The Taubman Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 24, 1948

77 N.L.R.B. 846 (N.L.R.B. 1948)

In the Matter Of EDWARD TAUBMAN, ROBERT TAUBMAN, HENRY G.
TAUBMAN, THE TAUBMAN CORPORATION, H. G. TAUBMAN'S, INC.,
TAUBMAN's INC., AND TAUBMAN'S STORES CO., INC., EMPLOYER 1 and
RETAIL CLERKS INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AFL, PETITIONER
Case No. 5-fl-3062.-Decided May 24,1948
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, hearing in this case was held at Baltimore,
Maryland, on January 30 , 1948, before Charles B. Slaughter , hearing
officer. The hearing officer 's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.2
Upon the entire record in the case, the National Labor Relations
Board ,' makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE EMPLOYER
Edward Taubman, Robert Taubman, Henry G. Taubman, The
Taubman Corporation, H. G. Taubman's, Inc., Taubman's Inc., and
Taubman's Stores Co., Inc., herein jointly referred to as the Employer,
operate at Baltimore and Annapolis, Maryland, -12 auto supply stores
and 1 warehouse, either individually or as corporations of the State
of Maryland.
Henry G. Taubman, president, Edward Taubman, vice president,
and Robert Taubman, secretary-treasurer, constitute the officers and
directors of the four corporations involved herein. Edward and Rob-
ert Taubman own in equal shares all of the stock of H. G. Taubman's,
1 The petition and other formal papers were amended at the hearing to show the correct
name of the Employer
2 At the hearing, counsel for the several Employers moved to dismiss the petition as to
Henry G. Taubman on the ground that Taubman does not own any stock in any of the
corporations , and therefore , is not an Employer . The record discloses that Henry G Taub-
man is the president and general manager of all the corporations heiem involved and as
such Taubman is an Employer within the meaning of Section 2 (2) of the National Labor
Relations Act
3 Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board has delegated its
powers in connection with this case to a thiec- man panel consisting of the undersigned
Board Members [ Houston , Reynolds , and Gray].
77 N. L. R. B., No. 141.
846
THE TAUBMAN CORPORATION 847
Inc., Taubman's Stores Co., Inc., and Taubman's, Inc.; Freda Taub-
man owns all of the stock of The Taubman Corporation.
Robert Taubman, an individual, owns stores at 5520 Harford Road
and 149 Main Street, Annapolis, Maryland. Edward Taubman, an
individual, owns a store and warehouse at 34 Light Street, and two
other stores in Baltimore, Maryland.
Edward Taubman, vice president of the four corporations, and
owner of three of the retail stores, purchases in excess of $100,000
worth of merchandise annually for his warehouse, of which 90 per-
cent represents shipments from points outside the State of Maryland.
All of the retail stores, whether corporate or individually owned,
requisition all of their merchandise from the Taubman warehouse.
The requisitions are filled by warehouse employees of Edward Taub-
man, and the cost of the merchandise is then charged against the
books of the requisitioning store.
Although all corporations have the same officers and directors,
each corporation and individually owned store has separate and dis-
tinct books and records, all of which are maintained by a common
office force located at 34 Light Street. The separate identities are
maintained to the extent that each secures its own license to do busi-
ness; pays its own taxes; has its own retail store employees; has its
own pay-roll records; and maintains its own bank account. The cost
of maintaining the records and the office staff is prorated among the
various corporations and individuals.
The stores and employees involved in this proceeding are all en-
gaged in retail sales of merchandise shipped to them from the ware-
house at 34 Light Street. None of the stores makes any sales outside
the State, nor are there any deliveries outside the State. The several
corporations and individuals, however, are operating a highly inte-
grated enterprise, and materials purchased by the warehouse are
intended solely for the use of the several retail stores. This integration
is further reflected in their common advertising policy, their common
telephone listing under the name of "Taubman's," and their common
labor relations policy.
