Sylvania Electric Products, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 12, 1949

87 N.L.R.B. 597 (N.L.R.B. 1949)

In the Matter of SYLVANIA ELECTRIC PRODUCTS , INC.,1 EMPLOYER and
UNITED STEELWORKERS OF AMERICA , CIO, PETITIONER
Case No. 3-RCD30.Decided December 12, 1949
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before Richard Lip-
sitz, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing
are, free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.2
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 [Members Houston, 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 Petitioner and the following labor organizations claim to
represent certain employees of the Employer : International Brother-
hood of ' Electrical Workers, AFL, herein called IBEW, and United
Farm Equipment and Metal Workers, C. I. 0., herein called Farm and
Metal Workers.
3. The question concerning representation :
The UE contends that a contract with the Employer, to which it is.
a party, covers the employees involved in this proceeding and there-
fore constitutes a bar to a determination of representatives at this
time.
^ The name of the Employer appears as amended at the hearing.
2 The hearing officer properly denied intervention in this proceeding to United Elec-
trical, Radio and Machine Workers of America, herein called the UE, because at the time,
of the hearing the UE was not in compliance with the registration and filing requirements
of Section 9 of the Act and did not establish that it was a party to a contract covering the
employees here involved. After the hearing, however, the UE effected compliance with the
Act's filing requirements and renewed its request to intervene, this time basing its claim
on authorizations to represent the employees in question . As the authorizations were
'acquired before the date of the hearing, we shall grant the UE's motion and place its name
on the ballot in the election hereinafter ordered. See Consolidated Vultec Aircraft Cor-
poration, 80 NLRB 116 ; Harris Transfer & Warehouse Company, 79 NLRB 1420.
87 NLRB No. 68.
597
598 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
The Employer operates 19 plants in Massachusetts, New York, Penn-
sylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, where it is engaged in the manu-
facture of radio and television equipment. Units of employees in 9
of the plants are currently covered by a master contract entered into
between the Employer and the UE in May 1948 to continue until May
1950.3 Among the units covered by the contract is one at the Em-
ployer's plants in Emporium, Pennsylvania, which consists of produc-
tion and maintenance workers. At the time the contract was executed
the Emporium plant conducted its operations in 5 divisions, one of
which was devoted exclusively to the manufacture of television picture
tubes.
In January 1949, the Employer acquired a new plant in Seneca
Falls, New York, for the manufacture of television picture tubes.
This plant, which- is approximately 175 miles from Emporium, is the
only one with which this proceeding is concerned. Operations at
Seneca Falls got under way in May 1949, and during the summer the
Employer discontinued the manufacture of television picture tubes
at its Emporium plant. Part of the machinery and equipment of
this plant was moved to Seneca Falls to supplement new purchases,
and part to other plants. However, none of the employees at the
Emporium plant were offered employment at Seneca Falls even
though their number was affected by the elimination of the television
picture tube division. These employees were merely advised that
they were eligible for hire at Seneca Falls if they possessed the requi-
site qualifications. At the time of the hearing, the Seneca Falls plant
had an employee complement of 195, of whom 13 had formerly been
attached to the Emporium plant. These 13 employees all came to
Seneca Falls at their own expense and were engaged as new employees
with their seniority dating as of the time of their hire. The balance
of the personnel at Seneca Falls was recruited from the immediate
vicinity. The Petitioner filed its petition herein on August 4, 1949.
We have frequently stated that where a new plant and new em-
ployees are involved, even where there is an existing contract and no
dispute as to the unit, the Board will permit the employees at the
plant not in existence at the time the contract was executed to decide
the issue as to their representation.4 We are, therefore, of the opinion
that the 1948 contract between the Employer and the UE does not
operate as a bar to this proceeding.
3 The contract also makes provision for the blanketing thereunder of other units at
plants of the Employer in which the UE shall be designated as the exclusive bargaining
agent "through a [Board] certification or other means satisfactory to the parties."
4 Riverpoint Finishing Company, 77 NLRB 1048; Aviola Radio Corporation, 71 NLRB
321.
SYLVANIA ELECTRIC PRODUCTS, INC. 599
We find that a question affecting commerce exists concerning the
representation of employees of the Employer within the meaning of
Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (€r) and (7) of the Act.
4. We find that all production and maintenance employees at the
Seneca Falls, New York, plant of the Employer, including cafeteria
employees, but excluding watchmen, guards, engineers, technicians,
draftsmen, designers, desk girls, office and clerical employees, head
cooks, executives, monitors, and all other supervisors as defined by the
Act, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bar-
gaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
5. The Farm and Metal Workers contends that an election at this
time would be premature because there is not a representative working
force currently employed at the Seneca Falls plant. We do not agree,
When the Employer acquired its Seneca Falls plant it anticipated
an employee complement of 400 production and maintenance workers.
However, after operations at the plant began, it became clear to the
Employer that its previous manpower estimate was excessive because
the plant could not accommodate more than 300 employees for optimum
results. At the time of the hearing, there were 195 employees on the
pay roll or almost two-thirds of the number which may ultimately be
employed. Although the Employer expects to add to these employees,
there is considerable uncertainty as to when the full complement of
300 will be reached because this factor is contingent upon the receipt
of future orders. As the record discloses that the present complement
at the Seneca Falls plant is a representative and substantial segment
of the working force which will eventually be employed, and that it is
uncertain when a full complement will be employed, we shall direct
an immediate election.'
DIRECTION OF ELECTION 6
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 super-
vision 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, among the employees in the
unit found appropriate in paragraph numbered 4, above, who were
employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date
Ford Motor Company, 80 NLRB 1094.
e After the close of the hearing, the Farm and Metal workers notified the Board by tele-
gram that it desired to withdraw from the proceeding and not have its name appear on the
ballot in any election the Board might order. This request is hereby granted.
600 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
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 reinstated
prior to the date of the election, and also excluding employees on strike
who are not entitled to reinstatement, to determine whether they de-
sire to be represented, for purposes of collective bargaining, by United
Steelworkers of America, CIO, or by International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers, AFL, or by United Electrical, Radio and Ma-
chine Workers of America, or by none.