The Ajax Box Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Oct 26, 1945

64 N.L.R.B. 481 (N.L.R.B. 1945)

In the Matter of THE AJAx Box COMPANY and PAPER WORKERS
DIvIsioN, LOCAL 208, IL'"TU-CIO
Case No. 13-R-3100.-Decided October 26, 1945
Pritzker, Pritzker cC Clinton, by Mr. Stanford Clinton, of Chicago,
Ill., for the Company.
Mr. Hilding Schoen, of Chicago, Ill., for the CIO.
Mr. George E. Higgins, of Chicago, Ill., for the AFL.
Mr. Samuel G. Hamilton, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon a petition duly filed by Paper Workers Division, Local 208,
ILWU-CIO, herein called the CIO, alleging that a question affecting
commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of
The Ajax Box Company, Chicago, Illinois, herein called the Company,
the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate
hearing upon due notice before Herman J. DeKoven, Trial Examiner.
Said hearing was held at Chicago, Illinois, on July 13 and 16, 1945.
The Company, the CIO, and Chicago Paper & Box Workers' Union
No. 415, AFL, herein called the AFL, appeared and participated. All
parties 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
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The Ajax Box Company, an Illinois corporation having its only
plant at Chicago, Illinois, 1s engaged in the manufacture of corru-
gated boxes and corrugated paper. During the year 1944, the Com-
64N L. R.B,No 88
670417-46-vol 64-32 481
482 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
pany purchased raw materials valued in excess of $400,000, of which
approximately 90 percent was shipped from points outside the State
,of Illinois. During the same period, the Company confpleted prod-
ucts valued in excess of $1,000,000, of which more than 50 percent
was shipped to points outside the State.
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
Paper Workers Division, Local 208, ILWU-CIO, affiliated with
the Congress of Industrial Organizations is a labor organization ad-
mitting to membership employees of the Company.
Chicago Paper & Box Workers' Union No. 415, affiliated with the
American Federation of Labor, is a labor organization admitting to
membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company has refused to grant recognition to the CIO as the
,exclusive bargaining representative of certain of its employees until
the CIO 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 CIO represents a substantial number of em-
ployees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate?
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 CIO seeks a unit comprising all production and maintenance
,employees of the Company, including the assistant shipping clerks,
the watchman-janitor, general foreman, assistant general foreman,
the "roll stock foreman and slitter operator," the die cut foreman,
and the printer slotter foreman, but excluding office and clerical em-
ployees, shipping clerk, engineer, salesmen, sample man, executives,
comptroller, purchasing agent, sales manager, production control
man, plant superintendent, and all other supervisory employees.
-Contrary to the CIO's position, the Company contends that the gen-
1 The Field Examiner reported that the CIO submitted 38 application cards ; that the
names of 38 persons appearing on the cards were listed on the Company 's pay roll of May
26, 1945 ; that 9 of the cards were dated April 1945, 12 May 1945, 4 June 1945, and 13
were undated ; and that there were 46 employees in the alleged appropriate unit.
The Field Examiner also reported that the AFL submitted 14 application cards ; that
the names of 14 persons appearing on the cards were listed on the Company's pay roll of
May 26, 1945 ; and that 14 of the cards were dated June 1945.
The Trial Examiner stated that at the hearing the AFL presented 11 "additional appli-
cation membership cards" ; that the names of 9 persons appearing on the cards were listed
on the Company 's pay roll "as of the week ending July 27, 1945" ; that 1 of the cards was
dated June 8, 1945, 1 June 18, 1945, 1 June 28, 1945 , 1 July 7, 1945, 2 "1945 ", and that
3 were undated.
THE AJAX BOX COMPANY 483
eral foreman and assistant general foreman should be excluded from
the unit; the AFL takes no position with respect to these employees.
Also contrary to the CIO's position, the AFL contends that the ship-
ping clerk and the engineer should be included in the unit; the Com-
pany takes no position with respect to them.
General foreman and Assistant general foreman: These employees
do similar work in different parts of the plant, and their duties and
authority are substantially the same, the general foreman having been
given his title because he has greater seniority than the assistant gen-
eral foreman. The general foreman supervises 8 employees, the as-
sistant general foreman 18. Due to the manpower shortage they spend
80 percent of their time actually operating machines; the balance of
their time is occupied in supervision. Prior to the war and the result-
ing critical manpower shortage, these employees were engaged entirely
in supervision. They have no authority to hire, promote, discharge,
discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, and
the record is not entirely clear as to whether they have authority ef-
fectively to recommend such action. Although the general foreman
denied that he had authority to make recommendations or that the
plant superintendent ever advised him that he had such authority, he
testified that on several occasions he recommended the hiring of em-
ployees who were later employed by the Company. While at one point
in his testimony he denied that he had ever made recommendations for
the discharge of an employee, at another point he admitted that on
two occasions he recommended that employees be discharged, but
his recommendations were not followed, although the employees in-
volved were reprimanded by the plant superintendent.
