Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jul 22, 1942

42 N.L.R.B. 750 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In the Matter Of OKLAHoi%rA GAS & ELECTRIC COMPANY and INTERNA-
TIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS OF OKLAHOMA CITY,
LOCAL B-1141
Cases Nos IL-3955 and R-3956 -Decided July 22, 1942
Jurisdiction . gas and electric utility industry
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question dis-
.agreement with respect to scope of appropriate unit, elections necessary
Units Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : (1) Geographic divisional unit
comprising gioundmen, linemen appientice linemen, truck drivers, meter in-
stalleis, and seivice men, and (2) unit comprising floating crews operating
throughout system-held appropriate in view of extent of organization and
the fact that they were cleaily identified gioups haling sufficient integration
to baigain as independent units
Mr Streeter B Flynn, Mr Robei t 11! Rainey, and All, L J Sartain,
of Oklahoma City, Okla, for the Company
Mr A F Edwards and Mr Tom M Rushing, of Oklahoma City,
Okla, for the Union
Mrs Augusta Spaulding, of counsel to the Board
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petitions duly filed by International Biotheihood of Elec-
trical Workers of Oklahoma City, Local B-1141, herein called the
Union, each allegingthat a question affecting commerce had aI isen con-
cernin'g the representation of employees of Oklahoma Gas & Electric
Company, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, herein called the Company, the
National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate con-
solidated hearing upon due notice before Clifford W Potter, Trial
Examiner Said hearing was held at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on
June 11, 1942 The Company and the Union appeared, participated,
and were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-
examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues
.The Trial Examiner's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed
42N L R B,No 146
750
OKLAHOMA GAS & ELECTRIC COMPANY 751
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following
-FINDINGS of FACT
J THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Oklahoma Gas & Electric Company is engaged, in the production,
transmission , and distribution of electiic energy, seivuig 209 cities
and towns in Oklahoma and 22 cities and to*ns in Arkansas, all of
which are connected by transmission lines and operated as one inter-
connected system The Company serves approximately 172,000 cus-
tomers, among which aie railways, telephone systems, post offices, and
oil pipe lines, all of which are engaged in interstate commerce. The
Company generates electric current in 5 main generating stations In
addition to such current, the Company interchanges electric curient
with` Kansas Gas and Electric Company, Arkansas City, Kansas, and
with Southwestern Gas and Electric Company, Fort Smith, Arkansas.
The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
11 THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers of Oklahoma
City, Local B-1141, is a labor organization affiliated with the Ameri-
can Federation of Labor, admitting to membership employees of the
Company.
M. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
In August 1941 the Union held a. meeting for employees of the Com-
pany at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and thereafter meetings at Fort
Smith, Arkansas, for employees in the Utility Crew.' In September
or October 1941 the Union began organizing employees at Enid, Okla-
homa, the center of the Northern Division of the Company's opera-
tions The Company and the Union disagree with respect to the
scope of the appropriate unit
A statement prepared by the Trial Examiner and lead into the
record at the hearing indicates that the Union repiesents a substan-
tial number of employees in each of the units herein found to be
appropriate 2
' The Utility Crew is also known in the i ecord is tl.e utility department
z The Union submitted to the Trial Examiner 51 authorization cards, of which 39 bear
apparently genuine signatures of employeees on the Company 's pay roll Of these 39 cards,
14 bear the names of employees on a current pay roll of the Northern Division , listing
42 employees , and 25 bear the names of employees on a current pay roll for the Utility
Crew listing 82 employees
The Company contends that the Union has not shown a sufficient interest in its em-
ployees to support the petition filed herein we find no merit in this contention The
752 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
We find that a question affecting commerce has al isen concei nmg 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 UNITS
The Union contends (1) that all groundmen, linemen, apprentice
linemen, truck drivers, meter installers, and servicemen employed in
the Northern Division of the Company, excluding supeivisory, office,
and clerical employees, constitute an appropriate bargaining unit and
(2) that all employees in the Utility Crew in Oklahoma City, consist-
ing of floating crews operating throughout the properties of the Com-
pany, excluding supervisory, clerical, and office employees, constitute
an appropriate bargaining unit The Company contends that a unit
restricted to the Northern Division of its operations and a unit re-
stricted to the Utility Crew are both inappropriate and that the appro-
priate unit should include all employees in the same work categories
wherever such men are working in the Company's employ.
