King Brooks, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 28, 1949

84 N.L.R.B. 652 (N.L.R.B. 1949)

In the Matter of KING BROOKS, INC.,, EMPLOYER and AMALGAMATED
CLOTHING WORKERS OF AMERICA, CIO,, PETITIONER
Case No. 7-RC-532.-Decided June 28, 1949
DECISION
AND
ORDER
Upon a petition duly filed, ,a hearing was held before Francis E.
Burger, hearing officer of the National Labor Relations Board. At
the hearing, the Employer moved to dismiss the petition on the ground
that it is not engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act.
For the reasons stated below, the motion is hereby denied. The hear-
ing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error
and are hereby affirmed.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the National Labor
Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with
this case to a three-member panel [Chairman Herzog and Members
Reynolds and Gray].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The business of the Employer :
The Employer, a Michigan corporation, operates a men's retail
clothing and furnishings store in Detroit, Michigan. It annually pur-
chases merchandise valued at approximately $420,000, of which about
90 percent is obtained outside the State of Michigan. It annually
sells merchandise valued at approximately $700,000, all of which is sold
locally.
We find, contrary to the contention of the Employer, that it is en-
gaged in commerce ,within-the meaning of the Act. In view of the
large volume of the Employer's business, we also believe that it will
effectuate the policies of the Act to assert jurisdiction in this case.,,
2. The Petitioner is a labor organization claiming to represent em-
ployees of the Employer.
I Matter of P. B. Magrane Store, Ina., 84 N. L. R. B. 3455 ; Matter of Parka-Belk
Company of Elizabethton, 77 N. L. R. B. 429.
84 N. L. R. B., No. 74.
652
KING BROOKS, INC. 653
3. The alleged question concerning representation :
No question affecting commerce exists concerning the representation
of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section 9 (c) (1)
and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act for the following reasons :
On March 18, 1949, pursuant to an agreement between the Petitioner
and the Employer, the Michigan State Labor Mediation Board con-
ducted an election by secret ballot to determine whether or not the
employees in the unit alleged herein to be appropriate desired to be
represented by the Petitioner for collective bargaining purposes. Of
21 eligible voters who participated in the election, 18 voted against, and
3 voted 'for, the Petitioner. Three weeks after it had lost the State-
conducted election, the Petitioner filed the present petition with this
Board. As evidence of its representation the Petitioner submitted
designations signed by approximately half of the employees in the
appropriate unit. All these designations were dated before March
18, 1949, the date of the State-conducted election. In view of the
outcome of that recent election, the evidence of representation sub
mitted by the Petitioner appears to be of dubious value. We therefore
question whether there is sufficient likelihood that a statutory bargain-
ing representative would be selected at this time to warrant expending
Board resources to conduct an election.' Accordingly, we shall dismiss
the petition.
ORDER
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition filed herein be, and it hereby
is, dismissed.
Matter of Consolidated Steamship Company, 75 N L. R. B 1254.
853396-50-vol 84-41