Republic Steel Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Apr 17, 1950

89 N.L.R.B. 500 (N.L.R.B. 1950)

In the Matter of REPUBLIC STEEL CORPORATION , EMPLOYER and LOCAL
1743, UNITED STEELWORKERS OP AMERICA, CIO, PETITIONER
Case No. 3-RC-388.-Decided April 17, 1950
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before Joseph E.
Cassidy, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the
hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the National Labor Relations Act.
2. The labor organizations involved claim to represent certain em-
ployees of the Employer.
3. The question concerning representation :
The Intervenor, Local 907, International Union of Operating Engi-
neers, AFL, contends that its contract with the Employer constitutes
a bar to this proceeding. The Petitioner claims that this contract was
prematurely extended and therefore cannot constitute a bar. The
Employer adopts a. neutral position.
On September 9, 1947, the Intervenor and the Employer executed
an agreement which was to terminate on May 31, 1949. This agree-
ment provided that it could be reopened for wage negotiations, and
it was so reopened in 1948. On July 29, 1948, a new agreement con-
taining a similar reopening clause was executed and given a termi-
nation date of May 31, 1950. This agreement was reopened for wage
discussions on June 1, 1949. On November 1, 1949, the Petitioner
made its claim for recognition. On December 8, 1949, the parties.
executed a new agreement which provided for termination on Decem-
ber 31, 1951. Also on December 8, 1949, the Petitioner filed its peti-
tion with the Board.
The Board has held in the past that a prematurely extended agree-
ment bars a representation proceeding for the extended period, where
the petition was filed after the expiration date of the original agree-
89 NLRB No. 64.
500
REPUBLIC STEEL CORPORATION 501
rnent., In the Republic Steel 2 case, the Board stated that where an
agreement is prematurely extended , the extended agreement consti-
tutes a, bar only until the expiration date of the original agreement.
Applying these principles to the instant situation , the current agree-
Inent, executed on December 8, 1949, and providing for termination on
December 31 , 1951, operates as a bar only until May 31 , 1950, the
expiration date of the prematurely extended July 1948 agreement.
As that date, May 31, 1950 , is less than 2 months from the date of
issuance of this decision , we find, contrary to the Intervenor 's conten-
tion . that its agreement does not constitute a bar to this proceeding.'
Accordingly , we find that a question affecting commerce exists con-
cerning the representation of employees of the Employer within the
meaning of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act,
and hereby deny the Intervenor 's motion to dismiss the petition.
4. The appropriate unit :
All parties agreed that a unit consisting of all the stationary engi=
neers of the Employer 's Buffalo, New York, plant , excluding office
and clerical employees , guards, professional employees , and super-
visors , is appropriate. However, as the Petitioner at present repre-
sents the production and maintenance employees of the Employer
on plant-wide basis , the Petitioner and the Employer requested, in
the event that the Petitioner should win the election , that the employ-
ees sought herein be included in the plant -wide unit .4 Accordingly, we
shall not make a final unit determination at this time , but shall be
guided in part by the result of the election hereinafter directed. If a
majority of the engineers vote for the Petitioner , they will be taken
to have indicated a desire to be included in the plant -wide unit.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the pur-
poses of collective bargaining with the Employer, an election by secret
ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later than 30 days
from the date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision
of the Regional Director for the Region in which this case was heard,
and subject to Sections 203.61 and 203.62 of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations, among the employees in the unit found.
I The United States Finishing Company, 63 NLRB 575.
' Republic Steel Corporation, 84 NLRB 483.
3 Clark Bros. Co., Inc., 66 NLRB 849.
4 Prior to 1942, the Petitioner , pursuant to a 1941 Board certification ( Republic Steel
Corporation, 35 NLRB 653), represented all the production and maintenance employees of
the Employer , including the stationary engineers. In 1942 , the Board certified the Inter-
venor as the representative of the engineers . ( Republic Steel Corporation , 41 NLRB 733.)
The Intervenor has represented the engineers in a separate unit since then, while the Peti-
tioner has continued to represent the production and- maintenance employees.
502 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS' BOARD
appropriate in paragraph numbered 4, above, who were employed dur-
ing the payroll period immediately preceding the date of this Direc-
tion of Election, including employees who did not work during said
payroll period because they were ill or on vacation or temporarily laid
off, but excluding those employees who have since quit or been dis-
charged for cause and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to
the date of the election, and also excluding employees on strike who
are not entitled to reinstatement, to determine whether they desire
to be represented, for purposes of collective bargaining, by Local 1743,
United Steelworkers of America, CIO, or by Local 907, International
Union of Operating Engineers, AFL, or by neither.