Mueller Brass Co.

In the Matter Of MUELLER BRASS COMPANY and UNITED AUTOMOBILE, AIRCRAFT AND AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENT WORKERS (U. A. W.- C. I. O.) , Case No. R-3478.-Decided February 24,194R Jurisdiction : brass and copper parts manufacturing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re- fusal to accord union recognition because of existing contract with another union ; contract about to expire no bar ; employees laid off less than six months and not permanently employed elsewhere are eligible to vote ; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production and maintenance employees including checkers, timekeepers and janitors, but excluding fore- men, gang leaders, supervisory employees above the rank of gang leaders, clerical office employees, powerhouse, employees, and plant-protection em- ployees; employees who are engaged mainly in making and repairing machine tools excluded over Company's objection. ,/ Walsh, Walsh, O'Sullivan & Sehlee, by Mr. William R. Walsh, of Port Huron, Mich., for the Company: Mr. Maurice Sugar and Mr. Jack N. Tucker, of Detroit, Mich., for the U. A. W. Mr. Joseph A. Padway, by Mr. Henry Kaiser, of Washington, D. C., for the Federal Union. Mr. Carl S. Carlson, of Detroit, Mich., for the I. A. M. Mr. Robert E. Tillman, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On November 24, 1941, United Automobile, Aircraft and Agricul- tural Implement Workers,, (U. A. W.-C. I. 0.), herein called the U. A. W., filed with the Regional Director for the Seventh Region (Detroit, Michigan) a petition alleging that, a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Mueller Brass Company, Port Huron, Michigan, herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of repre- sentatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations 39 N. L. R. B., No. 30. 167 168 DECISIONS OF. NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On January 14, 1942, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pur- suant 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. On January 17, 1942, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the U. A. W., and upon Brass, Bronze & Copper Workers Federal Union No. 18796, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the Federal Union, a labor organization claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on January 26, 1942, at Port Huron, Michigan, before Jerome H. Brooks, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. At the hearing International Association of Machinists, Local 218, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the I. All M., a. labor organization claiming to represent employees of the Company, appeared,' stated that it had received notice of hearing, and requested to be heard. The Trial Examiner ruled that the I., A. M. thereby became a party to the proceeding. His ruling is hereby affirmed. The Company, the U. A. W., the Federal Union, and the I. A. M. were represented and participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine -1 and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded all parties. During the course of the hearing, the Trial Examiner made rulings on motions and on objections-to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the. rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were com- mitted. The rulings are hereby affrmed. On February 2, 1942, the Company filed a "Motion to Reopen Proofs." On February 9, 1942, the Board denied this motion. On February 10 and 16, 1942, the I. A. M. and the Company, respectively, filed briefs which the Board has considered. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Mueller Brass Company, is a Michigan corporation having its main plant and principal office at Port Huron, Michigan, where it is engaged in the manufacture of brass and copper-pipe castings, fittings, MUELLER BRASS COMPANY .169 valves and fittings for electrical refrigerators, and screw-machine products. At the present time the plant is devoted almost wholly to ' defense production. From June 1, 1941, to November 30, 1941, the Company used raw materials of a value estimated at $4,700,000, approximately $4,252,000 of which materials were shipped to' its plant from sources outside the State of Michigan. During the same period the Port Huron plant sold products amounting in value to approximately $10,208,000., Approximately $9,200,000 of such prod- ucts were shipped to points outside the State of Michigan. The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act. H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED -International Union, United Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, (U. A. W.-C. I. 0.), is a labor organization admitting to membership employees of the Company. Brass, Bronze & Copper Workers Federal Union No. 18796, A. F. of L., is a labor organization admitting to membership employees of the Company. International Association of Machinists, Local 218, A. F. of, L., is a labor organization admitting to membership employees of the /Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On November 14, 1941, the U. A. W. made a demand on the Com- pany that it be recognized as the exclusive representative of a certain group of employees. The Company refused this recognition on the ground that the Company had an existing contract with the Federal Union covering that group of employees. The contract was executed on February 20, 1939. It provides that it shall remain in effect for the term of 3 years, unless terminated under certain circumstances not here material, and shall continue in force thereafter unless terminated by either party at the end of the third or any succeeding yearly period by notice at least 30 days prior to the end of such period. The Federal Union now claims that, because of this existing contract, the petition of the U. A. W. was filed prematurely, and hence that the Board should dismiss the peti- tion. However, the original term of the contract expires on February 20, 1942, and more than 30 days prior to that date the U. A. W. notified the Company of its claim to represent the employees. We conclude that the contract neither renders the filing of the petition premature, nor is it a bar to the present proceeding. 