The Company's headquarters are at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma,
in the central part of the State From Oklahoma City the Company
operates its entire system as an integrated unit for uniform public
service The Company, has five mayor power plants, auxiliary plants,
and some stand-by plants to be used for emergencies or when maximum
power is needed The Company is connected with Kansas Gas and
Electric Company on the north at Arkansas City, Kansas; with Public
Service Company at Tulsa, Oklahoma, with Southwestern Gas and
Electric Company at Fort Smith, Arkansas, and with Southwestern
Light and Power Company at Oklahoma City.
For administrative purposes the Company divides its transmission
operations into geographical divisions Division superintendents re-
poi t to the superintendent of the transmission and distribution de-
partment at Oklahoma City The Northern Division of the Com-
pany's operations at the time of the hearing embraced the territory
between the Cimarron and Arkansas Rivers, in, the north central part
of the State The Northern Division contains 35 to 40 towns
'The Utility Crew is a labor pool of regular employees Before its
formation the Company employed extra men in each locality . where,
extra men were needed, and discharged them when the work was
Board does not require that a petitioning labor organization seeking an election submit
evidence of majority representation among employees in an appropriate unit, but that it
show a substantial representation to raise the possibility that a bargaining representative
may be selected in an election and that therefore an election directed by the Board would
not be a vain procedure See Matter of A M kin and Garrison Siskin, doing business
as R H S2skin d Sons, and Steel Workers Organizing,Convn,4ttee (C 1 0 ) 41 N L R B
187, and cases cited therein
OKLAHOMA GAS & ELECTRIC COMPANY 753
done The Utility Crew is made up of small work crews 3 A work
crew is sent into any division where repair or construction work is to
be done to supplement the local division force A crew"working in a
division is under the supervision of the division manager At times
only one or two men may be sent from the Utility Crew to supplement
division men Men on the Utility Clew work from established head-
quarters When they, work away ftom headquarters they are compen-
sated for their additional expenses The Company pays the moving
expenses of the Utility Crew to new headquarters The Utility Crew
does no metei work Meter work is not restricted to any one category'
of employees in the geographical divisions Otherwise, the Utility,
Crew performs work similar to that done by employees in the same
categories in the geographical divisions
Transfers fi om one geographical division to another and from a
division to the Utility Crew are frequent Such transfers are neces-
sary for fluctuation in the amount of work requned locally, for vaca-
tion periods, and for promotions Storms create the need of emerg-
ency transfer to afflicted areas at different times of the year
It clearly appears, and the Union concedes, that a system-wide unit
is ultimately appropriate for bargaining among the electrical em-
ployees of the Company whose work interests are related both by the
similarity of their work and by their common association in a closely
integrated enterprise While the Union is engaged in organizing the
Company's electrical employees in the several geographical divisions
of its system, the Union does not claim at this time to represent a
majority of the Company's employees in any definable division other
than the Northern Division and the Utility Crew Since it appears
that employees in the Northern Division and employees in the Utility
Crew are clearly identified groups and have sufficient integration to
bargain with the Company as independent separate units, we see nb
reason to defer the collective bargaining of employees in these di-
visions until employees throughout the Company's electrical system
evince a similar desire for collective bargaining Accordingly two
separate bargaining units limited respectively to employees in the
Northern Division and to employees in the Utility Crew are now
appropriate in order that such employees may immediately have the
privilege of 'collective bargaining with the Company The deter=
mination of these separate bargaining units shall not, however, be
deemed prejudicial to the later determination, upon appropriate pro-
ceedings, of a system-wide unit of electrical employees of the Company
8 A work crew consists of five linemen, two truck drivers, two groundmen , a handyman,
a foreman , and a timekeeper
472814-42-vol 42-48
754 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
when the self-organization of its employees is coextensive with its
electrical operations I
At the hearing the Company and the Union agreed that, in the
event the Board found that a unit restricted to employees in the North-
ern Division and a unit restricted to employees in the Utility Crew
constituted separate bargaining units, employees listed on Appendix
A should be excluded from the unit for electrical employees in the
Northern Division and that employees listed on Appendix B should
be excluded from the unit foi electrical employees in the Utility Crew.
In accordance with the agreement of the parties, we shall exclude
such employees from the respective units which we find appropriate
for collective bargaining.
