Swift and Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Aug 22, 1944

57 N.L.R.B. 1495 (N.L.R.B. 1944)

In the Matter Of SWIFT AND COMPANY and AMERICAN FEDERATION OF
LABOR AND ITS AFFILIATED UNIONS
Case No. 14-B-981.-Decided August 22, 1944,
Messrs. John P. Stanley and D. B. Van Dolah, of Chicago, Ill., and-
Messrs. L. N. Gifford and C. R. Crocker, of Fulton, Ky., for the Com-
pany.
Mr. Charles Mathews, of Paducah, Ky., for the Union.
Miss. Frances Lopinsky, of counsel to the Board:
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon a petition duly filed by American Federation of Labor and its,
affiliated unions, on behalf of International Brotherhood of Teamsters,
Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and He] pers, Local 236,'- herein called the
Union, alleging That a question affecting commerce had arisen con-
cerning the representation of employees of Swift and Company,' South
Fulton, 'Tennessee, herein called the Company, the National Labor
Relations Board provided for an'appropriate hearing upon due notice
before Harry G. Carlson, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was'held at
Fulton, Kentucky, on July 21, 1944.. The Company and the Union
appeared, participated, and 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 an opportunity to file briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY,
Swift and Company is an Illinois corporation with numerous plants
and branch houses throughout- the United States. This proceeding
' The petition was filed in the name of the American Federation of Labor and its affil-
iated unions At the hearing, the Teamsters Union appeared and asserted that the petition
was filed in its behalf. The pleadings were not amended to reflect this fact.
2 At the hearing , on motion of the Company , the pleadings were amended to conform
with this , the correct corporate name. I I ' '
57 N. L. R. B., No. 238.
1495
1496 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
involves only the plant at South Fulton, Tennessee, where the Company
operates a creamery and poultry packing plant and also handles eggs.
During the year 1943, the Company' purchased raw materials for the
South Fulton plant in excess of $800,000 in value, of which 40 percent
was,purchased outside the State of Tennessee. During the same pe
riod, the plant sold products in excess of $1,000,000.in value, of which
approximately 90 percent was shipped from the plant to'points outside
the State of Tennessee.
. The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
H. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
ik
International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehouse-
men and Helpers, Local No. 236, affiliated with the American Federa-
tion of Labor, is a labor organization admitting to membership em-
ployees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION,
The Company has refused to grant recognition to the Union as the
exclusive bargaining representative of its employees until, the Union
has been certified by the Board in an appropriate unit.
A statement of a Board agent, introduced into evidence at the hear-
ing, indicates that the Union represents a substantial number of em-
ployees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate.3
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 are in substantial agreement 'as to
what constitutes an appropriate unit for bargaining at the South Ful-
ton plant. They disagree only as to whether or not the working fore-
men in charge of each of the nine departments of the plant are super-
visory employees. The Company contends that they are, whereas the`
Union contends that they are not. ,
Although, as the Union contends, the department heads earn very
little more than the men with whom they work and spend a majority
of their time in manual work, they have complete charge of their
departments and are responsible for the quality and quantity of the
3 The Field Examiner reported that the Union submitted 39 authorization cards ; that
the names of 26 persons appearing on the cards were listed on the Company 's pay roll of
May 6, 1944 , which contained the names of 36 employees in the appropriate unit ; and that
all the cards were dated May 1944.
SWIFT AND COMPANY 1497
work of their subordinates. They keep time records -and other data
relating to the'efficiency of the employees with whom they work. "Their
recommendations to the general foreman or plant superintendent re-
garding hire, discharge, promotion, discipline, or reclassification of
those employees are given great weight and are usually, followed. In
fact, all matters of personnel are handled by the plant superintendent
in conjunction with the head of the department to be affected. We find
that the department heads are supervisory employees and shall exclude
them from the unit'
We find that all production and maintenance employees and truck
drivers at the Company's South Fulton, Tennessee, plant, excluding
management .personnel, office and clerical employees, field men, city
salesmen, cabinet service men, buying station employees, department
heads, and' all other supervisory employees with authorityto hire, pro-
mote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise effect- changes in the status
of employees, or effectively recommend such, action constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the mean-
ing'of,Section 9 (b) of the Act. -
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We shall direct that the question concerning representation which
has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em-
ployees in the -appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-
roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election
herein, , subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the
Direction.5
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National
Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela-
tions Act,. and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor
Relations 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 Swift and Com-
pany, South Fulton, Tennessee, an election by secret ballot shall be
conducted as early as possible, but not later than thirty (30) days
from the date of this Direction,, under the direction and supervision of
the Regional Director for-the Fourteenth Region, acting in this mat-
ter as' agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to
4 See Matter of Swift and Company, 30 N. L. R. B 86; 42 N L R. B 1184; 51 N. L. R. B.
24, wherein the Board discussed similar employees in other , plants of the Company and
found them to be supervisory employees
5 The Union requests that its name appear on the ballot as "Chauffeurs', Teamsters' and
Helpers' Union , Local No. 236 , AFL." The request is hereby granted.
1498 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR- RELATIONS BOARD
Article III, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules • and Regulation's,, among
the, employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above,
who were' employed - during the pay-roll period immediately pre-
ceding the date of this Direction, including employees who did not
work during the said pay-roll period because they were ill or on va-
cation or temporarily laid off, and including employees in the armed
forces of the United States who present themselves in person at the
polls, 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 Chauffeurs', Teamsters' and Helpers' Union, Local
No. 236, AFL, for the purposes of collective bargaining.
CHAIRMAN MILLIS took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision and Direction of Election.