South West Pennsylvania Pipe Lines

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 13, 1945

64 N.L.R.B. 1384 (N.L.R.B. 1945)

In the Matter of SOUTH WEST PENNSYLVANIA PIPE LINES and OIL
WORKERS INTERNATIONAL UNION, CIO
Case No. 6-R-1188.-Decided December 13, 1945
]Messrs. Read, Smith, Shaw and McClay, by Mr. Nicholas Unlcovic,
of Pittsburgh, Pa., for the Company.
Mr. Forest Sparlcs, of Coraopolis, Pa., for the Union.
Mr. Lee Pressman, by Mr. Frank Donner, of Washington, D. C.,
for the CIO.
Mr. Joseph A. Padneay, by M11r. Herbert AS. Thatcher, of Washington,
D. C., for the AFL.
Mr. Philip Licari, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon a petition duly filed by Oil Workers International Union,
CIO, herein called the Union, alleging that a question affecting com-
merce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of South
West Pennsylvania Pipe Lines, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, herein called
the Company, the National Labor Relations Board provided for
an appropriate hearing upon due notice before Joseph Lepie, Trial
Examiner. The hearing was held at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on
August 3, 1945. The Company and the Union appeared and par-
ticipated. All pitirties 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. All
parties were afforded opportunity to file briefs with the Board. On
November 15, 1945, pursuant to notice served upon all parties to the
proceeding, the Congress of Industrial Organizations, herein called
the CIO, the American Federation of Labor, herein called the AFL,
the National Association of Manufacturers, herein called the N. A. M.,
and the Chamber of Commerce of the United States, herein called
the C. of C., a hearing for the purpose of oral argument was held be-
fore the Board at Washington, D. C., in connection with the issue
64 N. L it B., No. 228.
1384
SOUTH WEST PENNSYLVANIA PIPE LINES 1385
of mail balloting of employees in the armed forces. The Company,
the Union , the CIO , and the AFL appeared and participated.'
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
South West Pennsylvania Pipe Lines, a Pennsylvania corporation,
is engaged in the transportation of petroleum by means of pipe lines.
During the year 1944, the Company purchased equipment valued at
approximately $10,000, of which in excess of 10 percent was shipped
from points outside the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. During the
same period, the Company shipped oil valued at approximately $100,-
0001 to points outside the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
Oil Workers International Union is a labor organization affiliated
with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to mem-
bership employees of the Company.
In.. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company has refused to grant recognition to the Union as the
exclusive bargaining representative of certain of its employees until
the Union has been certified by the Board in an appropriate unit.
A statement of a Field Examiner for the Board, introduced into
evidence at the hearing, indicates that the Union represents a sub-
stantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found appro-
priate.'
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
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 UNIT
The Company and the Union agree that the Company's production
and maintenance employees, with certain stipulated inclusions and
'The N A M and the C of C. did not appear, but the former set forth in a letter to
the Board its position concerning the issue which was the subject of the oral argument.
2 The Field Examiner reported that the Union submitted 63 authorization cards bearing
the names of 61 employees listed on the Company's pay roll of June 16, 1945, and that the
cards were dated : 5 in December 1944, and 58 between April and June 1945. There are
approximately 124 employees in the appropriate unit
1386 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
exclusions, constitute an appropriate unit. There is some question,
however, concerning the inclusion of gaugers and assistant working
foremen.
Gaugers: The Company employs approximately 14 gaugers who
arrange for the transfer of oil from the tanks of producing companies
to the Company's pipe lines. When a producer desires the Company
to transport his oil, the gauger reports this fact to the district fore-
man, who directs the connection foreman to make the proper connec-
tion. The ,gauger is then instructed to "run" the oil. He examines the
producer's tank, and makes tests for basic sediment, water, gravity, and
temperature, following which he fills out a "run sheet" containing the
appropriate data. If the oil is not up to specifications. the gauger is
without authority to accept it, and must report the facts to the general
superintendent. If the oil meets specifications, it is turned into the
Company's pipe lines. After the oil has been run, the gauger makes an
additional report, copies of which are forwarded to the producer and
the Company. He also makes daily and monthly reports on oil runs,
and is responsible generally for ascertaining damage to equipment and
gathering information of activities of producing companies in his
area. Although they are paid a monthly salary higher than many of
the Company's other production employees, the gaugers have no work-
ers under their supervision.
It thus appears that the duties of the gaugers are purely ministerial
and that they exercise little or duo discretion or individual judgment
in connection with their work. They merely obtain definite ascertain-
able facts and report to their superiors. The Company contends that
the gaugers are managerial employees and should be excluded from
the unit. The Union seeks their inclusion. We are of the opinion that
the gaugers are not managerial employees and we shall include them in
the unit.
Assistant working foremen: The Company has 4 of these employees,
each of whom spends approximately 80 percent of his time in the super-
vision of working crews comprised of from 2 to 12 employees. The
record shows that the assistant working foremen have the authority to
recommend effectively the discharge or change in status of their sub-
ordinates. Although the Company and the Union desire their inclu-
sion, inasmuch as the assistant working foremen fall within the Board's
customary definition of supervisory employees, we shall exclude them.
We find that all the Company's production and maintenance em-
ployees, including gaugers, engineers, firemen, repairmen, line walkers,
linemen, laborers, welders, welders' helpers, deliverymen, and the mas-
ter mechanic, but excluding office and clerical employees, employees of
the Company's offices in Pittsburgh, Washington, and Oil City Pennsyl-
vania, assistant working foremen, foremen, and all other supervisory
employees with authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or
SOUTH WEST PENNSYLVANIA PIPE LINES 1387
otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively recom-
mend such action, 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
The Company requests that its employees presently absent on mili-
tary leave be afforded an opportunity to cast ballots by mail in any