We find that all groundmen, linemen, appientice linemen, truck
drivers, meter installers, and service men employed in the Northern
Division of the Company, excluding supervisory, office, and clerical
employees and employees listed on Appendix A, constitute a unit ap-
propriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning
of Section 9 (b) of the Act We further find that all employees in
the Utility Crew in Oklahoma City, consisting of floating crews,
operating throughout the properties of the Company, excluding super-
visory, clerical, and office employees and employees listed on Appendix
B, 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
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen can best be resolved by separate elections by secret ballot among
all employees of the Company within each appropriate unit who were
employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date
of this Direction of Elections subject to the limitations and additions
set forth therein
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
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, 49 Stat ` 449, 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 gait of the ilI\estigatlon to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Oklahoma Gas
* See Matter of Southern California Gas Company and Utility Workers Organizinq Com-
mittee, 31 N L R B 461, Matter of Appalachian Electric Power Co and International
Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, L U B 1182 (A F L ), 38 N L R B 630, and Matter
of Florida Power & Light Company and D2ctribution Department Employees Association of
Florida Power it Light Company ( Greater Jliam-c Area ) et al, 42 N L R B 742
OKLAHOMA GAS & ELECTRIC COMPANY 755
3z Electric Company, Oklahoma City , Oklahoma, separate elections
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 direc-
tion and supervision of the Region al'Director for the Sixteenth Region,
acting in this mattei as agent for the National Labor Relations Board,
and subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations,
among all employees of the Company within each of the two units
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 such pay-roll period
because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military service
or training of the United States , or tempoiarily laid off , but excluding
employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause , to deter-
mine whether or not they desire to be represented by International
Brotherhood of Electrical Workers of Oklahoma City. Local B-1141,
for the purposes of collective bargaining.
APPENDIX A
Name Job Classifcataon
G F Brock------------------------------ Line Foreman
C G Thompson-------------------------- District Superintendent
L E Deck------------------------------- General Foreman
Lestei Blue------------------------------ Switchman
Frank Harp------------------------------ Do
C K Lovelace--------------------------- Chief Electrician
B G Spence----------------------------- Engineer"
E D Dixon------------------------------ Do
W A McCullar-------------------------- Do
L M Fullenwider------------------------ Garage Foieman
S F Patterson ------------ ------------ - Mechanic
F M Carver----------------------------- Do
Tom McGoffin--------------------------- Janitor
Lloyd C Garvin-------------------------- Do
APPENDIX B
Name Job Classification
Steve Hughes---------------------------- Foreman
J C Barnes------------------------------ Do
T 0 Gandy------------------------------ Do
H K Deason---------------------------- Do
E F Redding____________________________ Do
Lester Striegel--------------------------- Do
E V Hoben------------------------------ Field Clerk
C C Neal------------------------------- Do
Ralph Schilling--------------------------- Timekeeper
Willis (Willie) Baldwin------------------ Assistant Foreman
C D Hooper----------------------------- Laborer
George M Davis------------------------- Do
H If Wood------------------------------ Do
J F Billings----------------------------- ' Do
756 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD-
TEMPORARY
Name -lob Classiftation
G B Bennett---------------------------- Laboiei
Nutes Stanley---------------------------- Do
Foster Young-------------
W W Sizemore---------------------c---- Do
A M Wisdom--------------------------- Do
S 0 Brady------------------------------ Do
H E Robinson--------------------------- Do
J E Watson----------------------------- Do
W B Evans----------------------------- Do
0 D Bell- ------------------------------ Do
P H SpeirS----------------------------- Do
E R .McMurtrey------------------------- Do
11I N Futch------------------------------ Watchman
W W Pierce----------------------------- Do
W T Shirley----------------------------- Laborer
W F Williams--------------------------- Do
J W Johnson---------------------------- Do
B L Hess------------------------------- Do
A J Robbins----------------------------- Do
E L Stockton--------------------------- Do
I. R Young------------------------------ Do
Jason Elder, Jr-------------------------- Do
J L Ryan------------------------=------ Do
A P Hart------------------------------- Do
R F Enlow------------------------------ Do
S F Smith------------------------------ Do
D W Sutton ----------------------------- Do
A L Collins----------------------------- ` Do
I. A Worley----------------------------- Do
A N Askew------------------------------ Do
T A Swindell--------------------------- Do
L B Johnson---------------------------- Do
C D Armstrong--------------------------' Do
Roy Gunn-------------------------------- Do
Cole Niblett------------------------------ Do
Royle Ellis------------------------------- Do
W E Castiloe---------------------------- Teamster