170 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD The U. A. W. has submitted to the Regional Director evidence showing that it represents a substantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found 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 U. A. W., the Federal Union , and the I. A. M. stipulated that the following employees should constitute the appropriate unit: all production and maintenance employees, excluding foremen, super- visory employees, clerical office employees ,2 Unit A (represented by the I. A. M.),3 powerhouse employees, and plant-protection employees. This is the unit now covered by the contract between the Federal, Union and the Company . The Company contends that a single plant- -^. wide unit, including machinists (Unit A), is appropriate. - The record discloses that the Port Huron plant consists of approxi- mately 20 buildings, all within the same enclosure, and all under a single unified management. At the present time, approximately 1,900 employees are classed as production workers, and 200 as em- ployees within Unit A which is represented by the I. A. M. The bulk of employees eligible to Unit A are located in separate buildings apart from the actual production workers, although a substantial number of them are scattered throughout the production depart- ments. Their chief functions are concerned with the making- and repairing of tools and machines for use solely in the plant. With 1 The Regional Director's statement shows that the U. A. W. submitted 911 authorization cards, of which 842 bore names appearing on the December 26, 1941, pay roll, which con- tained 1,991 names. Of these 842 cards , 121 n; ere unsigned , and 10 bore handprinted names ; signatures on the remaining 711 appear to be genuine . Of the 842 cards, 7 were dated March to September 1941; 65 were dated in October 1941 ; 300 in November 1941 ; ' 128 in December 1941 ; and 342 were undated . The Federal Union presented no member- ships cards , but relied on its contract to establish its substantial interest in the proceedings 2 The unions further stipulated that clerical office employees refers only to official clerical office employees , not to those in the plant and not to timekeepers and checkers. 3 Unit A includes tool , and die makers, die sinkers , tool grinders , pattern makers, ma- chinists, millwrights, heat treaters, rod and tool mill die crib employees , blacksmiths, tool designers , and helpers and apprentices to the above categories. MUELLER BRASS COMPANY 171 few exceptions, they have their own foremen. The average rate of pay of employees- in the machinists' group is above that of employees in the production unit. The Federal Union and the I. A. M. first organized employees of the Company in the fall of 1933. For the following 3 years negotia- tions were informal, and, upon the Company's insistence, the plant, was treated as one unit. The first written contract was signed by the Company with a joint committee of the two unions in Septem- ber 1937, still treating employees of the plant as one unit. This contract was renewed in 1938. A new contract was signed Febru- ary 17, 1939, with the I. A. M:, covering employees in Unit A; and one with the Federal Union on February.20, 1939; covering the re- mainder of the plant employees. Although two units were set up, the Company did not waive its contention that there should be a single plant-wide bargaining unit. Each of these 1939 contracts was supplemented in 1940 and 1941. In view of the above-stated facts, we are of the opinion that employees in Unit A should be excluded from the bargaining unit composed of production and maintenance workers. Within the production and maintenance unit, the parties disagree with respect to the inclusion or exclusion of gang leaders, checkers nand timekeepers, and janitors. c Group or gang leaders: The U. A. W. and the Federal Union would include these employees in the unit as being non-supervisory; they would classify as supervisors only shift foremen ' and their superiors. The Company would exclude group or gang leaders as being a part of management, and because all the contracts have excluded them as such. The evidence discloses that gang leaders are comparable to straw- bosses, having 6 to 12 men under their direction. They recommend for promotion and discharge, and according to the testimony of the plant superintendent, such recommendations are customarily fol- lowed by the management; they allot the work and inspect it when finished; and they enforce discipline. In view of these indicia of supervisory control, and because prior bargaining contracts have specifically excluded gang leaders, we find gang leaders should be excluded from the appropriate unit. S Checkers and Omzekeepers: The U. A. W. and the Federal Union would include this group in the unit. The Company would exclude them because they work for management, are confidential, and do no production work. ` Checkers are scattered throughout the plant to keep records of each employee's output. They report their figures to the timekeep- ers. The latter then compile lists which serve as a basis for com- puting each employee's earnings. Neither the checkers nor the time- 172 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD keepers perform any manual work. The present contract, in setting up the bargaining unit, does not specifically refer to this group. Although the work performed by this group of employees is largely clerical, checkers and timekeepers are closely related to production and maintenance workers. It is clear that their work is not of a character to render them ineligible to participation in a bargaining unit with other production and maintenance employees. Under normal collective bargaining arrangements, such information as the timekeepers and the checkers have in their possession is available to the bargaining representatives. We find, therefore, that checkers and timekeepers should be within the appropriate unit. Janitors: The U. A. W. and the Federal Union would include this group. The Company objects to their inclusion in view of the fact that the Board has excluded janitors in certain other cases. The record discloses that the janitors perform their usual duties in the various production departments of the plant. Although none of the prior contracts has specifically referred to janitors in setting up the bargaining unit, the supplemental agreement of March 31, 1941, executed pursuant to the 1939 contract, fixed the wage scale for