election which the Board may direct. The N. A. M. has indicated
agreement with the Company's position. The Union involved here,
and the C. 1. 0. and A. F. L., do not oppose an alteration of the Board's
present policy of balloting only those employees on military leave who
appear in person at the polls,3 so long as such alteration does not effect
an undue delay in the final disposition of representation cases by the
Board. Significantly, in the oral argument before the Board, each of
the participants exhibited only a desire for the Board to establish or
maintain procedure which will accomplish expeditious and effective
determination of questions concerning representation in the interests
of stability-a desire which the Board must effectuate in order to
administer the Act efficiently. Thus, the unions addressed themselves
especially to the time element involved in mailing ballots to employees
in the armed services, and the Company emphasized the need to con-
duct elections in a manner which would obviate defeasance of any
resulting certification by reason of the return of employees to an active
work status following their discharge from the armed services.'
In the instant case, the Company employs about 124 workers in
the appropriate unit who are presently in an active work status. Em-
ployees now on military leave who possess rights set forth in the
Selective Training and Service Act of 1940 numbered 15 at the time
of the hearing, and may now be fewer. The Company alleges that
,each of them was employed in a work category within the appropriate
unit before his transfer to military leave status, and has already intro-
duced into evidence an exhibit allegedly setting forth the name and
present address of each man in service. During the oral argument,
the Company's attorney said that the Company would make avail-
able to the Union all current information which it possesses concerning
the addresses and work categories of these employees :
Under the circumstances of this case, we are of the opinion that
balloting by mail of the 15 or less employees of the Company now
on military leave may be accomplished so that no undue delay in
8 See Matter of Mine Safety Appliances Co , etc, 55 N L. R B 1190
* In the Mane Safety case, the Boai d held that, where returned servicemen comprised a
substantial percentage of employees in a bargaining unit for which a bargaining repre-
sentative had been certified prior to their return, it would entertain a new petition fof
investigation and certification of representatives in order to enable such servicemen to
express their desires with respect to the representation issue. Similar holdings have
appeared in the numerous decisions that have followed this case
1388 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
determining the election will result . It is also apparent that many
of the administrative complexities necessarily involved in conducting
a mail ballot of absent employees-problems arising out of over-
lapping bargaining units, the contraction of wartime operations,
conflicting reemployment rights of servicemen-are not present here.
There is evidence in this record to show that ballots can be returned
within 20 days. We refer , moreover , to the relatively small size of
the unit involved , the presence of adequate and accurate data (with
names and addresses of servicemen ) in the original record, and the
fact that no substantial reconversion question is present . This is not
a war plant with a rapidly diminishing work force . Certain other
cases may require other action.
The Board 's experience has shown that the speed and efficacy with
which it can conduct elections has depended to a great extent upon
the degree of cooperation afforded it by the interested parties with
respect to matters such as the physical arrangements for the elec-
tion and the preparation of eligibility lists. A free interchange be-
tween the interested parties .of information on the addresses and work
categories of the employees to be balloted by mail will be necessary in
order to avoid challenges and post -election objections . Accordingly,
the Board will make available to all interested parties any informa-
tion of this nature furnished it by any other party. In the event that
the parties should send the absentee voters any information or litera-
ture 5 bearing directly pr indirectly on the pending election , copies of
all such documents should be simultaneously filed with the Regional
Office for inspection by or transmittal to the other parties.
In view of the foregoing, we will direct that the question concern-
ing representation be resolved by an election by secret ballot among
employees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the
pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of the election herein,
subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction.
In this case , the Regional Director is authorized to mail ballots to
employees within the appropriate unit on military leave, provided
one or more of the parties hereto, within seven ( 7) days from the
issuance of the Direction of Election , files with the Regional Director
a list containing the names , most recent addresses , and work classi-
fications of such employees . The Regional Director shall open and
count the ballots cast by mail by employees on military leave, provided
that such ballots must be returned to and received at the Regional
Office within thirty (30) days from the date they are mailed to the
employees by the Regional Directory
° Acceptance or transmittal of such literature by the Board's office is not to be construed
as conferring immunity on the filing party in the event that objections are later interposed
concermnc its content. The usual principles will apply.
° The decision in this case does not apply to cases in which the hearing has been held and
the record closed without the issue having been raised.
SOUTH WEST PENNSYLVANIA PIPE LINES
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
1389
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, and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Libor Rela-
tions Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, as amended, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with South West Penn-
sylvania Pipe Lines , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania , an election by secret
ballot shall be conducted as early as possible , but not later than sixty
(60) days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and
supervision of the Regional Director for the Sixth Region, acting in
this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board , and sub-
ject to' Article III, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regulations,
among employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above,
who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preced-
ing the date of this Direction , 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, but excluding those employees who have since quit
or been discharged for cause and have not been rehired or reinstated„
prior to the date of the election, to determine whether or not they
desire to be represented by Oil Workers International Union, CIO, for
the purpose of collective bargaining.