Notwithstanding the Employer's contention, we find that the several
corporations and individuals involved herein constitute, in effect, a
single organization so highly integrated that it is impossible to de-
termine where one corporation ends and the others begin with respect
to labor relations.4 Under these circumstances, we find that the Em-
ployer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act.
4 Matter of Ecusta Paper Corporation , et al., 66 N. L. R. B. 1204.
848 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
The Petitioner is a labor organization affiliated with the American
Federation of Labor, claiming to represent employees of the Em-
ployer.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
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 exists concerning the
representation of employees of the Employer, within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
Iv. TIIE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Petitioner seeks a unit consisting of all store personnel, includ-
ing assistant managers, employed at all the Employer's Maryland
stores, excluding store managers, office clerical employees, and super-
visors.
While the parties are in general agreement with respect to the speci-
fied exclusions, the Employer takes the position that in view of thr,
separate corporate and individual ownership of the various stores
involved, the employees of each individual store should constitute a
separate unit. The Employer would also exclude assistant managers
from the unit.
The record discloses that Henry G. Taubman, president of the sev-
eral corporations, acts as general manager of the entire integrated store
system; that his duties as general manager include authority to hire
and discharge and that he also exercises this authority with respect to
the individually owned stores. Most of the hiring is done at the main
office at 34 Light Street and new personnel are assigned from there
to the stores where they are most urgently needed. The record also
discloses that employees are transferred from one store to another,
especially where promotions are involved.
In view of the common interlocking interests of the several corpo-
rations and individuals noted in Section I, above, and the reflection
of those integrated interests in the working conditions of their respec-
tive employees, we conclude and find that the several corporations and
individuals involved herein constitute a single employer within the
meaning of Section 2 (2) of the Act. We further find that store per-
sonnel of the several corporations and individuals involved herein con-
stitute a single appropriate bargaining unit .5
5 Matter of Great Northern Icing Company , 70 N. L R. B. 682.
THE TAUBMAN CORPORATION 849
Assistant managers: There are six assistant managers employed in
the larger stores under the authority of the store managers. Although
the greater portion of their time is spent in clerking, the Employer,
as a rule, forbids both the assistant manager and the manager to be out
of the store at the same time, so that, during the absence of the man-
ager, the assistant manager would be available to take charge. Man-
agers participate in a bonus set-up, by which they are paid a certain
percentage of the gross sales, regardless of the type of merchandise
sold. Assistant managers likewise participate in this bonus to the
extent of 50 percent of the percentage accorded the managers. Clerks
do not participate in a bonus based on the entire sales, but participate
in a bonus only when they sell premium merchandise. Assistant man-
agers are primarily being trained to take over as managers in the
event such a vacancy occurs. Under these circumstances, we are per-
suaded that the interests of assistant managers are substantially dif-
ferent from those of the other employees involved. Accordingly, we
shall exclude assistant managers from the unit.
We find that all store personnel of the Employer's Maryland stores,
excluding store managers, assistant store managers, office clerical em-
ployees, and all supervisors, constitute a unit appropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b)
of the Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the pur-
poses of collective bargaining with Edward Taubman, Robert Taub-
man, Henry G. Taubman, The Taubman Corporation, H. G. Taub-
man's, Inc., Taubman's, Inc., and Taubman Stores Co., Inc., Balti-
more, Maryland, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as
early as possible, but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of
the Direction, under the direction and supervision of the Regional
Director for the Fifth Region, and subject to Sections 203.61 and
203.62 of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-
Series 5, among the employees in the unit found appropriate in Sec-
tion IV, above, who were employed during the pay-roll period imme-
diately preceding the date of this Direction, including employees who
did not work during said pay-roll 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 reinstated prior to the date of the election, and also excluding
employees on strike who are not entitled to reinstatement, to determino
whether or not they desire to be represented by Retail Clerks Inter••
national Association, AFL, for the purposes of collective bargaining.