Tropical Radio Telegraph Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 24, 1945

63 N.L.R.B. 1118 (N.L.R.B. 1945)

In the Matter of TROPICAL RADIO TELEGRAPH COMPANY and AMERICAN
COMMUNICATIONS ASSOCIATION , C. I. O.
Case No. 1-R-2506.-Decided September 24,'1945
Mr. L. K. Hawkins, of Boston, Mass., for the Company.
Boudin, Cohn cC Glickstein, by Mr. Samuel Harris Cohen, of New
York City, for the C. I. O.
Mr. Henry Wise, of Boston, Mass., for the A. F. L.
Mr. A. Sumner Lawrence, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon an amended petition duly filed by American Communications
Association, C. I. 0., herein called the' C. I. 0., alleging that a question
affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of em-
ployees of Tropical Radio Telegraph Company, Boston, Massachu-
setts, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board
provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before Leo J.
Halloran, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at Boston, Massa-
chusetts, on July 6, 1945. The Company, the C. I. 0., and The Radio
Officers' Union of the Commercial Telegraphers' Union, A. F. of L.,
herein called the A. F. L., appeared and participated. All parties
were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-
examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence' bearing on the issues.
The Trial Examiner's iulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. All parties were afforded
an opportunity to file briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record iii the case, the Board makes the following
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Tropical Radio Telegraph Company, a Delaware corporation and
wholly owned subsidiary of the United Fruit Company, a New Jersey
63 N. L. R. B., No. 172.
1118
c
TROPICAL RADIO TELEGRAPH COMPANY 1119
corporation, has its principal place of business at Boston, Massachu-
setts, and is engaged exclusively in the transmission of intelligence
by radio in the foreign commerce of the United States, subject to the
jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission. The Com-
pany1maintains radio stations at Hingham, Massachusetts; Hialeah,
Florida; and Harahan, Louisiana, and transmitting stations at Hing-
ham, Massachusetts; Ojus, Florida; and Kenner, Louisiana, with ex-
ecutive offices at New Orleans, Louisiana. The Company also has 19
radio stations at points throughout Latin America, and as licensee,
operates ship radio equipment on approximately 85 merchant vessels
under standard contracts with the owners thereof.
The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
American Communications Association, affiliated with the Congress
of Industrial Organizations, is a labor organization admitting to
membership employees of the Company.
The Radio Officers' Union of the Commercial Telegraphers' Union,
affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, is a labor organiza-
tion admitting to membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On May 10, 1945, the C. I. 0., claiming to represent a majority of
the Company's communications employees, addressed a letter to the
Company requesting recognition as the bargaining representative
thereof. The Company did not reply to the C. I.O.'s request for recog-
nition, and the Union thereupon filed its petition herein.
A statement of a Board agent, introduced into evidence at the hear-
ing, indicates that the C. I.. O. and the A. F. L. each represents a sub-
stantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found
appropriate.'
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the
representation of employees of the Company, within the meaning of
Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The C. 1. 0. seeks a unit comprising all employees of the Company in
continental United States presently located at Hingham, Massachu-
i The Board agent reported that the C . I. O. had submitted 31 cards, dated between
January and May 1945 , and 1 undated card, all of which checked with the Company's pay
roll of June 4, 1945, containing 47 names within the unit claimed appropriate by the C. I. O.
The statement of the Board agent as amended at the hearing , further discloses that the
A. F. L. submitted 33 cards dated In May and June 1945 , all of which checked with the
said pay roll, containing 53 names within the unit claimed appropriate by the A. F. L.
O
1120 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
setts; Hialeah, Florida; Ojus, Florida, Harahan, Louisiana; and
Kenner, Louisiana, excluding the stenographer-clerk at Hialeah, the
chief operators, the chief electricians, the radio engineer at Ojus, the
traffic superintendent at Harahan, and all other supervisory and confi-
dential employees. The Company and the A. F. L. contend that chief
operators and chief electricians should be included in the unit. In
addition thereto, the A. F. L., in opposition to the Company and the
C. I. 0., would include the plant superintendent at Kenner, the traffic
superintendent at Harahan, the radio engineer at Ojus, and the stenog-
rapher-clerk at Hialeah. The parties are otherwise in agreement upon
the inclusions and exclusions from the unit as proposed by the C. I. O.
There will be considered separately the categories as to which the
parties are in dispute.
Chief operators are located at the various receiving stations where,
in addition to helping in operations, they supervise the work of be-
tween 8 and 10 radio operators, respectively; initiate the laying out
and distribution of work shifts and vacation schedules to such oper-
ators; record the overtime worked by members of their groups; and
report to the station superintendents on the progress and efficiency of
new employees who have been assigned to them for observation. In
the performance of such duties, the chief operators are expected to
constantly evaluate the work of the employees under their supervision
and to transmit to their respective superintendents, their opinions with
regard to the work of such employees. The evidence discloses that
chief operators, whose salaries are consistently higher than those of
operators, have authority to reprimand operators for tardiness or mis-
takes and may grant permission to operators to be away from their
work. In the absence of the station superintendents either upon other
business of the Company or during vacation periods, the chief oper-
ators are in charge of the operation of their respective stations. While
it appears that chief operators do not, in their reports on the efficiency
of operators, recommend specific action to be taken by management
with respect thereto, the reports referred to are of such character as
would normally influence the Company, in effecting changes in the
status of the employees therein concerned. Under the circumstances,
we find that chief operators are supervisory employees within the usual
meaning of our definition. Accordingly, we shall exclude them from
the unit hereinafter found appropriate.
