The Singer Manufacturing Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 26, 1950

89 N.L.R.B. 1659 (N.L.R.B. 1950)

In the Matter of THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY, EMPLOYER
and SINGER LOCAL 227, AFFILIATED WITH INTERNATIONAL UNION
OF ELECTRICAL, RADIO AND MACHINE WORKERS, CIO, PETITIONER
Case No. 2-RC-1913.-Decided May 26, 1950
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed a hearing was held before Merton C.
Bernstein, 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 National Labor
Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with
this case to a three-member panel [Members Reynolds, 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 National Labor Relations Act.
2. The labor organizations involved claim to represent certain em-
ployees of the Employer.
3. The question concerning representation :
Local 227, UE, contends that a 1-year contract entered into between
it and the Employer on October 3, 1949, constitutes a bar to an elec-
tion. The record shows that on November 17, 1949, at a meeting at-
tended by a substantial number of members of Local 227, UE, the
membership unanimously voted to disaffiliate from the UE and to
affiliate with the IUE-CIO. All the officers of the former Local 227,
UE, continued to serve in their respective capacities as officers of the
Petitioner. Since that date, the Petitioner has obtained signed mem-
bership cards from a large majority of the employees who had been
members of Local 227, UE.
I The hearing officer referred to the Board the Petitioner 's motion to dismiss the inter-
vention of United Electrical, Radio anft Machine Workers of America , herein called the
UE, and its Local 227, herein called Local 227 UE. We hereby deny the motion with
respect to Local 227 UE and the UE because of their contractual interest in the proceeding.
89 NLRB No. 218.
1659
1660 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
These circumstances reveal that there has been a schism in the con-
tracting union's organization which we find, for reasons stated in the
Boston Machine Works case,2 removes the current contract as a bar
to an immediate determination of representatives.'
Accordingly, we find that a question affecting commerce exists con-
cerning the representation of employees of the Employer, within the
meaning of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The following employees of the Employer constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the
meaning of Section 9 (a) of the Act: All production arid mainte-
nance employees, including truck drivers, but excluding guards, and
watclunen,4 clerical employees, standards department personnel, ma-
trons, nurses, chauffeurs, main office janitors, chief roundsman, experi-
menters, chief of patternmakers, and all supervisors as defined in the
Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with the Employer, an election by
secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later than
60 days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and super-
vision of the Regional Director for the Region in which this case was
heard, and subject to Sections 203.61 and 203.62 of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations, among the employees in the
unit found appropriate in paragraph numbered 4, above, who were
employed during the payroll period immediately preceding the date
of this Direction of Election, including employees who did not work
during said payroll period because they were ill or on vacation or
temporarily laid off, but excluding those employees who have since
quit or been discharged for cause and have not been rehired or rein-
stated prior to the date of the election, and also excluding employees
on strike who are not entitled to reinstatement, to determine whether
they desire to be represented, for purposes of collective bargaining, by
Singer Local 227, affiliated with International Union of Electrical,
2 Boston Machine Works Company, 89 NLRB 59.
8 On December 5, 1949 , the Employer agreed to recognize the Petitioner as the successor
representative of its employees . Local 227, UE, contends that such recognition precludes
the existence of a question concerning representation . We find no merit in this contention.
See General Box Company, 82 NLRB 678; Reuben Gordon Shoe Co., Inc., 89 NLRB 301.
* As the watchmen, as well as guards , spend all their time in guarding the Employer's
property, we find that they are "guards" within-the meaning of the Act, and therefore we
shall exclude them from the unit. Link-Belt Speeder Corporation, 89 .NLRB 692.
THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY 1661
Radio and Machine Workers, CIO, or by Local 227, United Electrical,
Radio and Machine Workers of America,5 or by neither.6
5 As Local 227, UE, is not in compliance with Section 9 (f), (g), and (h) of the Act, the
Regional Director is instructed that its name and that of the UE shall not be placed on
the ballot unless the Local effects compliance within 2 weeks from the date of this Direction.
Either participant in the election directed herein may, upon its prompt request to, and
approval thereof by, the Regional Director, have its name removed from the ballot.