General Motors Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Aug 31, 1948

79 N.L.R.B. 341 (N.L.R.B. 1948)

In the Matter of GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION, FISHER BODY DIVI-
SION-VAN Nuys PLANT, EMPLOYER and INTERNATIONAL BROTHER-
HOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS, LOCAL UNION 11, A. F. OF L.,
PETITIONER
In the Matter of GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION , FISHER BODY DIVI-
SION-VAN Nuts PLANT, EMPLOYER and UNITED ASSOCIATION OF
JOURNEYMEN & APPRENTICES OF PLUMBING & PIPEFITTERS INDUSTRY,
LOCAL No. 250, A. F. L., PETITIONER
In the Matter of GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION, FISHER BODY DIvi-
SION-VAN Nuts PLANT, EMPLOYER and UNITED AUTOMOBILE, AIR-
CRAFT AND AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENT WORKERS OF AMERICA (UAW-
CIO), PETITIONER
In the Matter of GENERAL McSTORS CORPORATION, CHEVROLET DIVISION,
EMPLOYER a'nd INTERNATIONAL BROTHLRHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORK-
ERS, LOCAL UNION 11, A. F. OF L., PETITIONER
III the Matter of GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION, CHEVROLET DIVISION,
EMPLOYER and INTERNATIONAL UNION, UNITED AUTOMOBILE, AIR-
CRAFT AND AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENT WORKERS OF AMERICA, PETI-
TIONER
Cases Nos. 21-RC-51, 21-RC-104, 21-RC-111, 21-RCD7, and
21-RCD5, retpeetivelp.Decided August 31, 19418
DECISION
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
AND
ORDER
Upon separate petitions duly filed, hearings in the above consoli-
dated cases 1 were held before a hearing officer of the National Labor
I On March It, 1948, the Regional Director. pursuant to section 203 64 (b) of the Bosun's
Rules and Regulations-Series 5, consolidated the proceedings in Cases Nos 21-RC-51,
21-RC-104, and 21-RC-111 On the same date, the Regional Director cuncolidated the
proceedings in Cases Nos 21-RC-57 and 21-RC-65
79 N. L. R. B., No. 43.
- 341
809095-49-vol 79 23
342 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Relations Board. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearings
are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.2
As the petitions in these cases involve identical units of employees
of the Employer engaged in substantially the same work in plants
located in the same. Region, the Board hereby consolidates the peti-
tions in Cases Nos. 21-RC-51, 21-RC-104, 21-RC-111, 21-RC-57, and
21-RC-65 3
Upon the entire record in these cases, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the,
National Labor'Relations`Act.
2. The labor organizations named below claim to represent em-
ployees 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 appropriate units :
The Petitioner in Cases Nos. 21-RC-51 and 21-RC-57, herein called
the IBEW, seeks units composed only Hof maintenance electricians,
their helpers and apprentices in the Employer's newly established
Fisher Body and Chevrolet Division assembly plants, respectively, at
Van Nuys, California. The Petitioner in Case No. 21-RC-111, herein
called the UAW, seeks a unit composed of all production and mainte-
nance employees in the body in white, paint, trim, quality standards,
materials, and maintenance departments of the Fisher Body plant,
excluding office and clerical employees, professional employees, plant
guards, and supervisors. In Case No. 21-RC-65, the UAW seeks a
unit ,composed of all production and maintenance employees in the
production, inspection, materials, traffic, plant engineering, and main-
tenance departments of the Chevrolet plant, including leadnien and
timekeepers, but excluding all plant guards, watchmen, office and cler-
ical employees, professional employees, and supervisors. The Em-
ployer and the International Association of Machinists, herein called
the TAM, agree that the units sought by the UAW are appropriate,
but contend that timekeepers should be excluded from the unit re-
quested at the Chevrolet plant.
