Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Co.

In the Matter of TENNESSEE COAL, IRON & RAILROAD CO., HOLT BLAST FURNACE and FEDERAL LOCAL #22871, HOLT, ALABAMA Case 'No. R-3!63.Decided March 19,, 19/,2 Jurisdiction : iron and steel products manufacturing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question : refusal to accord union recognition until certified by the Board ; contract for members only with intervening union entered into prior to acquisition of plant involved, no bar to; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em- ployees excluding foremen, assistant foremen, supervisors in charge of any classes of labor, guards, watchmen, clerical, and salaried employees at Company's recently acquired plant located 55 miles from Company's other steel plants, held to constitute an appropriate unit notwithstanding claim of intervening union that the appropriate unit consists of all the Company's plants where among other circumstances the operation of the plant is in all probability temporary ; and where the union contending that the plant is an inappropriate unit, had previously entered into consent election agreement at this plant. Mr. Borden Burr, of Birmingham; Ala., for the Company. Mr. Robert R. Moore, Mr. W. O. Hare, and Mr. R. 0. Ross, of Bir- mingham, Ala., for the Federal. Parsons Mitch (by Mr. William E. Mitch) and Mr. Noel R. Bed- dow, of Birmingham, Ala., for the S. W O. C. Mr. Charles W. Schneider, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On October 31, 1941, Federal, Local #22871, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the Federal, filed with the Regional Director for the Tenth Region (Atlanta, Georgia) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen con cerning the representation of employees of Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Co., Holt Blast Furnace, Holt, Alabama, and requesting an investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 39 N. L R. B., No. 69. 402 TENNESSEE COAL, IRON & RAILROAD CO. - 403 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat . 449, herein called the Act. On December 23, 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. On December 31, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hear- ing, and on January 8 , 1942, an amended notice of hearing, copies of both of which were duly served upon the Company , the Federal, and also upon Steel Workers Organizing Committee , herein called the S. W. O. C., a labor organization claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to notice a hearing was held on January 16 , 1942, at Tus- caloosa, Alabama, before John C. McRee , the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company, the Federal. and the S. W. O. C. were represented at, and participated in, the hear- ing. Full opportunity to be heard , to examine and cross-examine wit- nesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded all parties. During the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several rulings on motions and on objections to the admission of evi- dence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed . The rulings are hereby affirmed. The Company and the S. W. O. C. filed briefs which the Board has' considered. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Co ., a subsidiary of United , States Steel Corporation , is a Tennessee corporation, having its principal office and place of business in Birmingham , Alabama, and maintaining offices in other parts of the country in connection with the sale of its products. It is engaged in the manufacture and fabrication of. steel and steel products ; a large portion of which are shipped to foreign countries and to States other than Alabama. The.Company employs approximately 32,000 persons . Approximately 98 percent of the prod- ucts of the Company go into the performance of war defense con- tracts, and the distribution of these products is allocated by the War Production Board. The Company admits, that it is' within the jurisdiction of the Board for the purposes of this proceeding. 404 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED Federal Local #22871 is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to membership employees of the Company. Steel Workers Organizing Committee is a labor organization affili- ated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On September 26, 1941, the Federal notified the Company that it represented a majority of the employees at the Company's Holt Blast Furnace, Holt, Alabama, and requested the execution of an exclusive bargaining contract. The Company refused such recognition until the Federal was certified by the Board. Both the Federal and the S. W. O. C. submitted substantial evidence of representation among employees in the alleged appropriate unit,, - The S. W. O. C. asserts that an existing members-only contract which it has with the Company is a bar to an election. This contract was executed on April 1, 1941, and is to continue in effect until changed or terminated on 20 days' written notice. The agreement recognizes the S. W. O. C. as the collective bargaining representative of its members employed in and about the Company's steel manufacturing and byproduct coke plants, excluding foremen, assistant foremen, or supervisors in charge of any classes of labor, watchmen, guards, clerical, or salaried employees. The Holt Blast Furnace was not in operation at the time this contract was executed, nor was its acquisition by the Company then contemplated. We find that the contract does not constitute a bar to an election at Holt, and 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 i The Federal submitted to a Field Examiner of the Board 110 authorization-membership cards, all bearing apparently genuine original signatures , and all dated during September. October, November, and December 1941. All 110 signatures were the names of persons on the Company's November 10, 1941, pay roll. The S. W. O. C. submitted 120 similar cards ; 114 dated in