The Berkline Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Oct 12, 1955

114 N.L.R.B. 375 (N.L.R.B. 1955)

THE BERKLTIV .G'ORPORATIOI 375
and is not affiliated directly or indirectly-with an organization which
admits to membership, employees other than guards.3
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section 9'
(c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The Petitioner would include, and the Employer exclude, the
three guards who are "sergeants" and in charge of the main gate desk
on-the respective shifts. They agree that the captain, who works from
8:'30 to 5, is a supervisor. Fifteen guard employees are classified as
patrolmen. The breaks between the 3 shifts occur at 7 in the morning,
3 in the afternoon and 11 in the evening. The number of patrolmen
on each shift does not appear. Testimony that the sergeants are in
full charge in the absence of the captain and that they effectively rec-
ommend disciplinary action concerning the patrolmen on their respec-
tive shifts was not refuted. We therefore find the sergeants to be su-
pervisors within the meaning of Section 2 (11) of the Act and shall
exclude them and the captain from the unit.
We find that all plant guards employed by the Employer at its
plant at Nicetown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but excluding all
other employees and all supervisors as defined in the Act, constitute
a unit appropriate for the-purposes of collective bargaining within
the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
-[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.]
2 See Mack Manufacturing Company, 10$ NLRB 11$1.
The Berkline Corporation and United Brotherhood of Carpen-
ters - and Joiners of America , AFL, Petitioner. Case No.1ORC-
3179.. October 1,;1955
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor
Relations Act, a hearing was held before Edwin R. Hancock, hearing
officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed."
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the Act.
2. The labor organization, involved claims to represent' certain em-
ployees of the Employer.
1 The Employer requests that the Board determine the sufficiency of the Petitioner's
showing of interest. Such determination has been made and we are satisfied administra-
tively that the showing of interest is sufficient. '
114 NLRB No. 81.
376 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section
9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The parties are in agreement as to a unit composed of production
and maintenance employees except that the Employer would include
and the Petitioner would exclude truckdrivers, garage maintenance
men, watchmen, the general handy man, and clerical employees.
Truckdrivers: Under the supervision of the shipping department
manager, the Employer employs 34 truckdrivers, 32 of whom make
over-the-road or long-distance deliveries and hauls, while 2 do local
driving. They receive the same fringe benefits as the production and
maintenance employees, and in addition perform at various times the
work of other shipping department employees included in the unit.
In these circumstances and since no labor organization at present is
seeking to represent the truckdrivers separately, we include them in
the unit.'
Garage maintenance men: The five garage maintenance men are a
part of the shipping department although separately located in a
garage. Four of them are mechanics and keep the Employer's trucks
and fork-lift equipment in repair. The other is a plan clerical who
distributes parts and keeps records. Like the other shipping em-
ployees included in the unit, they are hourly paid and receive the same
overtime and fringe benefits. As in the case of the truckdrivers, the
garage maintenance men have sufficient interests in common with the
production and maintenance employees to warrant our including them
in the unit.'
Watchmen: The 2 watchmen make rounds and punch clocks
throughout the plant 60 percent of their time and perform janitorial
duties the balance of their time. They have the authority to keep out
unauthorized persons and to report employees for violations of plant
regulations. As the watchmen perform guard duties part of their
time, we find that they are guards within the meaning of the Act and
exclude them from the unit'
Although under the supervision of the office manager, the general
handy man, whose job is comparable to that of janitor, spends most
of his time cleaning files, supplying office materials, and performing
messenger and chauffeur duties. Like the other production and main=
tenance employees, he is hourly paid and receives the same fringe
benefits. As he has a community of interests with production and
maintenance employees, we include him in the unit.
Plant clerical employees: The production control clerk breaks down
frame shop orders, a job formerly performed in the plant by the frame
2 Sunnyland Packing Company and Sunnyland Poultry Company, 113 NLRB 162; Parrot
Packing Company , 112 NLRB 1432.
* Parrot Packing Company, supra
* Fox Manufacturing Company, 112 NLRB 977.
