Joseph Bancroft and Sons Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Apr 23, 1946

67 N.L.R.B. 678 (N.L.R.B. 1946)

In the Matter of JOSEPH BANCROFT AND SONS COMPANY and FEDERATION
OF DYERS, FINISHERS , PRINTERS , AND BLEACHERS OF AMERICA,
DEPARTMENT OF TEXTILE WORKERS UNION OF AMERICA, C. I. O.
Case No. If-R-1952.-Decided April 23,194
Richards, Layton cl? Finger, by Robert H. Richards, Jr., of Wilming-
ton, Del., and Hodge, Hodge d Balderston, by E. P. Balderston, Jr.,
of Chester, Pa., for the Company.
Messrs. Benjamin Wyle and Theodore Kheel, of New York City,
and Mr. Charles Jaekson, of Paterson, N. J., for the Federation.
Messrs. Vernon Ford and Charles M. fluester, of Wilmington, Del.,
for the Mine Workers.
Mr. Hyman H. Ostrin, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon a petition duly filed by Federation of Dyers, Finishers,
Printers, and Bleachers of America, Department of Textile Workers
Union of America, C. I. 0., herein called the Federation, alleging that
a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representa-
tion of employees of Joseph Bancroft and Sons Company, Wilmington,
Delaware, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations
Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before
Herman Lazarus, Trial Examiner. The hearing was held at Wilming-
ton, Delaware, on March 7, 1946. The Company, the Federation, and
District 50, United Mine Workers of America, herein called the Mine
Workers, appeared and participated. All parties were afforded full
opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and
to introduce evidence bearing on the issues. A motion to dismiss the
petition was filed by the Company with the Trial Examiner who re-
served ruling thereon for the Board. For the reasons hereinafter
stated, the motion is denied. The Trial Examiner's rulings made at
the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
All parties were afforded opportunity to file briefs with the Board.
67 N. L. R. B, No 85.
678
JOSEPH BANCROFT AND SONS COMPANY 679
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Joseph Bancroft and Sons Company, a Delaware corporation with
its plant and offices located in the vicinity of Wilmington, Delaware,
is engaged in the bleaching, dyeing, finishing, and cutting of cotton
fabrics. During the past year the sales of the Company approximated
$16,000,000 in value and were derived from the processing of about
132,000,000 yards of cloth. Approximately 95 percent of the cloth,
in its "grey" state, was received by the Company from points out-
side the State of Delaware. During the same period approximately
95 percent of the finished material was shipped to points outside the
State.
The Company admits, and we find, that it is engaged in commerce
within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. TILE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
Federation of Dyers, Finishers, Printers, and Bleachers of America,
Department of Textile Workers Union of America, is a labor organi-
zation affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admit-
ting to membership employees of the Company.
District 50, United Mine Workers of America, affiliated with the
American Federation of Labor, is a labor organization admitting to
membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company has refused to recognize the Federation as the bar-
gaining representative of its employees.
On June 8, 1944, pursuant to a consent election agreement between
the Company and the Federation, and again on March 2, 1945, as the
result of a Board decision,' elections were held under the Board's
auspices among the employees here involved. The Federation, the
only union on the ballot, lost each election. Thereafter, on March
16, 1945, the Federation filed a petition seeking a third election.2 The
Board, on October 12, 1945, issued its Decision and Order dismissing
the Federation's petition because its showing of interest had actually
declined since the last election. The Company now contends that
because of this series of events and because of the Board's recent deci-
sion, an election should not be held at this time. We do not agree.
' See Matter of Joseph Bancroft & Bons Company, 60 N. L . R. B. 1053.
2 See Matter of Joseph Bancroft & Sons Company, 64 N. L. R. B. 74.
680 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
More than a year has now elapsed since the last election. Further-
more, the Federation has presented evidence of a substantial interest
among the employees in the unit petitioned for, and almost all its
cards are dated subsequent to the last election.3 We believe that the
purposes of the Act will best be effectuated by directing an election
on the present petition.'