August, September, and October, 1941, and 6 undated. One hundred and seventeen contained apparently genuine original signatures ; 3 bore printed signatures . Seventy-eight of the 117 signatures were the names of persons on the Company's November 10, 1941, pay roll. There were 264 employees in the alleged appropriate unit according to the November 10, 1941 , pay roll. TENNESSEE COAL, IRON'& RAILROAD Co. 405 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 Company and- the Federal contend that the appropriate unit consists of all production and maintenance employees of the Holt Blast Furnace, excluding foremen, assistant foremen, supervisors in charge of any classes of labor, guards, watchmen, clerical, and sal- aried employees. In addition to contending that its contract with the Company constituted a bar to an election, the S. W. O. C. also con- tends that a bargaining unit confined to the employees of Holt is inap- propriate for the reason that the appropriate unit consists of all the Company's manufacturing plants, including Holt. The S. W. O. C. did not, however, request an election in such unit. The Manufacturing Division of the Company consists of six adja- cent steel plants located in Jefferson County, near Birmingham, Ala- bama. The S. W. O. C. urges that Holt should be considered a part of the Manufacturing Division for bargaining purposes. The Holt Blast Furnace is located at Holt, Alabama, 55 miles from the Birmingham plants. It appears that Holt had been out of opera- tion for about 10 years when, at the insistence of the Office of Pro- duction Management, it was purchased, renovated, and reopened by the Company, about September 1, 1941, for the production of foundry iron for Company customers manufacturing defense goods. The Company had' formerly produced such iron at the Birmingham blast furnaces, but was not under contract to do so. The Birmingham fur- naces now manufacture no foundry iron whatever. The 'distribution of the entire output of Holt, as well as the output of the Company's other plants, is allocated by the War Production Board.' Although Holt is under the same general supervision as the Birmingham plants, it is not considered by the Company to be a permanent part of the Manufacturing Division, was renovated with the expectation of being operated for not more than 2 years, and will in all probability be abandoned after the national emergency has passed. Due to the fact that its output has proved greater than was anticipated, Holt is also producing'some basic iron which is used at the Birmingham plants in the manufacture of, steel. When the monthly quota of foundry iron has been produced, the Holt furnace is converted to the manufacture of basic iron for the remainder of the month. Thus far, about 10 percent of Holt's capacity has been devoted 'to such produc- tion. However, the basic iron manufactured by Holt is merely over- z Referred to in the record as the Office of Production Management. 406 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD flow and is not needed for the continued operation of the Birmingham plants. The labor used at Holt is native to that region except for 12 to 15 keymen, mostly supervisors, who were transferred from Bir- mingham plants . There is no other interchange of employment. Wage rates for basic labor are 8 to 10 cents per hour lower, at Holt than at Birmingham. On November 12, 1941, the Company, the Federal, and the S. W. O. C. entered into an agreement for a consent election at Holt. The bargaining unit provided by the agreement was the same as that' urged here by the Company and the Federal . The election was scheduled for December 19, 1941, but on December 15 the S. W. O. C. notified the Regional Director that'it withdrew its consent. In view of these circumstances , we are of the opinion, that the employees of the Holt Blast Furnace constitute an appropriate bar- gaining -unit at this time. We find that' all production and maintenance employees of the Holt Blast Furnace, excluding foremen, assistant foremen, super- visors in charge of any classes of labor, •guards, watchmen , clerical, and salaried employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the pur- poses of collective bargaining , and that said unit will insure to the 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 We find that the question concerning • representation which has arisen can best be resolved by 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 employed during the pay-roll , period immediately preceding this Direction of Election, 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 rep resentation of employees of Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Co., Holt Blast Furnace, Holt, Alabama ,'within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and ,(7) of the Act. =2. All production and maintenance employees of the , Holt Blast Furnace, excluding foremen, assistant foremen, supervisors in charge of any classes of labor, guards , watchmen, clerical, and salaried em- TENNESSEE COAL, IRON & RAILROAD CO. 407 ployees, 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 authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Co., Holt Blast Furnace, Holt, Alabama, 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 Tenth 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 Holt Blast Furntice who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the-date of this Direction of Election, including employees who did not work during said 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, assistant foremen, super- visors in charge of any classes of labor, guards, watchmen, clerical, and salaried employees , and employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause , to determine whether they desire to be repre- sented by Federal Local #22871 , A. F. L., or by Steel Workers Organizing Committee , C. I. 0., for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither. CHAIRMAN' MILLTS took no part' in the consideration of the above Decision and Direction of Election.