. G. W. We shall exclude them from the unit.
The other exclusions requested by the I. L. G. W. appear to be
proper. The Company does not dispute their propriety.
We find that all production employees of the Company at its Col-
ainsville plant, excluding foremen, foreladies and assistant fore-
ladies, all other supervisory employees, office and clerical employees,
timekeepers, floorgirls and instructors, work distributors, employees
who stamp bundle tickets or work cards, all shipping department em-
ployees, truck drivers and helpers, machinists, porters and janitors,
and all other maintenance employees, constitute a unit appropriate
for the purposes of collective bargaining and that said unit will insure
to the employees of the Company their full right to self-organization
°The employees descrihed is ' tlooigirls and in,trnrtois at the hearing tie the same as
those descnbed'as "instinctots" in the 1 L G W s petition as amended
FOREST CITY MANUFACTURING COMPANY 1105
and to 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 the employees of the
Company eligible to vote in the election shall be those in the appropri-
ate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately
preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein, including em-
ployees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they
were ill or on vacation and employees who were then or have since
been temporarily laid off, but excluding those employees who have
since quit or been discharged for cause.
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 Forest City Manufacturing Company, St.
Louis, Missouri, at its Collinsville, Illinois, plant within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor
Relations Act.
2. All production employees of the Company at its Collinsville
plant, excluding foremen, foreladies and assistant foreladies, all other
supervisory employees, office and clerical employees, timekeepers,
floorgirls and instructors, work distributors, employees who stamp
bundle tickets or work cards, all shipping-department employees,
truck drivers and helpers, machinists, porters and janitors, and all
other maintenance employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Section
9 (b) of the National Labor Relations 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 Rela-
tions Act, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of
National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2,
as amended, it is hereby
6 During the course of the hearing the parties agreed upon the exclusion from the unit of
Max Landau , the plant manager ; Henry John , assistant manager ; Nettie Duncan, fore-
lady ; and William Mashinsky , Thomas Cramer, and an employee described as Mr. Jefferson,
all machinists . Such exclusions appear to be clearly covered by the above description of
the appropriate unit.
323428-42-vol 27-71
1106 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board
to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining
with Forest City Manufacturing Company, St. Louis, Missouri, at
its Collinsville, Illinois, plant, 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 Fourteenth 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, among all
production employees of the Company at its Collinsville, Illinois,
plant who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately
preceding the date of this Direction, including employees who did
not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or ' on
vacation, and employees who were then or have since been temporarily
said off, but excluding foremen, foreladies and assistant foreladies,
all other supervisory employees, office and clerical employees, time-
keepers, floorgirls and instructors, work distributors, employees .who
stamp bundle tickets or work cards, all shipping-department em-
ployees, truck drivers and helpers, machinists, porters and janitors,
all other maintenance employees, and employees who have since quit
or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire
to be represented by International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union
for the purposes of collective bargaining.