Sufsun Co., Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Mar 4, 1969

174 N.L.R.B. 977 (N.L.R.B. 1969)

SUFSUN CO.
Sufsun Co., Inc. and New York Lithographers and
Photo- Engravers ' Union No. 1-P , AFL-CIO, and
Local 2 , N. Y. Newspaper Printing Pressmen's
Union , AFL-CIO, and New York Stereotypers
Local Union No. 1, International Stereotypers and
Electrotypers of North America , AFL-CIO,
Petitioners . Cases 29-RC-626, 29-RC-654, and
29-RC-859
March 4, 1969
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF
ELECTIONS
BY MEMBERS BROWN, JENKINS, AND ZAGORIA
Upon separate petitions duly filed under Section
9(c) of the National Labor Relations Act, as
amended, a consolidated hearing was held before
Hearing Officer Jerome Katz, of the National
Labor Relations Board. This case was transferred to
the National Labor Relations Board for decision.
All parties filed briefs.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the
National Labor Relations Act, as amended, the
National Labor Relations Board has delegated its
powers in connection with this case to a
three-member panel
The Board has reviewed the Hearing Officer's
rulings made at the hearing and finds that they are
free from prejudicial error. They are hereby
affirmed.
Upon the entire record in this case, including the
briefs of the parties, the Board finds:
1. The parties stipulated, and we find, that the
Employer is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the Act, and that it will effectuate the
policies of the Act to assert jurisdiction herein.
2. The labor organizations involved claim to
represent certain employees of the Employer.
3. Questions affecting commerce exist concerning
the representation of certain employees of the
Employer within the meaning of Section 9(c)(1) and
Section 2(6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The Employer, a wholly-owned subsidiary of
Cowles Communications, Inc., is engaged in the
publication of a daily (except Sunday) newspaper
known as the Suffolk Sun at its plant in Deer Park,
Long Island, New York. As set forth more fully
below, the captioned Petitioners seek separate craft
units of photoengravers, pressmen, and stereotypers,
employed by the Employer. Deer Park Cowles
Chapel, affiliated with International Typographical
Union, AFL-CIO (hereinafter referred to as ITU)
was permitted to intervene on the basis of its
existing bargaining contract covering all of the
Employer's mechanical and production employees,
including those sought by the Petitioners. The
Petitioners also filed concurrent unfair labor
practice charges, upon which a consolidated
complaint ultimately issued challenging the validity
977
of the contract between the Employer and ITU.
The Employer moves to dismiss the petitions (1)
as contrary to the Board's normal practice against
processing concurrent representation and unfair
labor practice proceedings, and (2) because the
contract in question is a bar
The record in the instant proceeding, however,
shows that the Petitioners have expressed their
desire to proceed to an immediate election, and filed
a written request therefor which conforms with that
approved by the Board in Carlson Furniture
Industries, Inc , 157 NLRB 851, 853. Further, the
Board recently issued its Decision and Order in the
unfair labor practice proceeding, finding that the
contract in question resulted from the Employer's
unlawful recognition of the ITU, and ordering that
the Employer withdraw such recognition and cease
giving effect to the contract unless and until the
ITU demonstrates majority status in a
Board-conducted election.' Accordingly, we deny the
Employer's motion to dismiss in its entirety
With respect to the issue of unit scope, the
Employer and the ITU contend that the newspaper
here involved is produced on an integrated or
combination-shop basis, and therefore only a unit of
all mechanical and production employees is
appropriate.' The Board has held that various
mechanical crafts in the newspaper industry may
appropriately be joined in a single unit where there
is no objection from the employer or from other
unions claiming to represent any of such crafts on a
separate basis.' There is such disagreement here, and
we turn, therefore, to consideration of the merits of
the respective petitions.
