The Pure Oil Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Feb 5, 1952

98 N.L.R.B. 139 (N.L.R.B. 1952)

THE PURE OIL" COMPANY 139
watchmen, and supervisors as defined in the amended 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 Elections omitted from publication in this
volume.]
8 Early in the hearing all parties stipulated to the appropriateness of this unit, reserving
the right to litigate the question of whether certain fringe categories should be included in
the unit Subsequently, certain of the Employers Indicated an objection to the inclusion of
outside truck drivers and maintenance bricklayers . However, no evidence was taken during
the hearing as to their duties or the duties of any other specific category of employees. Thus
we can make no determination with respect to the inclusion of any fringe groups at this
time. We leave such determination to subsequent proceedings if necessary.
THE PURE OIL COMPANY 1 and DISTRICT 31, INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIA-
TION OF MACHINISTS, PETITIONER. Case No. 39-RC-381. February
5, 1952
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 Elmer Davis, hearing officer.
The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prej-
udicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board
has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member
panel [Chairman Herzog and Members Murdock and Styles].
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 organizations involved claim to represent certain
employees of the Employer.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
4. The Petitioner seeks to include, in its present unit of machinists
and other employees employed in the mechanical, handymen, and serv-
ice departments of the Employer, a group of fixed helpers, or ma-
I The name appears as amended at the hearing.
2 See The Pine Oil Company, 55 NLRB 1455.
'The Oil Workeis Inteinational Union, Local No 228, hereinafter referred to as the
Intervenor, was permitted to intervene upon the basis of its contractual interest.
'The Intervenor moves to dismiss the petition herein on the ground that its contract
dated December 21, 1950, having as its earliest termination date December 15, 1951, is a
bar to this proceeding. As the petition was filed on October 12, 1951, approximately
2 months before the termination date of the agreement, we find that the contract is not
a bar. Accordingly, the Inteivenor's motion to dismiss is denied.
98 NLRB No. 18.
-140 DFCTSIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
chinist trainees, regularly assigned to the machinist craftsmen in the
unit. These helpers are at present represented by the Intervenor in a
residual operating and maintenance unit.5 The Intervenor argues
against the inclusion of these fixed helpers in the Petitioner's unit
because of a contrary history of collective bargaining since 1939, and
1because a similar request of the Petitioner in 1944 was denied by the
Boards The Petitioner contends, however, that since the earlier
consideration of this problem by the Board, circumstances have altered
to an extent that would justify present inclusion of the fixed helpers
in its unit. -
The record shows that certain employees in the maintenance helper
-department are assigned as fixed helpers in specific crafts. Assign-
ments are made on the basis of job bidding and are made subject to the
Employer's right to assign the fixed helpers to other crafts in emer-
gencies or when necessary or desirable. The helpers thus selected are
trained in the particular craft for which they are selected, and are
-promoted to craft status on the basis of ability and seniority with the
,craft. While their present training program is largely similar to
the program that was in effect when the earlier petition was filed,
the Employer has, since early 1951, introduced significant changes.
There has been added to the previously existing requirements of on-
the-job training, a specified number of hours required classroom work
at the plant, as well as additional, optional classroom training in a
local college. As explained by the Employer, the purpose of the
revised program was to assure the adequate training of the fixed
helper, and thereby make more certain his promotion to journeyman
=status. The reasonable and intended consequences of the revised
-program was to reduce the degree of transferability that existed in the
past.
The above-mentioned factors indicate that the interests of the
-machinist trainees are now closely allied to those of the machinists
who are represented by the Petitioner. We believe, therefore, that
their inclusion in the Petitioner's unit could be appropriate. More-
,over, the Board has in a more recent case involving similar fixed
'helpers at the same plant found that a unit of craft electricians and
their "trainees" could be appropriate 7
Accordingly, we shall direct an election among all fixed helpers
regularly assigned to work with employees designated on the Em-
ployer's payroll as those men in the mechanical, handymen, and serv-
ice departments, employed at the Employer's Smiths Bluff Refinery
I The Petitioner and the Intervenor were certified as bargaining representatives for their
respective units as the result of consent elections conducted in 1939.
6 The Pure Oil Company, 55 NLRB 1455 . The fixed helpers are the "trainees " discussed
in that case.
7 The Pure Oil Company, 79 NLRB 51.
CAPITAL TRANSIT COMPANY 141
at Nederland, Texas, excluding all other employees, office clericals,
guards, watchmen, professional employees, and supervisors as defined
in the Act.
If a majority of the fixed helpers on regular assignment with the
machinists vote for the Petitioner, they will be taken to have indicated
their desire to be included in the unit now represented by the Peti-
tioner, and the Regional Director conducting the election directed
herein is instructed to issue a certification of results of election to that
effect. If, however, a majority of the fixed helpers vote for the Inter-
venor, they will be taken to have indicated their desire to remain in
the unit now represented by the Intervenor, and the Regional Director
will issue a certification of results of election to that effect.'
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this
volume.]
B See General Electric Company, 97 NLRB 1265.
CAPITAL TRANSIT COMPANY and DIVISION 689, AMALGAMATED ASSOCIA-
TION OF STREET , ELECTRIC RAILWAY AND MOTOR COACH EMPLOYEES
OF AMERICA, PETITIONER. Case No. 5-RG-856. February 18, 195
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 David C. Sachs, hearing
officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error, and are hereby affirmed.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board
has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member
panel [Chairman Herzog and Members Murdock and Styles].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer, which operates in the District of Columbia, is
engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act.
2. The Employer moved to dismiss the petition on the ground that,
because of certain provisions in the Petitioner's Constitution and Gen-
eral Laws,' the Petitioner could not represent the employees sought
herein, and in this respect is not a labor organization within the mean-
ing of Section 2 (5) of the Act. This motion was referred to the
I Section 71 of the Petitioner's Constitution and General Laws provides in substance
that directing officials of the Company who have rules and regulations of the Company
to enforce cannot become members of the Union ; that members who are appointed to such
minor official , but nonsupervisory, positions as starter , dispatcher, timekeeper inspector,
streetman , or barn , shop, and track foremanship may retain membership , but while in
such positions their participation in local union affairs must be authorized first by referen-
dum ; and that groups of such members may be placed under separate charter.
98 NLRB No. 27.