Taystee Bread Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Nov 7, 1940

27 N.L.R.B. 1240 (N.L.R.B. 1940)

In the Matter of TAYSTEE BREAD COMPANY, NASH\TI.LE, TENN. AND
PURITY BAKERIES CORPORATION, CHICAGO, ILL. and BAKERY. AND
CONFECTIONERY WORKERS INTERNATIONAL UNION OF AMERICA,
LOCAL #128
Case No. R-d089.Decided November 7, 1940
Jurisdiction : baking industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re-
fusal to accord recognition to union ; election necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all employees in the bread, cake,
and shipping departments of the Company at its Nashville bakery, including
porters, but excluding superintendents, foremen, foreladies, engineers, me-
chanics, car washers, stale clerks, and clerical and sales employees.
Mr. Daniel J. Uhrig, of Chicago, Ill., for the Company and'Purity
Bakeries Corporation.
Mr. Curtis R. Sims, of Chattanooga, Tenn., for the Union.
Mr. Louis Colcin,, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
AND
ORDER
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On August 20 and September 23, 1940,, Bakery and Confectionery
Workers International Union of America, Local #128, herein called
the Union, filed with the Regional Director for the Tenth Region
(Atlanta, Georgia) a petition and an amended petition alleging that
a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representa-
tion of employees of Taystee Bread Company, Nashville, Tennessee,
herein called the Company, and Purity Bakeries Corporation, Chi-
cago, Illinois, and requesting an investigation and certification of
representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela-
tions Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On September 26,
1940, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board,
acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) 'of the Act and Article III, Section
27 N. L. R. B., No. 204.
1240
TAYSTEE BREAD COMPANY - 1241
3, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series
2, as amended , ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional
Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon
due notice.
On September 26, 1940, the Regional Director issued a notice of
hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company , Purity
Bakeries Corporation , and the Union. On October 2, 1940, the Re-
gional Director issued an amended notice of hearing . Pursuant to
hotice, a hearing was held'on October 10, 1940, at Nashville, Ten-
nessee, before John C. McRee , the Trial Examiner duly designated
by the Board. • The Company and Purity Bakeries Corporation were
represented by counsel , the Union by an International representative;
all participated in the hearing . Full opportunity to be heard, to ex-
amine and cross -examine witnesses , and to introduce evidence bearing
on the issues was afforded all parties . At the close of the hearing
counsel for the Company moved to dismiss the petition on the ground
that there was no evidence in the record showing that the Company
is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act. The Trial
Examiner reserved ruling thereon. The motion is hereby denied.
During the "course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several
rulings on motions and on objections to the admission of evidence.
The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds
that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby
affirmed.
On October 23, 1940, the Company filed a brief which the Board
has considered . OIi the same day, counsel for Purity Bakeries Cor-
poration filed a -motion to dismiss the petition as to it because it does
not employ any of the employees involved herein. The motion is
hereby granted.
Pursuant to notice duly served upon the parties , a hearing for the
purpose of oral argument was held before the Board on October 24,
1940, in Washington, D. C. The Company and Purity Bakeries
Corporation appeared by counsel and participated in the argument.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE • BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Taystee Bread Company is a Delaware corporation operating bak-
eries in Nashville and Memphis , Tennessee. This proceeding is
concerned solely with its bakery at Nashville , where it is engaged in
the production of bread, rolls , and cakes.
The Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Purity Bakeries
Corporation, which also wholly owns 12 other bakery corporations
1242 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
engaged in the general baking business in 14 States. Purity Bakeries
Corporation' maintains in Chicago, Illinois, a wholly owned sub-
sidiary known as Purity Bakeries Service Corporation, which does
all of the accounting for the parent corporation as well as for all
of its' subsidiaries; including the Company. The Service Corporation
purchases all of the flour used by the subsidiary companies, frequently
sends "trouble shooters" to the various subsidiary companies` to
straighten out any production difficulties which might arise, and
maintains standard baking formulas for the subsidiaries through
laboratory, tests.