29-RC-626 Photoengravers' Union: The Board
has recognized that photoengravers constitute a craft
and are usually a proper separate bargaining unit in
the newspaper industry.4 In the present case, the
photoengravers work within a specified area
physically separated from the other operations of
the newspaper. In addition, the record reveals that
the 12 men in the photoengraving crew do
'170 NLRB No 177 The Board' s Order in that case also provided for
reimbursement of ITU dues and other fees illegally exacted from
employees after the contract was executed Although we hereby accept the
above-described request to proceed in the instant case , this shall not be
construed as affecting the Board's right to seek enforcement of those
portions of the aforesaid Order which pertain to matters other than the
ITU's representation in the future of any unit for which it may be certified
as a result of elections directed herein See Intalco Aluminum Corporation,
174 NLRB No 122
As set forth above, this is the unit covered by the Employer-ITU
contract found unlawful in the concurrent unfair labor practice proceeding
We have held that the mere existence of unlawful contracts does not
necessarily so taint ensuing bargaining history as to eliminate it as a factor
in determining the scope of the appropriate units, and that this is a
question to be resolved by examination of the facts and circumstances of
each case See Tom's Monarch Laundry and Cleaning Co. 168 NLRB
No 39 Here, however, since the initial and only contract covering the
employees in question was itself the fruit of unlawful recognition, we are
persuaded that it an. the resulting bargaining history should be
disregarded as factors on the matter of unit scope
'American - Republican , Incorporated , 171 NLRB No 12, Garden Island
Publishing Co , Ltd , 154 NLRB 697, 698
See American-Republican, Incorporated, supra
174 NLRB No. 123
978 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
photoengraving work exclusively. Furthermore, there
is testimony to the effect that the photoengraving
crew established its own seniority system, without
regard to the rest of the plant. Accordingly, we find
the unit requested by the Petitioner to be an
appropriate one.
29-RC-654 Pressmen's Union. Pressmen have
been held to constitute a separate craft (See Dinuba
Sentinal, 137 NLRB 1610) While in the present case
the press and stereo departments may not be
organized along what may be considered strict
departmental lines, the record does show that the 14
pressmen perform the usual duties of their craft 5
The Employer claims that the employees are given
on the job training in several craft skills and that
there is a high degree of interchange, especially
between press and stereotyping work. However, the
record reveals that the pressmen spend very little
time doing nonpress work. Unlike the situation in
Merrimack Valley Publishing Company, Inc., Case
1-RC-7842 (not printed in NLRB volumes), cited by
the Employer, the pressmen in the present case have
become skilled in the work of their own craft, and
devote little or no time to the work of other crafts.
Accordingly, we find the unit requested by the
Petitioner Pressmen's Union to be appropriate.
29-RC-859 Stereotypers' Union- Stereotypers
have been held to constitute a separate cralt in the
printing industry . (See Lloyd Hollester , Inc, 68
NLRB 733, 739.) In the present case, two
employees devote all their working time to
traditional stereotype work. While some of the
pressroom employees devote a small amount of time
to stereotype work, the two stereotype employees do
not devote any of their time to press work. As
previously mentioned, the amount of time spent by
pressmen in the stereotype department is not
sufficient to establish functional integration and
obliterate cratt lines. In addition, unlike the
Merrimack Valley Publishing Company case, supra,
the Pressmen's Union does not seek to represent the
'In Dinuba Senanal , supra, the Board ordered a separate press unit even
though it did not appear that the employees carried out their respective
duties in separate areas or that the Employer has otherwise organized its
operations affecting those employees along departmental lines
two stereotypers. The Employer contends that it
plans to convert to either "direct" or "offset"
printing in the near future, thereby eliminating the
need for stereotypers. However, the testimony
establishes merely that a decision would be made
within the next 14 months, and there is no clear
evidence that the change will in fact be made. Based
on all the above-mentioned factors, we find the unit
requested by the Petitioner Stereotypers Union to be
appropriate.
We therefore direct elections in the following
units which we find appropriate for the purpose of
collective bargaining within the meaning of Section
9(b) of the Act
Case 29-RC-626• All photoengraving employees
of the Employer at its Deer Park, New York facility,
excluding all other employees, guards, and
supervisors as defined in the Act.
Case 29-RC-654. All press employees of the
Employer at its Deer Park, New York facility,
excluding all other employees, guards, and
supervisors as defined in the Act;
Case 29-RC-859: Aii stereotyping employees of
the Employer at its Deer Park, New York facility,
excluding all other employees, guards, and
supervisors as defined in the Act.
In view of the Typographical Union's interest in
representing the mechanical department employees,
albeit in another grouping, we have provided for its
participation in the elections in the above cases with
the right to withdraw from the ballot upon written
notice to the Regional Director for Region 29,
within 5 days from the date of this Decision and
Direction of Elections.'
[Direction of Elections' omitted from publication.]
'The ITU 's alternative request for a directed election among compositors
and mailroom employees upon a proper showing of interest is denied, as
there is no petition before us seeking such employees
'Election eligibility lists, containing the names and addresses of all the
eligible voters, must be filed by the Employer with the Regional Director
for Region 29, within 7 days after the date of this Decision and Direction
of Elections The Regional Director shall make the lists available to all
parties to the elections No extension of time to file these lists shall be
granted by the Regional Director except in extraordinary circumstances
Failure to comply with this requirement shall be grounds for setting aside
the elections whenever proper objections are filed Excelsior Underwear
Inc, 156 NLRB 1236