White Sewing Machine Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 11, 1950

89 N.L.R.B. 1284 (N.L.R.B. 1950)

In the Matter of WrnrvE SEWING MACHINE CORPORATION, EMPLOYER
,and INTERNATIONAL UNION OF ELECTRICAL, RADIO & MACHINE
WORKERS, CIO, LOCAL 721, PETITIONER
Case No. 8-RC-04.-Decided May 11, 1950
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before Philip Fusco,
hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing
are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed .1
Pusuant 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 Reynolds and Styles].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds : 2
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All parties agree that International Union of Electrical, Radio
& Machine Workers, CIO, herein called the IUE, United Electrical,
i After the close of the hearing , International Union of Operating Engineers, AFL,
Local 589 , herein called the Operating Engineers , filed a motion with the Board requesting
that its name be placed on the ballot in any election which might be directed among pro-
duction and maintenance employees . At the time of the hearing the Operating Engineers
made no claim to represent these employees . Its motion is based on the assertion that
after the hearing it obtained a substantial number of authorization cards among produc-
tion and maintenance employees . In accordance with our long -established practice, we
will not permit a union to participate in an election on the strength of a showing of interest
acquired after the close of the hearing . The motion is denied . Grand Central Airport
Company, 70 NLRB 1094.
z United Electrical , Radio and Machine Workers of America, herein called the UE, an
intervenor , in this proceeding , moved to dismiss the petition on the ground that the use
by the Petitioner ' s local of the numerical designation 721, the same number used by the
UE's local at the plant involved , causes confusion among the ' Employer ' s employees and is
fraudulent in purpose. The alleged fraud goes to the property rights of the unions in-
volved, upon which we do not purport to pass. We have already held in a similar situa-
tion, that the use of the same number by competing unions does not confuse the voters in
an election like that hereinafter directed . Radio Corporation of America, 89 NLRB 699.
The motion is therefore denied.
For the same reason, the UE's further motions to dismiss the petition, made after the
close of the hearing, on the ground that conflicting claims to property rights are now
being litigated in the courts , and a temporary restraining order has been issued , are also
denied. See Sperry Gyroscope Company, 88 NLRB 907.
89 NLRB No. 144.
1284
WHITE SEWING MACHINE CORPORATION 1285
Radio & Machine Workers of America, and International Union of
Operating Engineers, A. F. L., are labor organizations. However,
the IUE contends that the UE's affiliate, herein called Local 721-UE,
is not a labor organization, and, conversely, the UE disputes the
status of the IUE's affiliate, herein called Local 721-IUE, as a labor
organization.
Local 721-IUE is composed of employees of the Employer who were
formerly members, of Local 721-UE. On November 20, 1949, at a
membership meeting of Local 721-UE, a majority of the employees
present voted to disaffiliate from the UE and to seek affiliation with
the CIO. Thereafter, this group received a charter from the IUE.
Under the name International Union of Electrical, Radio & Machine
Workers, CIO, Local 721, it then complied with the filing require-
ments of the Act and filed the instant petition. All its officers had
held similar positions with Local 721-UE.
Local 721-UE has represented the bulk of the Employer's employees
for the purpose of collective bargaining for a number of years. Fol-
lowing the disaffiliation meeting of November 20, 1949, it has con-
tinued to function through an administrative committee, which was
established to conduct the affairs of the local. Its last meeting, held
on November 24, 1949, was attended by 44 employees.
Upon the foregoing facts, we are satisfied that both Local721-IUE
and Local 721-UE now exist for the purpose of admitting employees
to membership and to deal with the Employer on matters relating
to wages and other working conditions.3 Accordingly, we find that
International Union of Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers, CIO,
and its affiliate Local 721; United Electrical, Radio & Machine Work-
ers of America, and its affiliate Local 721; and International Union
of Operating Engineers, AFL, are labor organizations claiming to
represent certain employees of the Employer.4
3. The question concerning representation :
The UE and Local 721-UE contend that a collective bargaining
agreement now in effect between them and the Employer constitutes
a bar to this proceeding. By its terms, this contract, covering the
employees here involved, is to remain in effect until June 30, 1950.
The IUE and its Local 721-IUE, on the other hand, assert that the
facts in this case-reveal a schism in the contracting unions and ask
that for this reason an election be held. The Employer is neutral
but is unwilling to bargain with either the UE or the IUE because
8 Sperry Gyroscope Company , supra.
* For the same reason we hereby deny the IUE 's motion to strike the Intervention of
the UR and Local 721-UE on the ground that they are defunct.
1286 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
of the confusion as to which labor organization now represents its
employees.
As a result of the intraunion split revealed by the record in this.
case, the IUE and the UE challenge, with some show of right, each
others' claim to representative status. In these circumstances, the
normal bargaining relationship between the Employer and the former
bargaining representatives of its employees has become a matter of
confusion and the contract between them can no longer be said to,
promote stability in labor relations. On substantially similar facts,,
we have found that a current contract between the employer and
the preexisting bargaining representative is not a bar to a present
determination of representatives.' We conclude, therefore, that in
this instance also the conflicting claims of the labor organizations
involved can be best resolved by an election." Accordingly, the mo-
tion to dismiss 'the petition on the ground of a contract bar is denied.
We find that questions affecting commerce exist 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.
4. The appropriate unit; the determination of representatives:
Except for the proposed inclusion, fully discussed below, of patrol
inspectors, production control clerks and watchmen in the production
and maintenance unit, the parties agree to the composition of a pro-
duction and maintenance unit and of a voting group, for purposes
of a self-determination election, of powerhouse employees.'
Patrol Inspectors: Contrary to the contention of the IUE and the
UE, the Employer asserts that 37 Patrol Inspectors are supervisors
and should be excluded from the unit. These employees patrol the
production departments, and check the quality of the manufactured
products. They watch for defective workmanship and have author-
ity to stop a job when it is being improperly performed. They make
written reports respecting the quality of the work performed by
individual employees. Although they are directly supervised by an
inspection foreman, who in turn reports to a chief inspector, Patrol
Inspectors make their headquarters in or near the production depart-
ments where they spend the majority of ' their time. Although the
record reveals no instance of their exercise of supervisory authority,
the Employer's representatives testified without contradiction, that
5 Boston Machine Works Company, 89 NLRB 59.
6 In view of our finding herein, we find it unnecessary to pass upon the IUE's further
contention that the contract is not a bar because of an allegedly illegal union-security
clause.
' The Operating Engineers intervened to request severance of the powerhouse employees
from an existing industrial unit. As all parties are in agreement, we perceive no reason
for denying a "Globe" election to these employees.
WHITE' SEWING MACHINE CORPORATION 1287
they have authority effectively to recommend the hire or discharge of
production workers. There is no testimony to the contrary. In these
'circumstances, we find that they are supervisors, and we shall exclude
them from the unit.
Production Control Clerks: The Employer would also exclude as
supervisors, contrary to the contention of the IUE and the UE, 34
production control clerks. These employees work in the production
departments. Their principal task is to keep time records, weigh
and tag production parts, make computations, and record the quantity
of work produced. They may reject defective work, and thus affect
the earnings of production employees. They have no authority to
hire, discharge, or discipline production employees. We find that
these employees are factory clericals and not supervisors as defined
in the Act." We shall therefore include them in the unit.
Watchmen: The UE would include, and the Employer and the IUE
would exclude, the watchmen. The watchmen spend over 90 percent
of-their time guarding the entrances of the plant and protecting the
Employer's premises. As they perform essentially guard duties, we
shall exclude them from the production and maintenance unit.
In accordance with the agreement of the parties, we find that the
powerhouse employees may, if they desire, constitute a separate ap-
propriate unit. However, we shall make no unit determination at
this time, but shall first ascertain the desires of the employees them-
selves as expressed in the elections hereinafter directed.
We shall direct that an election be held in each of the following
voting groups, excluding from each group all supervisors as defined
-in the Act:
1. All production and maintenance employees at the Employer's
Cleveland and Lakewood, Ohio, plants, including janitors, toolroom
employees, inside truck drivers, sorter inspectors, and production
control clerks, but excluding patrol inspectors, firemen, firemen help-
ers, foremen, assistant foremen, supervisory group leaders, supervisory
lead men, nurses, time-study employees, cafeteria employees, outside
truck drivers, watchmen, office and clerical employees, guards, and
professional employees.
2. All firemen and firemen helpers at the Employer's Cleveland
and Lakewood, Ohio, plants, excluding the chief engineer, and all
other employees.
8 Farrell-Cheek Steel Company, 88 NLRB 303.
1288 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS"
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with the Employer, separate elec-
tions by secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not
later than 30 days from the date of this Direction, under the direction
and supervision 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 voting groups, described in paragraph numbered 4,
above, who were employed during the payroll period immediately
preceding the date of this Direction of Elections, 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 reinstated prior to the date of the election, and also ex-
cluding employees on strike who are not entitled to reinstatement, to
determine :
(1) Whether or not the employees in Voting Group No. 1 desire
to be represented for purposes of collective bargaining by Inter-
national Union of Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers, CIO, Local
721; and
(2) Whether the employees in Voting Group No. 2 desire to be
represented for purposes of collective bargaining by International
Union of Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers, CIO, Local 721, or
by International Union of Operating Engineers, AFL, or by neither.
6 United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, and its Local 721, are omitted
from the ballot because of the failure of Local 721-UE to comply with the filing require-
ments of Section 9 (f), (g), and ( h) of the Act. In the event Local 721-UE effects com-
pliance with the filing requirements of the Act within 2 weeks of the date of this Direction,
the Regional Director is instructed to accord the UE and Local 721-UL a place on the
ballot in the elections directed herein.