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company, within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
We find, in accordance with the agreement of the parties, that all
production and maintenance 5 employees of the Company engaged
at its plant located in the vicinity of Wilmington, Delaware, including
janitors and office janitors, receiving, loading and packing department
employees, cafeteria employees (except the dietitian), filter plant
employees, shop stores employees, truck drivers, chauffeurs, mixers,
chemical mixers, laboratory helpers, the designer, the plumber in the
real estate department, the burlap and roll packer, the roll engraver,
garage mechanics, power house and boiler room employees, watchmen,
guards and fire marshalls, matrons, expeditors, all plant clericals
(including the control chemist) except those attached to the Rockford
and Kentmere offices, and working leaders,' but excluding main office
3 The Field Examiner reported that the Federation submitted 820 authorization cards ;
that 634 of these cards bore appal ently genuine original signatures of persons whose names
appeared on the Company's pay roll of January 21, 1946, containing 1200 names within
the claimed appropriate unit, and that these 634 cards Isere dated as follows: 28 in
March 1945, 254 in April 1945, 51 in May 1945, 33 in June 1945, 15 in July 1945, 8 in
August 1945, 9 in September 1945, 39 in October 1945, 31 in November 1945, 102 in
December 1945, 55 in January 1946, 1 in Februarv 1946 and 8 were undated At the
hearing the Federation submitted 19 additional cards Of these cards, 13 bore names of
persons appearing on the same pay roll and were dated as follows . 11 in February 1946,
1 in March 1946, and 1 was undated.
The Mine Workers submitted 20T cards at the hearing, 162 of which bore names appear-
ing on the same company pay roll
The Company, in its brief, points to the dates on the Federation's cards and contends
that the Union has failed to make a showing of present substantial representation It
also attacks the adequacy of the authorization cards on the ground that they were not
checked against the authentic signatures of the employees involved so as to detect fraudu-
lent signatures, if any We find no merit in the Company's position. The purpose of the
preliminary showing of cards and the Trial Examiner's statement thereon has been previ-
ously set forth in our decisions See Matter of H. G Hill Stores, Inc., Warehouse, 39
N. L. R. B. 874; Matter of LaLance & Grosjean Manufacturing Co., 63 N. L. R. B. 130. Ap-
plying the principles established in those cases we find that the Federation's cards, most of
which were dated between April 1945 and January 1946, show that the Union had a suffi-
cient interest at the time it filed its petition to warrant our conducting an election. See
also , Matter of Rubin E. Rappeport, et al., 62 N. L. R. B 1118; Matter of Bakelite Cor-
poration, 60 N L. R. B. 318.
4 See Matter of T M Cathey , et al., d/b/a Bellgrade Lumber Company, 65 N. L R. B.
t420 ; Matter of Gunite Foundries Corporation, 65 N. L. R. B. 43; Matter of Van Raalte
Company , Inc, 55 N. L. R. B. 696
i This includes employees Cunningham, Young, and Schreiber.
6 This includes employees Amalfitano and Heller.
JOSEPH BANCROFT AND SONS COMPANY 681
employees, secretaries, telephone and switchboard operators, Rock-
ford Hall employees, safety engineers, nurses, first-aid attendants,
research laboratory employees (except mixers, chemical mixers, labo-
ratory helpers and the designer), engineering office employees, chief
dye cost clerk, the dietitian, real estate department employees (except
the plumber), sample room or typo department employees, plant cleri-
cals attached to the Rockford or Kentmere offices, executives, superin-
tendents, foremen, assistant foremen, supervisors,? and all other
employees with authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or
otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively rec-
ommend such action, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of
collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act."
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
The Company requests that those employees in the appropriate unit
who are presently absent on military leave be afforded an opportunity
to cast ballots by mail . Both the Federation and the Mine Workers
are in accord with this request provided it would be administratively
feasible and provided further that the election be not unduly delayed.
The Company admits, however , that it has not obtained , and will not
be able to obtain , the addresses for 100 of its 223 employees who are in
the armed forces. We believe , therefore , that the conditions under
which mail balloting may be allowed as recently set forth in Matter
of Southwest Pennsylvania Pipe Lines 9 have not here been met. Con-
sequently , we shall allow only its employees in the armed forces of the
United States who present themselves in person at the polls to vote."
We shall direct that the question concerning representation which
has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among employees
in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period
immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein,
subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction.
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 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, as amended, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Joseph Bancroft
9 This includes employee Corradin
9 This unit is identical with the one which was found to be appropriate in the Matter of
Joseph Bancroft & Son8 Co., 60 N. L. it. B. 1053.
9 64 N L. it. B. 1384.
10 See Matter of Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Company, 65 N. L. it. B. 1416.
682 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
and Sons Company, Wilmington, Delaware, 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 Fourth Region, acting
in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and
subject to Article III, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regula-
tions, among employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV,
above, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately
preceding the date of this Direction , 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 and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of
the election , to determine whether they desire to be represented by
Federation of Dyers, Finishers , Printers, and Bleachers of America,
Department of Textile Workers Union of America , C. I. 0., or by
District 50, United Mine Workers of America, for the purposes of
collective bargaining , or by neither.