Ordill Foundry & Manufacturing, Co., Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Feb 29, 1952

98 N.L.R.B. 412 (N.L.R.B. 1952)

412 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
agreement, whichever is later, to join the Union. Further, we do
not think that the first paragraph of article IV imposes any obliga-
tion 'to hire only such new employees who are members of the Union,
but is merely a statement of the Employer's general obligation to
abide by the union-security provision as set forth in article IV.2
For the reasons stated in Davis Motor Company, Inc.,' we reject
the Petitioner's second contention that the above provision is invalid
because no union-authorization election was conducted by the Board
pursuant to Section 9 (e) of the Act. Accordingly, we find .that the
existing contract between the Employer and the Intervenor is a bar
to the petition herein and shall dismiss the petition.'
Order
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition filed by the Textile Workers
Union of America, CIO, be, and it hereby is, dismissed.
3 See Danita Hosiery Manufacturing Company, 97 NLRB 1499.
We think it is evident that the phrase "through its subordinate Local #1817 " in para-
graph 1 is not an agreement to hire union members through the Local . The provision
for becoming a member 30 days after employment supports this view, for such a provision,
as noted above , presupposes the right to hire nonmembers . - Moreover , this phrase does
not modify "employ ," but rather indicates that an employee achieves good standing in
the United Textile Workers of America , AFL, through its Local #1817.
8 97 NLRB 125.
1 In view of our decision herein, Intervenor's motion to reopen the hearing is denied.
ORDILL FOUNDRY & MANUFACTURING CO., INC. and LOCAL 135, INTER-
NATIONAL MOLDERS AND FOUNDRY WORKERS UNION OF NORTH AMER-
ICA, AFL,' PETITIONER . Case No. 14-RC--1598. February 29, 1952
Decision and Direction of Election
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor
Relations Act, a hearing was held before Glenh R. Mblleii, hearing
officer. The hearing 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 Act, the Board
has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member
panel [Members Houston, Murdock, and Styles].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the' Act.
2. The labor organizations involved claim to represent certain
employees of the Employer.2
1 As amended at the hearing.
2 District 50, United Mine Workers , hereinafter called the, Intervenor , intervened at
the hearing on the basis of its contractual interest. The status of ' its Locale 13346 is
discussed within. -
98 NLRB No. 53.
ORDILL FOUNDRY & MANUFACTURING CO., INC. . 413
3. The Intervenor's Local 13346 has bargained for the employees
sought by the Petitioner under a series of collective bargaining agree-
ments beginning in 1948. These agreements were signed by the In-
tervenor on behalf of its Local 13346. The Intervenor contends that
the current contract, which expires on April 12, 1953, is a bar to this
proceeding. The Petitioner takes the position that a schism,has de-
veloped in the contracting union and that the contract therefore can-
not bar an immediate election.
The Employer employs about 30 employees, who, the parties agree,
comprise an appropriate unit. The last regular meeting of Local
13346 took place on August 28, 1951. At that time new officers were
elected. The record is not clear-whether these officers actually took
over the duties of the fqrmer officers. Several testified that they were
never "sworn in" and therefore were "acting" officers. The evidence
indicates that sometime before the'August meeting J. C. Kirk, the
former president, had resigned from active participation as an official
of the Local because of ill health and that the former vice president
of the Local had assumed his regular duties. Nevertheless, Kirk
presided over the August meeting. On November 7, 1951, the em-
ployee elected at the August meeting as president of Local 13346
called a special meeting of that organization. The meeting was
attended by 26 employees, including other officials of Local 13346.
Kirk testified that he was absent because of sickness. The members
present voted unanimously to disaffiliate from the Intervenor and to
affiliate with the parent Petitioner. New officers were immediately
elected. There is uncontradicted testimony that 29 of the Employer's
employees have joined the Petitioner. After the November meeting
a document signed by 26 employees was submitted to the Employer
requesting that it cease deducting checkoff dues for the Intervenor
from the pay of these employees. The Employer, however, has con-
tinued to deduct such dues and to pay them to the Intervenor.
Since the special November meeting, all the records of Local 13346
have been returned to the Intervenor. Apart from Kirk, it does not
appear that any employees have retained their membership in the
Intervenor. Kirk himself appears to be uncertain of his status,
testifying that ". . . we have an acting president now, and it is still a
messed up affair out there. . . ." He also testified that he had been
approached by a probationary employee about a wage increase during
the first week of December 1951, and that he had contacted and dis-
cussed the matter with the Intervenor's representative. No action as
to this grievance appears to have been taken by the Intervenor. The
record indicates that on December 14, 1951, Kirk and three other
employees, the latter, having previously signed the request for dis-
continuance of the Intervenor's checkoff, met with the Employer's
414 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
general manager to discuss clarification of the wage increase in the
current contract with regard to probationary employees. The group
was not and did not represent itself as a shop committee of either the
Intervenor or Petitioner. Kirk's testimony reveals that the initiative
in seeing the general manager came from the other three employees
and that they had invited him to accompany them. The decision to
meet with the general manager and the meeting itself appear to have
been informal and the meeting was not prearranged. Another em-
ployee rather than Kirk was the spokesman for the group. Although
Kirk testified that he believed he was still the president of Local 13346,
he also testified that he had never seen the charter of that organization
and that he did not keep or supervise any of its records.
On the basis of these facts we conclude that Local 13346 is for all
practical purposes defunct at the Employer's plant. Accordingly, in
view of this and the scope of the action taken, we find that the existing
contract with the Employer is not a bar to an immediate election .3
A 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.
4. The following employees of the Employer constitute a unit ap-
propriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning
of Section 9 (b) of the Act;
All production and maintenance employees employed at the Em-
ployer's Carbondale, Illinois, plant; including inspectors; but exclud-
ing office clerical employees, guards, professional employees and all
supervisors as defined in the Act.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this
volume.]
8 J. J. Tourek Manufacturing Co., 90 NLRB 5.
Ctr rER LABORATORIES and OIL WORKERS INTERNATIONAL UNION, CIO,
PETITIONER
CUTTER LABORATORIES and OFFICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION,
LOCAL 29, AFL, PETITIONER. Cases Nos. 20-RC-1561 and 20-RC-
1582. February 29,1952
Decision and Direction of Elections
Upon petitions duly filed, a consolidated hearing was held before
Robert V. Magor, a hearing officer of the National Labor Relations
Board. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free
from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
98 NLRB No. 69.