International Harvester Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Oct 26, 1955

114 N.L.R.B. 709 (N.L.R.B. 1955)

INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER-, COMPANY 709
International , - Harvester . Company, Louisville Works and Mill-
wrights, Conveyors and, Machinery , Erectors Local Union
s • #2209, Falls Cities Carpenters District Council , United Broth-
erhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, AFL, Petitioner.
Case No. 9-RC-2535. October 26,1955 -
-DECISION- AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National La-
bor Relations Act, a hearing was held before William G. Wilkerson,
hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are
free from prejudicial error and are hereby 'affirmed.
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in 'commerce within the meaning of
the Act.
- 2. The labor organizations involved claim to represent certain 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 Employer's Louisville Works consists of two operations, a
machine shop and a foundry, which have separate histories of collec-
tive bargaining. We are solely concerned here with certain employees
in the foundry. In 1949 the Board established an overall production
and maintenance unit of foundry employees,' and in 1950 the Board
established two separate craft units of maintenance electricians and
pipefitters in the foundry.' In 1949, there was also established by con-
sent,election agreement a separate craft unit of patternmakers 4 In
1951, the Board directed another election in the residual production
and 'maintenance unit, and "globed" two more separate craft units of
millwrights and repairmen in one unit and maintenance welders in
another unit.5 As a result of those elections, the Intervenor herein was
certified as, and still is, the bargaining representative of the residual
production and maintenance unit, including the maintenance welders';
and the Petitioner herein was certified as, and still is, the bargaining
representative of the unit of millwrights and repairmen. The Peti-
I International Union, United Automobile ; Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers
of America, Local 817, UAW-CIO, herein called the Intervenor, intervened on the basis of
its contract with the Employer covering the'employees involved herein
2 85'NLRB 1310.
A 88 NLRB 214.
4 Case No 9-RC-430 (not reported in printed volumes of Board Decisions.and Orders).
695 NLRB 730. Under then existing Board policy on craft severance, the -Board con-
sidered maintenance weldeis as a severable craft group. -
114 NLRB No. 109.
710 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
tioner now seeks to add the maintenance welders to the unit of mill-
wrights and repairmen which it represents. The Intervenor contends
that a unit of maintenance welders is inappropriate for severance from
the residual production and maintenance unit. The Employer takes
no position.
The maintenance welders spend 85 to 90 percent of their time
working with the millwrights and repairmen, doing the welding and
cutting that is required in connection with the dismantling, moving,
installing, and repair of production equipment which is performed by
the millwrights and repairmen. The remainder of their time is spent
either working by themselves on the burning of scrap metal or miscel-
laneous tasks, or doing such welding work which might be required
in connection with, the work performed by the pipefitters and elec-
tricians. The maintenance welders do both are and gas welding.
Along with the knowledge of the mechanics of welding, such as
clamping, proper fluxes, expansion and contraction of different types
of metal, the job requirements set up by the Employer also call for a
thorough knowledge of the equipment on which the welding work is
being performed, including both construction and repair of such equip-
ment. While the Employer has no apprenticeship or on-the-job
training program for the maintenance welders, all of them had pre-
vious experience as welders," and the Employer estimated that it would
take the average person without previous experience at least 14 to 16
months on the job to acquire the knowledge and skill expected of a
maintenance welder.' Moreover, the rate of pay of the maintenance
welders is that of craftsmen, with the maintenance welders being
classified in the same grade as maintenance electricians and pipefitters,
and in a higher grade than the millwrights. Maintenance welders
are also given a welding test before they are hired which requires
previous experience or training to pass.
There are also welders in the production department of the foundry
who are primarily engaged in the welding of castings in connection
with salvage. However, there is no interchange between the produc-
tion welders and the maintenance welders, and the maintenance weld-
ers do no production welding at all. Moreover, the Employer testi-
fied that the amount of skill required of the production welders is not
comparable to that required of the maintenance welders, and that the
production Welders are paid at a lower labor grade.
In the recent Clayton & Lambert case," the Board found that weld-
8 The record also shows more specifically that 1 maintenance welder had 7 years of
previous experience when hired, and that another had 2 to 3,years ' previous experience.
7 The Employer also testified that the maintenance welders required a "considerable"
amount of skill
8 Clayton & Lambert Manufacturing Company, Ordnance Division, 111 NLRB 540.
INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER COMPANY 711
ing -as such is not a separate and distinct craft within the meaning of
the definition set forth in American Potash,' and consequently held that
it would no longer permit welders as a group to be severed from an
established production and maintenance unit. However, the Board
also stated in Clayton d Lambert that it would, in future craft sever-
ance cases, include welders who are regularly assigned to work with
particular crafts in a unit of the particular craft to which the welders
are assigned, if on the basis of training or experience the welders
utilize a high degree of skill. This latter rule is applicable here. The
Board has already held that the millwrights and repairmen here consti-
tute a craft group.1° We consider the 85 to 90 percent of their time
during which the maintenance welders are assigned to work with the
millwrights and repairmen as being sufficient to meet the "regularly
assigned" test of Clayton & Lambert. We are also satisfied that on
the basis of training or experience the maintenance welders utilize
a high degree of skill within the meaning of the Clayton & Lambert
rule. Moreover, in a situation quite similar to the one here, the Board
held that millwright helpers could be added to an existing craft unit
of millwrights if the helpers so desired." We find therefore that the
maintenance welders may, if they so desire, appropriately be included
in the existing craft unit of millwrights and repairmen. Accordingly,
we shall direct an election in the following voting group : All main-
tenance welders in the foundry, department 85, at the Employer's
Louisville Works, Louisville, Kentucky, excluding all other employees,
and supervisors as defined in the Act.12 If a majority in this voting
group vote for` the Petitioner, they will be, taken to have indicated a
desire that the group be included in the existing unit of millwrights
and repairmen, and the Regional Director is instructed to issue a
certification of representatives to that effect. If, however, a majority
votes for the Intervenor, they will be taken to have indicated a desire
that the group remain in the existing residual production and main-
tenance unit, and the Regional Director will issue a certification of re-
sults of election to that effect.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.]
9 American Potash t Chemical Corporation , 107 NLRB 1418.
10 95 NLRB 730
St Regis Paper Company, 105 NLRB 371.
One employee , Demaree , who is ordinarily a full-time blacksmith , last year was
assigned to the maintenance welder group due to a decrease in blacksmith work. Recently,
however, due to an increase in blacksmith work , he was transferred back to blacksmith
work; and he now spends about 50 percent of his time doing blacksmith work, about
225 percent of his time doing maintenance welding , and the remaining 25 percent of his
time in other duties. As Demaree currently is not regularly assigned as a maintenance
welder to the millwrights and repairmen , we exclude him from the voting group.