The UAW asserts that the bargaining history of the Employer indi-
cates that, in almost every instance, electricians at its various plants
2 At the hearing in Case No. 21-RC-104, United Association of Journeymen & Apprentices'
of Plumbing & Pipefitters Industry, Local No 250, A F L , lief ein called the Pipe Fitters,
without objection , moved for leave to withdraw its petition , without prejudice The hear-
ing officer reserved ruling thereon for the Board As it is clear that no prejudice will result
to any of the other parties , the motion for leave to withdraw is granted See Matter of
American Radiator and Standard Sanitary Corporation , 67 N L R B 1135
3 Matter of Bethlehem Transpo, tation Corporation , 65 N L R B 605
GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION 343
have been bargained for as part of production and maintenance units:
It further urges that the electricians at the -Chevrolet and Fisher
Body assembly plants, respectively, should not be found to constitute
separate units. For the reasons fully stated in the recent Ford case.'
we believe that the maintenance electricians should be included,.with
the other production and maintenance employees, in the plant-wide
units established herein. Accordingly, we find that the proposed sep-
arate maintenance. electricians units would be inappropriate. We shall:
therefore dismiss the petitions filed by the IBEW.
The Employer and the IAM oppose the inclusion of timekeepers in
the unit requested by the UAW at the Chevrolet plant.5 These time-
keepers perform office clerical work exclusively. Their only contact
with production and maintenance employees occurs when they are en-
gaged in checking the-presence of the latter at their jobs in the plant'
They work-under the supervision of the office supervisor and are not
transferred or promoted to production and maintenance positions.
The activities and characteristics of these timekeepers differ from those
of similar employees who sometimes have been included in production
and maintenance units.° We shall exclude them from the unit.
We find that the following groups of employees constitute separate
units appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the
meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act:
(a) All production ail maintenance employees in the body in white,
paint, trim, quality'stn,iid'ii ds, material-,, and maintenance departments
of the Employer's Fisher Body plant at Van Nuys, California, exclud-
ing office and clerical employees, professional employees, plant guards
and supervisors as defined in the Act.
(b) All production and, maintenance employees in the production,
inspection, materials, traffic, plant engineering, and maintenance de-
partments of the Employer's Chevrolet plant at-Van Nuys, California,
including leadmen, but excluding timekeepers, plant guards, watch-
men, office and clerical employees, professional employees, and super-
visors as defined in the Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS'
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the pur-
poses of collective bargaining with the Employer, elections by secret
"Matter of Ford Motor Company (plarywcood Plant). 78 N L R B 887 (Mr Reynolds
dissenting)
S The UAW does not desire to include timekeepers in its proposed unit at the Fisher
Body plant.
6 See Matter of Northwest Engineering Company , 73 N L R. B. 40, Matter of H 0
Canfield Company, 76 N L R B. 606
7 Any participant in the elections herein may , upon its prompt request to , and approval
thereof by , the Regional Director, have its name removed from the ballot.
344 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later than 30 days
from the date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision
of the Regional Director for the Twenty,-first Region, and subject to
Sections 203.61 and 203.62 of National Labor Relations Board Rules
and Regulations--Series 5, among the employees in the units found
appropriate in paragraph 4, above, who were employed during the
pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction of
Elections, including employees who did not work during said pay-roll
period because they were ill or on vacation or-temporarily laid off, but
excluding those employees who have since quit or been discharged for
cause and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the
elections, and also excluding employees on strike who are not entitled
to reinstatement, to determine in each unit whether they desire to be
represented, for purposes of collective bargaining, by United Auto-
mobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers of America
(UAW-CIO), or by International Association of Machinists, or by
neither.
ORDER
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Pipe Fitters' motion for leave to with-
draw its petition in Case No. 21-RC-104 be, and it hereby is, granted,
and the case is closed.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the petitions filed in Case No. 21-RC-51
and Case No. 21-RC-57, respectively, by International Brotherhood
of Electrical Workers, Local Union 11, A. F. of L., be, and they hereby
are, dismissed.
MEMBER REYNOLDS took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision, Direction of Elections, and Order. '