Sun Life Insurance Co. of America

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 28, 1939

18 N.L.R.B. 825 (N.L.R.B. 1939)

In the Matter Of WASHINGTON BRANCH OF THE SUN LIFE INSURANCE
COMPANY OF AMERICA and INDUSTRIAL AND ORDINARY INSURANCE
AGENTS UNION No. 21354, INDUSTRIAL AND ORDINARY INSURANCE
AGENTS COUNCIL
Case No. B-1454
SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION
AND
CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 28, 1939
On October 2, 1939, the National Labor Relations Board, herein
called the Board, issued a Decision and Direction of Election in the
above proceeding.' On October 13, 1939, the Board issued 'an Amend-
ment to its Direction of Election.2 On November 10, 1939, the Board
issued a Supplemental Decision and Second Direction of Election,s
directing that a run-off election be conducted.
Pursuant to the Second Direction of Election, an election by secret
ballot was conducted on November 18, 1939, under the direction and
supervision of the Regional Director for the Fifth Region (Balti-
more, Maryland). On November 22, 1939, the Regional Director,
acting pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, issued his Election Report,
copies of which were duly served upon the parties.
As to the balloting and its results, the Regional Director reported
as follows :
Total number of eligible voters______________________________ 40
Total number of ballots cast_________________________________ 39
Total number of votes for Industrial and Ordinary Insurance
Agents Union No. 21354, Industrial and Ordinary Insurance
Agents Council (A. F. of L.) ------------------------------ 21
Total number of votes against Industrial and Ordinary Insur-
ance Agents Union No. 21354, Industrial and Ordinary Insur-
ance Agents Council (A. F. of L.) ------------------------- 18
Total number of blank ballots_______________________________ 0
Total number of void ballots________________________________ 0
Total number of challenged ballots__________________________ 0
115 N. L. R. B. 817.
215 N . L. R. B. 824.
317 N. L. R. B. 463.
18 N. L. R. B., No. 95.
825
826 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
On November 27, 1939, Sun Life Insurance Company of America,
herein called the Company, filed with the Regional Director Objec-
tions to the Election Report and Conduct of the Ballot, on the
grounds that: (1) the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat• 449,
herein called the Act, is not applicable to the Company and the Board
is without jurisdiction in the premises; and (2) the Board had no
authority under the Act to direct the run-off election and, even if it
had such authority, it had no power to omit from the ballot used in
said run-off election the name of United Office and Professional
Workers of America, C. I. O. Thereafter, the Regional Director,
acting pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, issued and served upon the
parties his Report on Objections to Election Report, stating that he
believed the Company's objections to be without merit.
The Company's first ground of objection repeats contentions dis-
posed of by the Board in its Decision. The Board sees no reason
for departing from the disposition then made.4
With respect to the Company's second ground of objection, it is
the Board's established policy 5 to direct a run-off election in a case
of this kind where the labor organization receiving the highest num-
ber of votes cast on the first ballot requests a run-off. And where,
as here, only two labor organizations and a space for neither appeared
on the first ballot, the Board has uniformly provided that the run-off
ballot shall afford employees an opportunity to vote for or against
the labor organization receiving the highest number of votes on the
first ballot, the name of the other labor organization being omitted
from the run-off ballot.
The Board finds that the Company's Objections to the Election
Report and Conduct of the Ballot do not raise substantial or mate-
rial issues with respect to the conduct of the ballot or the Election
Report. The Objections are hereby overruled.
CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National
Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Re-
* At the hearing before the Trial Examiner the Company made motions to dismiss the
petitions , urging in support thereof its contention concerning the application of the Act
and the Board 's jurisdiction . The Trial Examiner denied the motions . Thereafter the
Company argued these points in a brief filed with the Board and at an oral argument
before the Board. In its Decision the Board affirmed the Trial Examiner's ruling.
5 See Matter of Interlake Iron Corporation and Amalgamated Association of Iron,
Steel, and Tin Workers of North America, Local No. 1657, 4 N. L. R. B. 55 ; Matter of
L. A. Nut House and United Cracker, Bakery & Confectionery Workers of America,
8 N. L. R. B. 502 ; Matter of Unit Cast Corporation and Steel Workers Organizing Com-
mittee, 8 N. L. R. B. 831; Matter of Shell Oil Company and International Association
of Oil Field, Gas Well, and Refinery Workers of America, 9 N. L. R. B. 908; Matter of
Milwaukee Publishing Company and Milwaukee Newspaper Guild (C. 1. 0.), 11 N. L. It. B.
892; Matter of Coos Bay Lumber Company and Lumber and Sawmill Workers Union
Local No. 2573, 16 N. L. R. B. 476.
StJic LIFE INS'URAI\NCE COMPANY OF AMERICA 827
lations Act, and pursuant to Article III, Sections 8 and 9, of National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2,
IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that Industrial and Ordinary Insurance
Agents Union No. 21354, Industrial and Ordinary Insurance Agents
Council, has been designated by a majority of the insurance agents
of Sun Life Insurance Company of America, in its Washington,
District of Columbia, office, including debit collectors and canvassers,
but excluding assistant managers, district managers, and clerical and
office employees, as their representatives for the purposes of collec-
tive bargaining and that, pursuant to the provisions of Section 9 (a)
of the National Labor Relations Act, Industrial and Ordinary Insur-
ance Agents Union No. 21354, Industrial and Ordinary Insurance
Agents Council is the exclusive representative of all such employees
for the purposes of collective bargaining with respect to rates of pay,
wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment.
MR. WILLIAM M. LEISERSON took no part in the consideration of the
above Supplemental Decision and Certification of Representatives.