During 1939 the Company purchased raw materials valued at ap-
proximately $102,000 for use at its Nashville bakery, approximately
49.5 per cent of which was shipped to the Nashville bakery from
points outside the State of Tennessee. During this same period the
Nashville bakery produced bread and cake valued at approximately
$300,000, all of which were shipped by it to points within the State
of Tennessee. The Company employs approximately 50 employees
at the Nashville bakery.
IL THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
Bakery and Confectionery Workers International Union of Amer-
ica, Local #128, is a labor 'organization affiliated with the American
Federation of Labor. It admits to membership all employees in the
bread, cake, and shipping departments of the Company at its Nash-
ville bakery, including porters, but excluding superintendents, fore-
men, foreladies, engineers, mechanics, car washers, stale clerks, and
clerical and sales employees.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
During May 1940 the Union attempted to negotiate a contract
with the Company as exclusive representative of certain employees
at its Nashville bakery. The manager of the Nashville bakery re-
fused to enter into negotiations with the Union, stating that the Nash-
ville bakery was not engaged in interstate commerce. A statement
of the Trial Examiner read into the record at the hearing shows that
the Union represents -a substantial number of employees in the unit
which it alleges is appropriate.'
We find'that a question has arisen concerning the representation
of employees of the Company.
The Trial Examiner ' s statement shows that 26 employees w hose-names appear on the
Company's pay roll of October 5, 1940, have signed application cards in the Union. There
are approximately 42 employees in the appropriate unit whose names appear on the
October 5, 1940, pay roll r
-TAYSTEE BREAD COMPANY 1243
IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON
COMMERCE
- We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen, occurring. in connection with the operations of the Company
described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial
relation to trade, traffic, and commerce among the several States, and
tends to lead to labor disputes' burdening and obstructing commerce
and the free flow of commerce. '
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union and the Company -agreed at the hearing' that all em-
ployees in the bread, cake, and shipping departments of the Company
at its Nashville bakery, including porters, but excluding superintend-
ents, foremen, foreladies, engineers, mechanics, car washers, stale
clerks, and clerical and sales employees, constitute an appropriate
bargaining unit. We see no reason for departing from such unit.
We find that all employees in the bread, cake, and shipping depart-
ments of the, Company at its Nashville bakery, including porters, but
excluding superintendents, foremen, foreladies, engineers, mechanics,
car washers, stale clerks, and clerical and sales' employees, constitute
a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining* and that
such unit will insure, to employees of the Company the full benefit
of their right to self-organization and, to collective bargaining and
otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. ' .
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question which has arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of the Company can best be resolved by an
election by secret ballot. The parties agreed at the hearing that in
the event the Board directed an election, eligibility of employees to
vote should be determined by the Company's pay roll immediately
preceding the date of the Direction of Election. We find that the
employees of the Company eligible to vote in the election shall be
those in the_ appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll
period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election
herein, including employees who did not work during such pay-roll
period because they were ill or on vacation and employees who were
then or have since been temporarily laid off, but excluding those
employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause.
Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and the entire record
in the case, the'Board makes the following:
1244 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of Taystee Bread Company, Nashville, Ten-
nessee, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2'(6) and (7)
of the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All the employees in the bread, cake, and shipping departments
of the Company at its Nashville bakery, including porters, but exclud-
ing superintendents, engineers, mechanics, car washers, stale clerks,
and clerical and. sales employees, constitute a unit appropriate for
the purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning. of Section
9- (b) of the Act.
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 Relations
Act and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National Labor Rela-
tions Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board
to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining
with Taystee Bread Company, Nashville, 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 Tenth Region, acting
in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and
subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among
all employees in the bread, cake, and shipping departments of the
Company at its Nashville bakery, including porters, employees who
did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on
vacation, and employees who were then or have since been temporarily
laid off, but excluding superintendents; foremen, foreladies, engineers,
mechanics, car washers, stale clerks, clerical and sales employees, and
employees who have since quit or been discharged, for cause, to deter-
mine whether or not they desire to be represented by Bakery and
Confectionery `Yorkers International Union of America, Local #128,
affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purposes of
collective bargaining.
ORDER
IT Is HEREBY ORDERED that the petition, as amended, in so far as it
refers to Purity Bakeries Corporation be, and it hereby is, dismissed.