St. Regis Paper Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Mar 21, 1960

126 N.L.R.B. 1157 (N.L.R.B. 1960)

ST. REGIS PAPER COMPANY 1157
Accordingly, we find that the following employees constitute units
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the
meaning of Section 9(b) of the Act:
1. All regular full-time employees at the Grady Manning Hotel,
Little Rock, Arkansas, including the PBX operators, front-office
cashiers, desk clerks, the retail store clerks, and the barbers, but
excluding office clerical employees, detectives, watchmen, guards, and
supervisors as defined in the Act.
2. All regular full-time employees at the Marion Hotel, Little
Rock, Arkansas, including the room cashiers, room clerks, reference
clerks, sundries and beverage store clerks, barbers, and the secretary
to the engineer, but excluding office clerical employees, confidential
employees, house officers, fire marshals and other watchmen, and
supervisors as defined in the Act.
3. All regular full-time employees at the Lafayette Hotel, Little
Rock, Arkansas, including room cashiers, room clerks, reference
clerks, beverage store clerks, barbers, and coffee shop and cigar
stand cashiers, but excluding the secretaries to the general and
assistant general manager and to the catering manager, other office
clerical employees, banquet waiters, house officers and other watchmen,
and supervisors as defined in the Act.
[Text of Direction of Elections omitted from publication.]
St. Regis Paper Company and International Brotherhood of
Pulp, Sulphite & Paper Mill Workers, AFL-CIO; Pineland
Local 447, International Brotherhood of Pulp, Sulphite &
Paper Mill Workers, AFL-CIO; Escambia Local 737, Inter-
national Brotherhood of Pulp , Sulphite & Paper Mill Work-
ers, AFL-CIO; Pineland Local 617, International Brotherhood
of Pulp, Sulphite & Paper Mill Workers, AFL-CIO; United
Papermakers & Paperworkers, AFL-CIO; Gulf Local 561,
United Papermakers & Paperworkers , AFL-CIO; Local 444,
United Papermakers & Paperworkers, AFL-CIO; Interna-
tional Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, AFL-CIO; Canton-
ment Local 1937, International Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers, AFL-CIO, Joint Petitioners . Case No. 15-RC-2104.
March 01, 1960
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 David L. McComb, hearing
officer. The hearing officer 's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
126 NLRB No. 145.
1158 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
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 [Chairman Leedom and Members Rodgers and Jenkins.]
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 em-
ployees of the Employer.
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section
9(c) (1) and Section 2(6) and (7) of the Act, for the following
reasons:
The Joint Petitioners are currently recognized by the Employer as
the collective-bargaining representative of its production and main-
tenance employees at its Cantonment, Florida, plant, and have a cur-
rent contract which includes plant clericals. Petitioners seek herein
to include six wood scalers, presently unrepresented, in its production
and maintenance unit. The Employer moves to dismiss the petition,
alleging that the employees in question should not be included in the
unit and that they do not constitute a residual unit.
Wood is brought into the Employer's plant by truck and railroad
flat cars. Scalers measure the wood, using a scaling instrument; they
also estimate its quantity, give receipts for it, and convert the quantity
into cords. They keep records of the cords on hands and the locations
of the flat cars. On the basis of the amount of wood noted by them on
the receipts they issue, the Employer makes payment for the wood.
The scalers are salaried and are separately supervised as part of the
accounting department.
The Employer contends that the wood scalers have no community of
interest with the employees in the production and maintenance unit
and cites in support of its contention, Container Corporation of Amer-
ica, 121 NLRB 249. In that case, the Board found the wood scalers
involved therein did not have a sufficient community of interest to be
included in a requested production and maintenance unit. However,
we do not think Container is controlling here. There the wood scalers
were selected by the employer because of their interest in forestry;
and, in addition to their scaling duties at the plant, they were required
to go to woodlands at considerable distances from the plant to perform
their scaling duties. In addition, the scalers there were assigned to
"cruising" duties, consisting of patrolling the company's timberlands.
In the instant case, the basis of the scalers' selection is different, the
requisite being a high school education and knowledge of the use of
either adding machines or calculators.' Likewise, unlike in Container,
i The knowledge of the use of these machines is not essentially a prerequisite, as in the
absence of such knowledge the scalers are trained in their use.
ST. REGIS PAPER COMPANY 1159
the scalers herein are confined to the plant or its immediate vicinity
in the performance of their duties 2
The Employer also contends that, because it is committed to pay
for wood on the basis of the quantities measured by the employees, the
scalers are either managerial employees or are in such a fiduciary
relationship to the Employer as to warrant their exclusion from the
unit. There is no testimony, however, that the scalers fix the price for
the wood. All the scalers do is to mathematically compute the amount
of wood delivered. We, therefore, find no merit in this contention.'
In St. Regis Paper Convpany, 104 NLRB 411, the Board considered
the placement of wood scalers at the employer's Jacksonville, Florida,
plant, and maintenance unit. The record herein does not show any
material difference between the duties of the wood scalers at the two
plants. Accordingly, on the entire record herein, we find the wood
scalers are plant clericals 4
As we have found the wood scalers to be plant clericals, Board prec-
edent requires that a self-determination election be directed, affording
the employees an opportunity to indicate whether or not they desire
to be included in the existing unit.' We shall, therefore, direct an
election among employees in the following voting group : All wood
scalers employed by the Employer, at its Cantonment, Florida, plant,
excluding all other employees, guards, and supervisors as defined by
the Act.6
If a majority of the employees in the voting group above vote for
the Joint Petitioners, they will be taken to have indicated their desire
to be included in the existing production and maintenance unit at the
Employer's Cantonment, Florida, plant, currently represented by the
Joint Petitioners. If a majority of the employees in the voting group
vote against the Joint Petitioners, they will be taken to have indicated
their desire to remain outside such existing unit. In either event, the
Regional Director is instructed to issue a certification of the results
of the election to such effect.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.]
2 It appears the railroad spur where the wood on the flat cars is measured immediately
adjoins the plant proper
8 Dierks Paper Company, 120 NLRB 290, 293.
4 Since the close of the hearing and submission of briefs, the Employer by telegram has
directed the Board 's attention to the decision in Rayonier Incorporated, Case No.
10-RC-4493 , December 24, 1959, unpublished , wherein the wood scalers therein were
found to be guards . It is not clear whether the Employer herein contends its wood
scalers are guards. No evidence was introduced at the hearing on this question nor was
any such contention made at the hearing or raised in the Employer's brief. On the basis
of the record before us , it does not appear the wood scalers herein are guards, and we
so find.
c The Cessna Air Craft Company, 123 NLRB 855.
13 According to the record, there is a "supervisor " of the wood scalers. However , no testi-
mony was introduced as to his supervisory functions ; nor did the parties take any
position as to his placement. As the record is inconclusive with respect to this employee,
we will permit him to vote , subject to challenge