St. Regis Paper Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 21, 1949

84 N.L.R.B. 454 (N.L.R.B. 1949)

In the Matter of ST. REGIS PAPER COMPANY (MULTI-WALL BAG
- PLANT), EMPLOYER and INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MACHIN-
ISTS, PETITIONER
Case No. 15-RC-109.-Decided Jvne 21, 1941,9
'DECISION,
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before C. Paul Barker,
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., At the hearing the employer and Inter-
venor moved to dismiss the petition on the grounds that a contract
existing between them covers the employees here involved and is,
consequently, a bar to these proceedings. This motion will be-con-
sidered hereinafter.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the National Labor
Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with
this case to a three-member panel [Chairman Herzog and Members
Reynolds and Murdock].
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 named above claim to represent em-
ployees of the Employer.
3. The question concerning representation :
The Employer is presently engaged in the manufacture of multi-
wia,ll'paper bags at its plant in.Cantonment (North Pensacola), Flor-
ida. On August 20, 1947, the Employer and the Intervenor entered
into a contract for 2 years, which both the Employer and the Inter-
venor contend is a bar to these proceedings. On the date on which the
contract was signed the Employer was conducting operations at a New
Orleans, Louisiana, plant. The Cantonment plant was not operating
1 At the hearing International Brotherhood of Pulp, Sulphite and Paper Mill Workers,
AFL, herein called the Intervenor , was permitted to intervene on the basis of an alleged
contractual interest International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local Union 676,
AFL, herein called IBEW, appeared at the hearing for the primary purpose of disclaiming
any interest in the proceeding
84 N: L. R. B., No. 55.
454
ST. REGIS PAPER COMPANY 455
at this time although its prospective operation was contemplated by
the parties to the contract as is evidenced by the fact that the contract
purported to cover the employees at both the New Orleans and Can-
tonment plants. Following the completion of the construction of the
Cantonment plant, production was commenced at that plant about
March 15, 1948. Production for a time was carried on in both plants
with' a gradual increase in the size of the Cantonment operations and
a corresponding decrease at New Orleans as the machinery and equip-
ment' of the latter plant were, gradually- transferred- to the former.
The New Orleans plant was shut down altogther in mid-1948, some
months after the Cantonment operations first began.
The record discloses that there were no employees at Cantonment
at the time the contract was executed. Moreover, at the time of the
transfer of operations, only a few of the 200 employees of the former
plant transferred to the new plant.2 At the present time, there are
more than 530 employees at the Cantonment plant, which represents
an expansion in excess of 150 percent in number of employees over
the former New Orleans operations. Furthermore, the present op-
eration varies to some degree from the old operation, as equipment
and machinery of a type not used at the New Orleans plant has been
transferred from other plants of the Employer to the Cantonment
plant for use in the present operation. In all these circumstances, we
are of the opinion that the Cantonment plant is tantamount to a
completely new operation and that the contract of August 20, 1947,
made before the new operation begaij is no bar to a determination
of representatives at this time.3 We find that a question affecting
commerce exists concerning the representation of employees of the
Employer, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6)
and (7) of the Act 4
4. The appropriate unit :
The Petitioner seeks a unit of all maintenance employees, exclud-
ing employees performing electrical work,' all production, clerical, and
2 While the record does not reflect the precise number of employees who transferred,
it appears that at Cantonment there are approximately 30 employees who were formerly
at the New Orleans plant.
8 See Matter of Sardik Food Products Corporation, 46 N. L R. B. 894 ; Matter of Good,
year Tare and Rubber Company ( Special Products Plant "C"), 80 N. L. R. B. 1347;
Matter of Ball Brothers Company, 54 N L. It. B 1512, Matter of Champion Motors Com-
pany, 72 N L . It. B. 436.
4In view of our finding herein, we have no occasion to consider whether or not such
contract fails as a bar because it contains a "maintenance of membership" provision
6 While the record is vague on this point it appears that the exclusion of employees who
perform electrical work pertains to persons who are employees of independent contrac-
tors, and not employees of the Employer , the multi-wall bag plant. It also appears that
the IBEW has a contract at one of the paper mills of the Employer not involved in this
proceeding , and the exclusion might pertain to these employees . In either of these even-
tualities the exclusion sought is a proper one.
456 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
professional employees, guards, and supervisors as defined in the
Act.
The Employer and the Intervenor contend that, because of a pre-
vious history of collective bargaining on a plant-wide basis, the unit
is inappropriate and should not be severed from the over-all unit.
We find no merit in this contention, as we have held that a history
of collective bargaining at a former plant does not establish such
a history at a new operation.6
The maintenance department employees all perform similar duties
and all possess similar skills. They do not interchange with pro-
duction employees; and are under separate supervision. All main-
tenance department employees constitute a homogeneous, readily
identifiable, functionally coherent group, which, in the absence of
a prior bargaining history, we have held, may constitute either a
separate appropriate unit or be included in a broader unit if they
so desire.7
Accordingly, we find that all maintenance employees 8 excluding
all production, clerical, and professional employees, guards, and super-
visors as defined in the Act, may constitute a unit appropriate for
the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section
9 (b) of the Act.
However, we shall make no final unit determination at this time,
but shall ascertain the desires of these employees as expressed in the
election hereinafter directed. If a majority vote for the Petitioner,
they will be taken to have indicated their desire to constitute a sepa-
rate appropriate unit.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes 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-Series 5, as amended,
9 Matter of Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company (Special Products Plant "C") by
80 N. L. R. B. 1061; Matter of Champion Motors Company , 72 N. L . R. B. 436.
7 Matter of Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company ( Special Products Plant "C"),
supra; Matter of Armstrong Cork Company , 80 N L. R . B 1328.
a Included in this category are all employees of the Employer performing electrical work
in the maintenance department at the Cantonment plant involved in this proceeding but
excluding employees of independent contractors , and employees of the Employer engaged
in such duties in the paper mill operations of the Employer.
6 Either participant in the election directed herein may, upon its prompt request to,
and approval thereof by , the Regional Director, have its name removed from the ballot.
ST. REGIS PAPER COMPANY 457
among the employees described in paragraph numbered 4, above who
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the
date of this Direction of Election, including employees who did not
work during said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation
or temporarily laid off, but excluding those employees who have since
quit or been discharged for cause and have not been rehired or rein-
stated 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
International Association of Machinists, or by International Brother-
hood of Pulp, Sulphite and Paper Mill Workers, AFL, or by neither.