Koppers Co., Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jan 13, 1947

72 N.L.R.B. 31 (N.L.R.B. 1947)

In the 1Vlatter of Koi 1'Eus Corr ANY. IN C., Wool) PRESERVING DIVISION,
EMPLOYER and CONGRESS OF INDUSTRIAL ORGAN IZATIONS, PET1-
TIONER
Case No. 4-R-22°,9.-Decided January 13, 194i
Mr . F. F. Alexan der, of Newport , Del., for the Employer.
Messrs . Gene Derriekson and Gilbei tt Lewis, of Wilmington, Del.,
for the Petitioner.
M-^»rs . Henry A. 21I( Farlan d and Ralph F . Schmidt , of Philadel-
phia, Pa., for the Intervenor.
Ir. Samuel G. Hamilton, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
A&I)
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, hearing in this case was held at Wilming-
ton, Delaware, on September 9, 1946, before Helen F. Humphrey.
hearing officer. At the hearing, the Intervenor moved to dismiss the
petition on the ground that its contract with the Employer consti-
tutes a bar to this proceeding. For reasons which appear in Section
III below, the motion is hereby denied. The hearing officer's rulings
made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby
affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the National Labor Relations
Board makes the following:
FiN nir GS of FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE EMPLOYER
Koppers Company, Inc., Wood Preserving Division, a Delaware
corporation operates a wood preserving plant at Newport. Delaware.
The principal raw material used by the Employer is untreated wood.
of which in excess of $500,000 worth is used annually. Of this
amount, 95 percent is shipped to the Employer from points outside
the State of Delaware. Annually, the Employer ships in excess of
$500,000 worth of finished products, consisting principally of treated
wood, of which more than 95 percent is shipped to points outside the
State.
72 N L. R B, No 8
31
731242-47-vol. 72-4
32 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
The Employer admits and we find that it is engaged in commerce
within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
1I. THE ORGAN 1ZATION S INVOLVED
The Petitioner is a labor organization, claiming to represent em-
ployees of the Employer.
Federal Labor Union No. 22366, herein called the Intervenor, is a
labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor,
claiming to represent employees of the Employer.
111. TILE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On June 25, 1942, the Employer and the Intervenor executed a
contract which provided that it was to continue in effect for 1 year,
and from year to year thereafter in the absence of written notice to
terminate given by either party 30 days before any anniversary date.
At a conference held on or about July 12, 1946, the Petitioner asked
the Employer to recognize it as exclusive bargaining agent of the
Employer's employees. The Employer refused to recognize the Peti-
tioner on the ground that it was operating under an existing contract
with the Intervenor. On July 16, 1946, the Petitioner filed its petition
herein.
Both the Employer and the Intervenor contend that the 1942 con-
tract, having been automatically renewed before the Petitioner ad-
vanced its rival claim to representation, constitutes a bar to this
proceeding.
But the record establishes that the contract has not been adminis-
tered by the Intervenor, apparently since 1942, and that the Inter-
venor has ceased acting as a representative of the employees of the
Employer. Thus, since November 1942, dues have not been collected,
nor have attempts been made to collect then ; meetings have not
been held; and the Intervenor apparently has not handled any griev-
ances or conducted collective bargaining conferences. In 1942 or
soon thereafter the Intervenor's active officers and shop committee
members ceased working at the Employer's plant. In 1944 the Em-
ployer filed an application with the War Labor Board for a wage
increaser One of the signatories to this application was a former
president of the Intervenor who had returned to the plant for tem-
porary work. It is clear that this individual had resigned his office
before he signed the application. And.in 1945 and 1946 the Employer
took unilateral action in filing petitions with the Wage Stabilization
Board asking approval of wage increases for its employees, merely
"listing" the Intervenor as a party to these applications.
KOPPERS COMPANY, INC. 33
These facts establish that long before the 1946 operative date of
the automatic renewal clause in the contract between the Employer
and the Intervenor, the latter had become defunct insofar as the
employees involved in this proceeding are concerned. At that crucial
date, therefore, the Intervenor did not truly represent the Employer's
employees. Hence, we are of the opinion that in 1946 the Intervenor
was incapable of renewing the contract in their behalf. We conclude
that the 1942 contract is not a bar to a current determination of
representatives.'-
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Employer, 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 employees of the Employer's Newport,
Delaware, plant, including checkers and watchmen, but excluding
office clerical employes, foremen, and all other supervisory employees
with authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise
effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively recommend
such action, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collec-
tive bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with Koppers Company, Inc.,
Wood Preserving Division, Newport, 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 Sections 203.55 and 203.56, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 4, among the employees in the
unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who were employed dur-
ing the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direc-
tion, 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 em-
ployees who have since quit or been discharged for cause and have
' Matter of Aladdin Industries , Inc, 63 N L R B 76; Matter of Industrial Paper Stock
Company, 66 N L. R. B 11S5
6
34 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the election, to
determine whether they desire to be represented by Congress of
Industrial Organizations, or by Federal Labor Union No. 22366,
affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purposes of
collective bargaining, or by neither.
Alit. JAMES J. REYNOLDS, JR., took no part in the consideration of
the above Decision and Direction of Election.