Chief electricians direct the activities of the electricians at the
various transmitter stations and have substantially the same duties and
authority with respect to the electricians as the chief operators pre-
viously considered have with respect to the operators in the receiving
stations. Accordingly, for the reasons noted in connection with the
discussion of chief operators aforesaid, we find that chief electricians
TROPICAL RADIO TELEGRAPH COMPANY 1121
are supervisory -employees within the meaning of Our usual definition,
and by reason thereof shall exclude them from the unit hereinafter-
found appropriate.
The plant superintendent at Kenner is in charge of the transmitting
station under the jurisdiction of the division superintendent in the
city of New Orleans. While it appears that he has no authority to
hire, discharge, promote; or discipline, the Company would expect him,
where action is indicated, to make recommendations in any of these
respects to the division superintendent who would give weight to such
recommendations. Accordingly, we find that the plant superin-
tendent aforesaid is a supervisory employee and shall exclude him
from the unit.
The traffic superintendent at Harahan is in full charge of the receiv-
ing station subject to the control of the division superintendent in New
Orleans. He supervises traffic in and out of the receiving station and
acts as assistant to the division superintendent. While he has no
direct authority to hire, discharge, promote, or discipline, his recom-
mendations in that respect would be given serious consideration by
the division superintendent in New Orleans. We find that the traffic
superintendent at Harahan is a supervisory employee within the usual
meaning of the term. Accordingly, we shall exclude him from the
unit.
The radio engineer at Ojus supervises and is in full and direct
charge of the operations of the transmitter station, subject only to
the jurisdiction of the superintendent at Hialeah 2 In addition
thereto, the radio engineer is engaged in special research work for the
Company. The evidence shows that weight would be given to his
recommendations concerning the status of employees under his super-
vision 3 We find that the radio engineer at Ojus is a supervisory
employee within the meaning of our usual definition. Accordingly,
we shall exclude him from the unit.
The stenographer-clerk, listed on the Company's pay roll for the
Hialeah station as "Junior Clerk and Stenographer," is the only office
,or clerical type employee at any of the stations herein concerned.
The C. I. O. contends that the female' employee in the classification
referred to is essentially a confidential employee and as such should
be excluded from the unit.4 The record discloses that, although such
employee does office work for the station superintendent, she has no
2 Inasmuch as there is no superintendent stationed at Ojus , the status of the radio engi-
neer is substantially the same as that of the various station superintendents whom the
parties agreed should be excluded as supervisory employees
8 The president of the Company testified that he believed that the superintendent would
be inclined to adopt a recommendation made by the radio engineer
' The C. I. 0 does not seek the exclusion of this employee by reason of her clerical duties
and admits that, aside from her alleged confidential status, she is eligible for membership
in the petitioning C. I. O.
1122 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
access to the latter's confidential files or papers and has no duties or
knowledge of a confidential nature with respect to labor relations .5
Accordingly, we find that she does not occupy the status of a confiden-
tial employee. Inasmuch as this employee is not attached to the main
office but is located in an office adjacent to the station and under the
supervision of the station superintendent, we shall include her in the
unit hereinafter found .appropriate."
We find that all employees of the Company in continental United
States, located at Hingham, Massachusetts; Hialeah, Florida; Ojus,
Florida; Harahan, Louisiana; and Kenner, Louisiana, including the
stenographer-clerk at Hialeah, but excluding executives, chief opera-
tors, chief electricians, the plant superintendent at Kenner, the traffic
superintendent at Harahan, the radio engineer at Ojus, and all other
supervisory employees with authority to hire, promote, discharge,
,discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, or
effectively recommend such action, constitute a unit appropriate for
the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section
9 (b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES .
We shall direct that the question concerning representation which
has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em-
ployees 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 Direc-
tion.
At the hearing the C. I. 0. requested that, by reason of the fact that
the unit contains groups which are widely separated from a geograph-
ical point of view, the ballot be conducted by mail. Since the Regional
Director is authorized to conduct elections in such manner as he deems
advisable and expedient under the circumstances presented, we shall
leave the determination of the method to be employed in the conduct
of the instant election to the Regional Director's discretion.?
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 Relations Act,
and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, as amended, it is hereby
The president of the Company testified that the station superintendent at Hialeah types
his own letters on matters of a confidential nature or concerning labor relations and that
he has been instructed to keep all such correspondence in his custody and accessible to him
only.
e See Matter of Goodman Manufacturing Company, 58 N. L. It. B. 531.
7 See Matter of Magnolia Pipe Line Company, 61 N. L. It. B . 723; Matter of Albers Super
Markets, Inc., 61 N. L. It. B. 1101.
TROPICAL RADIO TELEGRAPH COMPANY 1123.
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Tropical Radio
Telegraph Company, Boston, Massachusetts, 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 First Region, acting in
this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and sub-
ject to Article III, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regulations,
among the employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV,
above, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately
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 ofr, and including employees in the armed forces.
of the United States who present themselves in person at the polls, but
excluding any who have since quit or been discharged for cause and
have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the election,
to determine whether they desire to be represented by American Com-
munications Association, C. I. 0., or by The Radio Officers' Union
of the Commercial Telegraphers Union, A. F. of L., for the purposes
of collective bargaining, or by neither.
IRMAN HERZOG took no part in the consideration of the, aboveCH
Decion and Direction of Election.
662514-46-vol, 63--7?