The plant superintendent testified that both employees have author-
ity to recommend effectively the hire, promotion, discharge, and dis-
cipline of employees, and that in the past he had advised them that they
had such authority. He cited several specific instances in which au-
thority to recommend was exercised effectively by the general foreman,
including at least five instances of recommendations for the discharge
of employees. He also testified concerning specific instances in which
effective recommendations for the hiring, promotion, and transfer
of employees were made by the assistant general foreman. The testi-
mony of the plant superintendent with respect to the assistant general
foreman was substantially corroborated by that employee. Under all
the circumstances disclosed by the record, we are convinced that both
the general foreman and the assistant general foreman are super-
visory employees within the meaning of our usual definition. Ac-
cordingly, we shall exclude them.
Shipping clerk: The shipping department performs the usual func-
tion of receiving raw materials and shipping finished products. The
greater portion of this department is located adjacent to the produc-
484 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
tion department. The shipping clerk has two assistants. The assistant
shipping clerks as well as the shipping clerk are under the over-all
supervision of the plant superintendent, who also supervises the pro-
duction and maintenance employees. The shipping clerk spends ap-
proximately 70 percent of his time in manual labor and the balance in
clerical work and in directing the work of the assistant shipping clerks;
the assistant shipping clerks spend practically all their time in the
physical handling of materials and products. Both the shipping clerk
and the assistant shipping clerks are paid on an hourly basis. The rate
of pay of the assistant shipping clerks is equal to that of the production
and maintenance employees in the lower brackets, while the shipping
clerk's rate is equal to that of the production and maintenance em-
ployees in the higher brackets, although his annual bonus rate is higher
than that of any other production and maintenance employee, includ-
ing the general foreman and the assistant general foreman. He does
not have authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise
effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively recommend
such action. The parties are in agreement that the assistant shipping
clerks should be included in the unit. The shipping clerk with similar
interests is not a supervisory employee within the meaning of our
customary definition. Accordingly, we shall include him.
Engineer: 2 The engineer is under the supervision of the plant super-
intendent. The Company has two boilers which are operated by the
engineer solely for the purpose of keeping machines used in the corru-
gating of paper supplied with steam. The engineer also mixes paste,
which is a production operation, changes valves, and maintains the
steam lines on the corrugating machines. The engineer and the pro-
duction and maintenance employees are engaged in closely related
operations, and are under the same supervision. Accordingly, we shall
include the engineer in the unit.3
We find that all production and maintenance employees of the Com-
pany, including assistant shipping clerks; watchman-janitor; the "roll
stock foreman and slitter operator", the die cut foreman, and the
printer slotter foreman; 4 shipping clerks; and engineer, but excluding
office and clerical employees; salesmen, sample man, executives, comp-
troller, purchasing agent, sales manager, production control man,
plant superintendent, general foreman, assistant general foreman, and
all other supervisory employees with authority to hire, promote, dis-
charge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of enl-
2 The engineer is a member of the International Union of Operaticig Engineers, AFL,
which organization disclaims any interest in the present proceeding, for the season that
the engineer has signed an application for membership in the AFL, the intervening union.
3 Cf Matter of The Richman Brothers Co, 59 N L It B 339
4 The parties agree to include these employees we are persuaded from the record that
they are not supervisory employees within the meaning of our customary definition.
THE AJAX BOX COMPANY 485
ployees, or effectively recommend such action, constitute a unit appro-
priate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning
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 Direc-
tion.
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 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 The Ajax Box
Company, Chicago, Illinois, an election by secret ballot shall be con-
ducted 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 Thirteenth Region, acting in this matter
as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to
Article 111, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rides and Regulations, among
the employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the
date of this Direction, including employees who did not work during
the said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or tern-
1norarily laid off, and including employees in the arms&i forces of the
United States who present themselves in person at the polls, but ex-
cluding 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 they desire to be represented by
Paper Workers Division, Local 208, ILWU-CIO, or by Chicago Paper
Box Workers' Union No. 415, AFL, for the purposes of collective
bargaining, or by neither.
MR. GERARD D. REII.r Y took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision and Direction of Election.