McGoldrick Lumber Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Apr 26, 1941

31 N.L.R.B. 389 (N.L.R.B. 1941)

In the Matter Of MCGOLDRICB LUMBER COMPANY and INTERNATIONAL
WOODWOR$ERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL 100, AFFILIATED WITH THE C. I. 0.
Case No. R-24.50.-Decided April 26, 1941
Jurisdiction : lumber industry.
-Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question • re-
fusal to accord union recognition ; electron necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production and maintenance
employees, excluding supervisory employees, foremen with the power to
hire and' fire, office and clerical employees, and employees of the City Garage,;
agreement as to.
Mr. Robert L. Condon, for the Board.
Mr. C. D. Randall, of Spokane, Wash., for the Company.
Mr. Roy W. Atkinson and Mr. Virgil Burtz, of Seattle, Wash., for
the Union.
'Mr. William, H. Bartley, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND -
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF TIIE CASE
On January 31, 1941, International Woodworkers of America,
Local 100, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations,
herein called the Union, filed with the Regional Director for the
Nineteenth Region' (Seattle,- Washington) a petition alleging that
a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representa-
tion of employees of McGoldrick Lumber Company, Spokane, Wash-
ington, herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation
and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of
the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act.
On March 21, 1941, the, National Labor Relations Board, herein
called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act and
Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Relations Board Rules
and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, ordered an' investigation and
authorized the Regional Director to conduct it and to provide for
an appropriate hearing upon due notice. On March 27, 1941, the
Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were
duly served upon the Company and the Union.
31 N L. R. B.,,No. 59.
1 389
390 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL .LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on April 3, 1941, at Spokane,
Washington, before Edward Grandison Smith, the Trial Examiner
duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company was
represented by counsel and the Union by its representatives;, both
participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to exam-
ine and cross-examine witnesses and to introduce evidence bearing
on the issues was afforded all parties. During the hearing the Trial,
Examiner made several rulings on motions and on objections to the
admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the
Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed.'
The rulings are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
McGoldrick Lumber Company is a Washington corporation, hav-
ing its principal office and place of business in Spokane, Washing-
ton. It is engaged in a general logging, sawmill, mill, and manu-
facturing business. It cuts timber into logs, saws, and mills logs
into lumber and lumber products and sells such products throughout
the United States. The Company operates a sawmill and manu-
facturing plant at Spokane, a logging camp near Fernwood, Idaho,
and a logging camp at Pend Oreille County, Washington. , It owns
33,476 acres of timberland, of which 31,674 acres are in, Idaho and
the remainder in Washington. '
The president of the Company testified, and we find, that the facts
with respect to the Company's business in 1939 and 1940 are sus-
stantially identical to the findings of fact relating to the Company's
business which the Board made in a previous case involving the
Company.l
In that case we found and we find here that about 73.3 per cent
of the logs cut at the Spokane mill during 1935 came from McGold-
rick's timberlands in Idaho. In 1936 the figure was 69.6 per cent.
The balance of the logs came from Washington. McGoldrick pur-
chases about 10 per cent of the logs cut at the Spokane mill from
independent contractors, the logs being shipped to it from Washing-
ton and Idaho in approximately equal proportions.
'Matter of McGoldrick Lumber Company, a corporation; Industrial Employees' Union,
Inc, a corporation, and Industrial Employees' Union, Inc., Local No. 76, District 9 and
Lumber, and Sawmill Workers, Union, Local No 2552, 19 N L R' B 887.
McGOLDRICK LUMBER COMPANY 391
The principal production and sales figures for McGoldrick during
the years 1935 and 1936 are shown iii the accompanying table :
Lumber cut (board feet, timber scale) ---_--_----.----_----------------------- 46, 363, 533 51, 372, 456
Sales-------------------------------------------------------------------------- $1,463,105 $1,830,278
Per cent of lumber sold shipped out of Washington I
By, value-------------------------------------------------------------- 73 8 76
By footage----------------------------------------------------------------- 84 87
The percentage of sales, by value, involving shipments outside of
Washington was substantially the same for the first 8 months of 1937
as it was for the years 1935 and 1936.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
- International Woodworkers of America, Local 100, is a labor or-
ganization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations,
admitting to membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company has refused to recognize the Union unless the Board
certifies it as the exclusive representative of its Spokane plant. A
statement prepared by the Field Examiner and introduced at the
hearing shows that the Ui ion represents a substantial number of
employees in the unit found below to be appropriate.2
We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation
of employees of the Company.
IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON
COMMERCE
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen, occurring in connection with the operations of the Company
described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial
relation to trade, traffic, and commerce within the several States
and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing com-
Inerce and the free flow of commerce.
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union and the Company agree, and we find, that all produc-
tion and maintenance employees, employed by the Company at Spo-
kane, Washington, exclusive of supervisory employees, foremen with
2
The Trial Examiner's statement shows that 210 employees whose names appear on the
Company's pay roll of February 27, 1941, have signed application-authorization cards in
the Union. The cards were dated between December 1, 1940, and March 1, 1941. There
were approximately 306 employees in the alleged appropriate unit on February 27, 1941.
392 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
the power to hire and fire, office fin,-] clerical employees, and em-
ployees of the City Garage, constitute a unit appropriate for the pur-
poses of collective bargaining. We further find that said unit will
insure to employees of the Company the full benefit of their right
to self-organization. and to collective bargaining, and otherwise ef-
fectuate the'policies of the Act.
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen can best be resolved by yam election by secret ballot. We find
that the employees of the Company eligible to vote in the election
shall be those 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 such limitations and additions
as were set forth in the Direction of Election.
Upon' the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire
record in the case, the Board makes the following :
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. A -question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of McGoldrick Lumber Company , Spokane,
Washington , within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6)
and (7 ) of the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All production and maintenance employees of the Company at
Spokane, Washington, excluding supervisory employees , foremen
with the power to hire and fire, office and clerical employees, and
employees of the City Garage, constitute a unit appropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9
( b) of the National Labor Relations Act.
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 Re-
lations Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is
hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board
to ascertain representatives for the purpose of collective bargaining
with McGoldrick Lumber Company, Spokane, Washington, an elec-
tion by,secret ballot shall b'e!,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 Nine-
teenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor
McGOLDRICK LUMBER COMPANY 393
Relations Board, and subject to Article III, Section 9, 'of said Rules
and Regulations, among all production and maintenance employees
of the Company who were employed at Spokane, Washington, during
the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction,
including employees who did not work during such pay-roll period
because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military service
or training of the United States, or temporarily laid off, but exclud-
ing supervisory employees, foremen with the power to hire and fire,
office and clerical employees, and employees in the City Garage, and
employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to
determine whether or not,they desire to be represented by Inter-
-national Woodworkers of America, Local 100, affiliated with the
Congress of Industrial Organizations, for the purposes of collective
bargaining.
I