janitors of each production department. We are of the opinion that the janitors should be included within the appropriate unit. We find that all production and maintenance employees including checkers, timekeepers and janitors, but excluding foremen,, gang' leaders, supervisory employees above the rank of-gang leaders, cleri- cal office employees, Unit A (represented by the I. A. M.), power- house employees, and plant-protection employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, and that said unit will insure to employees of the Company the full benefit of their right to self-organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise will effectuate the policies of the Act VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES At the hearing the Company urged, because of the necessity for uninterrupted, full-time war production, that the Board withhold its direction of election in this proceeding and permit the Federal Union to continue as the exclusive bargaining representative of the employees. In view of -the existence of a representation dispute, as, we have found in Section III, supra, we are of the opinion that, contrary to the Company's contention, an election by secret ballot at the present time will best resolve the existing question concerning representation and thus stabilize collective bargaining relations. We therefore find the Company's contention to be without merit. There is some disagreement among the parties regarding em- ployees who have been laid off for less than 6 months, and who thus retain their seniority rating under the Company' s employment MUELLER BRASS COMPANY 173 policy. The U. A. W. insists that all such employees 'should vote, even though employed elsewhere, provided they have not quit or been discharged from the Company. The Federal Union believes that men working elsewhere should not be permitted to vote. We are of the opinion that those • employees laid off less than 6 months who have not accepted permanent employment elsewhere are entitled to vote. We. find that those eligible to vote shall be the- employees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of our Direction of Election, or who have been laid off less than 6 months preceding said pay-roll period and have not accepted permanent employment elsewhere, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in our 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 Mueller Brass Company, Port Huron, Mich- igan, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and' Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. 2. All production and maintenance employees of Mueller Brass Company, including checkers, timekeepers and janitors, but excluding foremen, gang leaders, supervisory employees above the rank of gang leaders, clerical office employees, Unit A (represented by the I. A. M.), powerhouse employees, and plant-protection employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the 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 Re- lations Act and pursuant to Article III, Section 8; of 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 with Mueller Brass Company, Port Huron, Michigan, 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 of Election, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Seventh 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 production and maintenance employees of the Company who were employed during the pay-roll period imme- 174 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL,LABOR RELATIONS BOARD diately preceding the date of this Direction of Election or who have been laid off less than 6 months preceding said pay-roll period and have not accepted permanent employment elsewhere, including check- ers, timekeepers, janitors, and 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 foremen, gang leaders, supervisory employees above the rank of gang leaders, clerical office employees, Unit A (represented by the I. A. M.), powerhouse employees, plant-protec- tion employees, and those employees who have since quit or been dis-, charged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by United Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Work- ers, (U. A. W.-C. I. 0.), or by Brass, Bronze & Copper Workers Federal Union No. 18796, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purpose of collective bargaining, or by neither. CHAIRMAN Miuas took no part in the consideration of the above Decision and Direction of Election. In the Matter Of MUELLER BRASS COMPANY and UNITED AUTOMOBILE, AIRCRAFT AND AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENT WORKERS, (U. A. W.- C.I.O.) Case No. R-8478 AMENDMENT TO DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION March 19, 1942 On February 24, 1942, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, issued a Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceeding. On March 6, 1942, the Brass, Bronze & Copper Workers Federal Union No. 18796, affiliated with the A. F. of L., the intervening labor organization in this proceeding, filed a motion requesting the Board to reconsider and modify its decision with respect to the unit therein found to be appropriate, by including in the unit employees of the powerhouse. On March 13, 1942, the Regional Director for the Seventh Region (Detroit, Michigan) noti- fied the Board that United Automobile, Aircraft, and Agricultural Implement Workers, (U. A. W.-C. I. 0.), the petitioner herein, had indicated that it had no objection to the granting of the motion. It appears that powerhouse employees had been covered in an exist- ing collective agreement, but that at the hearing the.labor organiza- tions involved had inadvertently stipulated for their exclusion. The Board is of the, opinion that the aforesaid motion should be granted. The Decision and Direction of Election will be amended accordingly. The Decision and Direction of Election in this proceeding, issued February 24, 1942, is hereby amended by striking "powerhouse em- ployees" from the-list of groups excluded from the appropriate unit and from eligibility to vote, and by inserting "powerhouse employees" in the list, of groups included within the appropriate unit and eligible to vote. MR. WM. M. LEISERSON took no part in the consideration of the above Amendment to Decision and Direction of Election. 139 N. L R. B. 167. 39 N L R. B., No. 30a. 175 448105-42-vol. 39-13