The Automatic Electric Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Nov 21, 1947

75 N.L.R.B. 274 (N.L.R.B. 1947)

In the Matter of Tr-u, AUTOMATIC ELECTRIC COIIrANY, EMPLOYER and
Orrice; EMPLOYEES IN TERNATIONAL UNION, LOCAL No. 28, AFL,
PE T LTION ER
Case No. 13-R-1./10.Decided November 21, 19411
Messrs. William L. McGuire and A rtlzur E. Nelson, both of Chicago.
Ill., for the Employer.
Mr. Joseph E. Gubbins, of Chicago, Ill., for the Petitioner.
Mr. Jerome A. Reiner, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
ORDER
Upon a petition duly filed, hearing in this case was held at Chicago,
Illinois, on June 2 and 3. 1947, before Robert Drake, hearing officer.
The hearing officer's rulin gs made at the hearing are free from preju-
dicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the National Labor Relations
Board makes the following :
FINDINGS or FACT
I. TILE BUSINESS OF THE EMPLOYER
The Automatic Electric Company, a Delaware corporation, main-
tains a plant in Chicago, Illinois, where it manufactures communica-
tions equipment. Annually the Employer purchases raw materials
valued in excess of $1,000,000, more than 25 percent of which is
obtained from points outside the State of Illinois. Annually the
Employer sells finished products valued in excess of $1,500,000, more
than 50 percent of which is shipped to points outside the State.
The Employer admits and we find that it is engaged in commerce
within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. TIIE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
The Petitioner is a labor organization affiliated with the American:
Federation of Labor, claiming to represent employees of the Employer-
75 N L. R. B., No. 35.
274
THE AUTOMATIC ELECTRIC COMPANY
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
275
The Employer refuses to recognize the Petitioner as the exclusive
bargaining representative of employees of the Employer until the
Petitioner has been certified by the Board in an appropriate unit.
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the
representation of employees of the Employer within the meaning of
Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE ALLEGED APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Petitioner seeks a unit of all shop clerks employed by the Em-
ployer in its Chicago, Illinois, plant. The Employer asserts that the
shop clerks are clerical employees whose duties are not substantially
different from those of the other clerical employees of the Employer at
the same plant; it contends, therefore, that the unit sought is inappro-
priate inasmuch as it represents an artificial grouping of employees
drawn from a much larger group of the Employer's clerical employees
performing the same or similar functions.
The Employer employs approximately 360 clerical employees of
which approximately 162 are employed in the administrative offices.
Approximately 200 of the Employer's clerical employees work in the
factory offices. The shop clerks, approximately 40 in number, are in-
cluded in this group of factory office employees.
The shop clerks are employed in the various departments of the Em-
ployer's plant. The major portion of their time is devoted to keeping
the time records of employees on production jobs and recording the
time consumed in each production operation. They also keep time of
the operators in their departments by checking them in and out, using
a form time card for that purpose. These records are used for pay-roll
and cost accounting purposes. In addition to the foregoing, the shop
clerks keep records of materials received and disbursed both in relation
to shop departments and to stock rooms. They are also capable of per-
forming other types of clerical work.
All of the clerical employees, especially those working in the factory
offices, including shop clerks, do work of a generally related nature,
and all of them receive approximately the same rate of pay. Other
clerical employees besides shop clerks do work, such as keeping ma-
terial and production records, that is similar to some of the work
performed by the shop clerks. Moreover, some of the other clerical
employees in the factory offices are engaged in work relating to the
scheduling and planning of operations in the production department.
Clerical employees are employed in all departments of the Employer's
plant. However, the shop clerks are the only clerical employees who
276 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
work continuously in the same immediate area as the production and
maintenance employees.
Supervision of the factory clerical employees, shop clerks included,
is maintained by the foremen of the departments to which these em-
ployees are assigned; clerical employees employed in the administra-
tive office are supervised by the head of the department in which they
work.
Although the Board has frequently included shop clerks and other
factory clerical employees in production and maintenance units' while
administrative clerical employees are usually excluded therefrom,2 in
the instant case the proposed unit does not include all clerical em-
ployees. Under all the circumstances, we do not believe that a unit
restricted to the employees sought herein is appropriate. Accordingly,
we shall dismiss the petition.
ORDER
Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire
record in the case, the National Labor Relations Board hereby orders
that the petition for the investigation and certification of representa-
tives of employees of The Automatic Electric Company, Chicago,
Illinois, filed by Office Employees International Union, Local No. 28,
AFL, be, and it hereby is, dismissed.
MEMBERS MURDOCK and GRAY took no part in the consideration of
the above Decision and Order.
1 Matter of Northwest Engineering Company, 73 N. L R. B. 40 ; Matter of Guilford
Hosiery Mills, Inc., 70 N. L. R . B. 1047, 1048 , 1049; Matter of Dahlstrom Metallic Door
Company, 61 N L. R. B 1160, 1162, Mattel of Servel Inc, 58 N L R B 5, 7, 8; Matter
of Shartle Brothers Machine Company, 57 N L R. B. 1546, 1547-1549 ; Matter of
Proximity Manufacturing Company, 56 N L R. B 264, 267
1 Matter of Servel, Inc , see footnote 1, supra.