The Western Union Telegraph Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jan 16, 1942

38 N.L.R.B. 325 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In the Matter of THE WESTERN UNioN TELEGRAPH COMPANY and
COMMERCIAL TELEGRAPHERS' UNION LOCAL No. 9.
Case No. R-3426.-Decided January 16, 1942
Jurisdiction : telegraph industry.
Investigation' and Certification of Representatives : existence of question, re-
fusal to accord union recognition until certified by the Board, election
necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all employees of the Company
working in • or from St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul,
Minnesota, under the jurisdiction of the superintendent at St Paul, excluding
employees having the exclusive right to hire and discharge, part-time mes-
senger boys engaged exclusively in the handling of errand service and/or
distribution service, chief bookkeeper, and late night traffic manager
Mr. E. C. Ziesel, of Chicago, Ill., for the Company.
Mr.--Franle B. Powers, of Chicago, Ill., and Mr. Harvey Thor and
Mr. F. 7'. Starkey, of St. Paul, Minn., for the Union.
Mr. Louis Ci od%in, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On September 11, 1941, Commercial Telegraphers' Union, Local
No. 9, herein called the Union, filed with the Regional Director for
the Eighteenth Region (Minneapolis, Minnesota) a petition alleging
that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of The Western Union Telegraph Company,
St. Paul, Minnesota, herein called the Company, and requesting an
investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section
9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called
the Act. - On November 14, 1941, the National Labor Relations Board,
herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act
and Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Relations Board Rules
and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, ordered an investigation and
authorized the Regional Director to conduct it and to provide for
an appropriate hearing upon due notice.
38 N. L. R. B., No. 68.
325
326 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
On November 14, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of
hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the
Union, and upon American Communications Association, herein
called the A. C. A. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on De-
cember 29 , 1941, at Minneapolis , Minnesota , before Henry W.
Lehmann, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial
Examiner. The Company and the Union were represented and par-
ticipated in the hearing. The A. C. A. did not appear at the hearing.
Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross -examine witnesses,
and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded all-
parties. The Trial Examiner granted motions of the Union during
the hearing to amend the petition as to formal matters. During
the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several rulings
on other motions and on objections to the admission of evidence.
The Board has reviewed these rulings and find that no prejudicial errors
were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The Western Union Telegraph Company is a New York corpora-
tion with its principal office at New York City . It is engaged
throughout the United States and in various foreign countries in
the receiving and transmission by telegraph and cable of intrastate,
interstate , and international communications . In the operation of
its national and international communications system, the Company
operates 211,530 miles of pole lines , 4,070 miles of land line cable,
1,776,876 miles of wire, 30 ,324 nautical miles of ocean cable, and
19,543 telegraph offices. At the close of 1940, the Company employed
approximately 43,500 persons . The Company maintains offices at St.
Paul, Minnesota , with which we are here concerned . It admits that
it is engaged in comnierce within the meaning of the Act.
IT. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
Commercial Telegraphers ' Union, Local No. 9, is a labor organ-
ization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting
to membership employees at the St. Paul, Minnesota, offices of the
Company.
III. THE QUESTION -, CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company refuses to recognize the Union as the exclusive rep-
resentative of its employees at the St. Paul office until such time as
it is certified by the Board. A statement of the Regional Director,
THE WESTERN UNION TELEGRAPH COMPANY 327
introduced in evidence at the hearing, shows that the Union repre-
sents a substantial number of employees in the unit which it alleges
is, appropriate.'
We find that 'a question has arisen concerning the representation
of employees of,the Company.
IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON
COMMERCE
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen, occurring in connection with the operations of the Company
described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial
relation to trade, traffic, and commerce among the several States and
tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce
and the free flow of commerce.
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union and the Company agree that all employees of the Com-
pany working in or from St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs
of St. Paul, Minnesota, under the jurisdiction of the superiIitendent
of St. Paul, excluding employees having the exclusive right to hire
and discharge and part-time messenger boys engaged exclusively in
the handling of errand service and/or distribution service, constitute
an appropriate unit. The only controversy with respect to the unit
concerns the chief bookkeeper and late night traffic manager.
The chief bookkeeper has four employees working under him.
The Company contends that he should be excluded from the unit
because he is a supervisory employee and the Union urges his inclu-
sion. He has the authority to suspend employees working under hint
and interviews applicants for positions in his department. We shall
exclude the chief bookkeeper from the unit.
The late night traffic manager is in charge of the traffic depart-
ment from midnight to 8 a. m. The Company urges that he be
exluded from the unit and the Union that he, be included. This
employee normally has one person working under him but on fre-
quent occasions his staff is increased to as many as nine employees.
It appears that he has the authority to discipline persons in his de-
partment and may discharge them for cause. We shall exclude the
late night traffic manager from the unit. -
We find that all employees of the Company working in or from
St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota,
' The Regional Director reported that the Union presented membership cards signed by
80 persons who appear on the Co'mpany's'pay i oil for the St. Paul office There are approxi-
mately 120 employees at•the St. Paul office.
328 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
under the jurisdiction of the superintendent at St. Paul , excluding
employees having the exclusive right-to hire and discharge , part-time
messenger boys engaged exclusively in the handling of errand service
and/or distribution service, chief bookkeeper , and late night traffic
manager, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of 'collective
bargaining and that such unit will insure to employees of the Com-
pany the full benefit of their right to self-organization and to-col-
lective bargaining and otherwise will effectuate the policies of the'
Act.
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen can best be resolved by the holding of an election by secret
ballot. We shall direct that the'employees of the Company eligible
to vote in the election shall be those in the appropriate unit who were
employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date
of the Direction of Election herein, subject to the limitations and
additions set forth in the Direction.
Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire
record in the case, the Board makes the following :
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre
sentation of employees of The Western Union Telegraph Company,
St. Paul,' Minnesota , within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section
2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All employees of the Company working in or from St. Paul,
South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota , under the
jurisdiction of the superintendent at St. Paul, excluding employees
having the exclusive right to hire and discharge , part-time messenger
boys engaged exclusively in the handling of errand service and/or
distribution service, chief bookkeeper , and late night traffic manager,
constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargain-
ing, within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor
Relations Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National
Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela-
tions Act and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of the National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended,
it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation ordered by the Board
to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining
THE WESTERN UNION- TELEGRAPH COMPANY 329
with The Western Union Telegraph Company, St. Paul, Minnesota,
an ,election by secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible,
but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of this Direction,
under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the
Eighteenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National
Labor Relations Board and subject to Article III, Section, 9, of said
Rules and Regulations, among all employees of the Company work-
ing in or from St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul,
Minnesota, under the jurisdiction of the superintendent at -St. Paul
who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preced-
ing the date of this Direction, including employees who did not
work during such-pay-roll period because'they were ill or on vacation
or in the active military service or training of the United States,
or temporarily laid off, but excluding employees having the exclusive
right to hire and discharge, part-time messenger boys engaged ex-
clusively in the handling of errand service and/or distribution serv-
ice, chief bookkeepers, late night traffic manager, and employees
,who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine
whether or not they desire to be represented by Commercial T'elegra-
phers' Union, Local No. 9, affiliated with the American Federation of
Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining.