Winton Lumber Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Aug 31, 1948

79 N.L.R.B. 334 (N.L.R.B. 1948)

In the Matter Of WINTON LUMBER COMPANY, EMPLOYER and OPERAT-
ING ENGINEERS, LOCAL UNION No. 3 OF THE INTERNATIONAL UNION
OF OPERATING ENGINEERS, A. F. L., PETITIONER
In the Matter of ASSOCIATED LUMBER AND Box COMPANY, EMPLOYER
and OPERATING ENGINEERS, LOCAL UNION No. 3 OF THE INTER-
NATIONAL UNION OF OPERATING ENGINEERS, A. F. L., PETITIONER
In the Matter of STOCKTON Box COMPANY, EMPLOYER and OPERATING
ENGINEERS , LOCAL UNION No. 3 OF THE INTERNATIONAL UNION OF
OPERATING ENGINEERS , A. F. L., PETITIONER
Cases Nos . 00-RC--58, 20-RC-59, and 20-RC-74, respectively.-
Decided August 31, 1948
'DECISION
AND
ORDER
Upon separate petitions duly filed, a consolidated hearing was held
before a hearing officer of the National Labor Relations Board. 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-man panel consisting of the undersigned Board
Members.*
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employers are engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the National Labor Relations Act.
2. The Petitioner is a labor organization, affiliated with the Ameri-
can Federation of Labor, claiming to represent employees of the
Employers.
Central California District Council of Lumber & Sawmill Workers
of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America,
acting on behalf of Local Unions 2927, 2873, 2694, and 2925, herein
* Chairman Herzog and Members Murdock and Gray.
79 N. L. R. B., No. 41.
334
WINTON LUMBER COMPANY 335
-called the Intervenor, is a labor organization, affiliated with the Amer-
ican Federation of Labor, claiming to represent employees of the
Employer.l
3. No questions affecting commerce exist concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employers, within the meaning. of Section
•9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act, because the units
sought, by the Petitioner are inappropriate. The Employers' and
Intervenor's motions to dismiss the petitions are hereby granted.
In each case, the Petitioner generally seeks a unit of motor equip-
ment operators. The Employers and the Intervenor contend that the
units sought are inappropriate.
Each of the Employers is engaged in the same business, the manu-
facture of lumber and box shook. The unit sought in the Winton case
(20-RC-58) is typical of that requested in the other cases. In the
Winton case, the Petitioner seeks to include in one unit all operators
•of tractors, shovels, cranes, and power blades in woods operations.2
The tractor operators operate bulldozers used in building logging
roads, and "caterpillars" used in hauling logs to the loading point.
The shovel and crane operators are primarily engaged in loading logs
on trucks. The power blade operators finish roads started by the
bulldozers. The equipment operators work their machines in close
association with other logging employees not in the unit. The same
foremen supervise equipment operators and other woods employees.
All woods employees live in the same camp and have similar working
-conditions.
These equipment operators are skilled employees, but they are not
craftsmen s For this reason, and also because the collective bargain-
ing history in the logging and sawmill industry does not support sev-
erance of the kind of unit requested by the Petitioner,4 we find that
the units of equipment operators desired by the Petitioner are inappro-
priate for bargaining purposes. Accordingly, we shall dismiss the
petitions.
I The Intervenor has held contracts with two of the Employers and with the predecessor
of the third for a number of years on behalt of all woods employees , including motor equip-
ment operators and sawmill employees
' In the Associated and Stockton cases, the Petitioner also wishes to include oilers and
repairmen working on such motor equipment.
3 Matter of Collins Pine Company, 54 N. L R B 670
4 See , for example , Matter of Willamette National Lumber Company , 74 N. L. R. B. 569;
Matter of Jerry Aau is d/b/a Jerry Aarts Logging Company, 69 N. L. it, B. 1371 ; Matter
of Quincy Lumber Company , 67 N. L. R B 1119.
336 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
ORDER
Upon the basis of the foregoing findings of fact and upon the entire
record in these cases, the National Labor Relations Board hereby
orders that the petitions for investigation and certification of represen-
tatives of employees of Winton Lumber Company, Associated Lumber
and Box Company, and Stockton Box Company , filed herein by Oper-
ating Engineers , Local Union No. 3 of the International Union of
Operating Engineers , A. F. L., be, and they hereby are, dismissed.