THE BERKLINE CORPORATION 377
shop foreman. Although she is temporarily located in the office, the
Employer definitely plans to move her to the frame shop. The indus-
trial engineering clerk routinely checks all furniture throughout the
plant to determine specifications. Both of these employees have suffi-
cient interests in common with production and maintenance employees
warranting their inclusion in the unit. Accordingly, we include them.5
Office clerical employees : The purchasing, addressograph, piece-rate
records, payroll, and accounts receivable clerks perform computation,
record-keeping, and other clerical duties. These clerks spend all their
time in the office 6 and do not interchange or work with production
and maintenance employees. In view of the foregoing, we find that
they are office clerical employees and exclude them from the unit.'
In addition, there are 17 order processing clerks who process orders,
prepare records, and calculate costs. Except for the two cost calcu-
lating clerks who are supervised by the chief cost accountant, these
employees are under the supervision of the personnel and office man-
ager. All their work is performed in the main office. While some
of these employees maybe moved out of the main office, there is no
showing on the record that their office supervision will change or that
they will be located in production areas. Except for the four cutting
sheet clerks who, on occasion, may interchange with certain plant
clericals, these employees do not interchange with other production
and maintenance employees. In these circumstances, and upon the
entire record, we find that the order processing clerks are office clerical
employees and we exclude them from the unit."
e
Accordingly, we find that all production and maintenance employees
at the Employer's Morristown, Tennessee, chair manufacturing plant,
including over-the-road and local truckdrivers, garage maintenance
employees, the general handy nian, production control clerk, indus-
trial, engineering clerk, lumberyard department employees, frame de-
partment record clerks, the upholstery department clerks, shipping
department clerks, checkers, wrappers, carloaders, truckloaders, jani-
tor, upholstery department expediter, building maintenance depart-
ment employees; but excluding purchasing, addressograph, piece-rate
records, payroll, accounts receivable, and order processing clerks,
typists, file and mail clerks, telephone operator, other office clerical
employees, technical employees in the industrial engineering depart-
ment, other technical employees, watchmen, guards, nurses, other
professional employees, supervisory trainees engaged in processing
oNorthrop Aircraft, hac, 110 NLRB 1349, at 1351. The Firestone Tare and Rubber
Company-Firestone Textiles Division , 112 NLRB 571? General Shoe Corporation,
109 NLRB 618, at 621.
6 Except the two purchasing clerks who spend three-fourths of their time in the office.
T Northrop Aircraft, Inc., supra, at 1352 ; General Shoe Corporation, supra.
8 See footnote 7, above ; also Beatrice Foods Co., 112 NLRB 459.
378 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
sales records, the garage foreman, and all other supervisors as defined
in the Act,9 constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective
bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.]
g The parties agree that 35 named individuals are supervisors.
Texas Construction Material Company and Operating Engineers
Local 450 of the Union of Operating Engineers , A. F. of L.,
Petitioner. Case No. 39-RC-871. October 12, 1955
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor
Relations Act, a hearing was held before John F. Burst, hearing of-
ficer.' The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer contends, among other things, that it will not
effectuate the policies of the Act to assert jurisdiction in this case.
The Employer is a Texas corporation with its principal office at
Houston. It is engaged exclusively in Texas in the production of sand
and gravel at 10 facilities designated in the record as plants. The con-
tinuing operation of each of these facilities is of necessity limited by
the availability of sand and gravel. At the time of the hearing, 3
of the so-called plants were located at Eagle Lake, 1 at Alleyton,
and 2 at Altier, all in Colorado County about 8 to 20 miles from each
other; 3 at Romayor in Liberty County; and 1 about 5 miles from
Corrigan in Polk County. The plants at Romayor and the one near
Corrigan are 125 to 150 miles and 175 to 200 miles, respectively, from
the plants in Colorado County, and 75 to 100 miles from each other.
Employees at all locations work under the overall supervision of the
Employer's president and its vice president and production engineer,
and under the separate immediate supervision of superintendents, who
are in charge of both production and maintenance at their respective
locations. All employees in the same classification are paid at the same
rate, except the 3 or 4 part-time employees at Corrigan. Payroll forms,
showing the time worked, are prepared at each plant or location and
sent to the Employer's principal office at Houston. Thereafter, pay-
1 At the close of the hearipg, the Employer moved to dismiss the petition on juris-
dictional , contract-bar, and unit grounds. The hearing officer referred ruling on the motion
to the Board. For reasons hereinafter set forth, we deny the motion.
The Employer' s further contentions addressed to Petitioner's showing are rejected,
as this is an administrative matter which is not litigable by the parties . Moreover, we
are satisfied that the Petitioner has an adequate showing.
114 NLRB No. 71.