King Machine Tool Co.

In the Matter of KING MACHINE TOOL Co. and LOCAL 766, UNITED 'ELECTRICAL) RADIO 8L MACHINE WORKERS OF AMERICA, C. I. O. Case No. B-3496.-Decided February 19, 192 Jurisdiction : machine tools manufacturing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re- fusal to bargain collectively with petitioner until certified by. the Board as the statutory representative; election necessary Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production and maintenance employees of the Company at one of two of its plants including employees in the tool room but excluding office employees, foremen, assistant foremen, supervisors, leadmen, plant guards, and all other employees having the right to hire and discharge, held appropriate notwithstanding Company's desire for a multiple plant-unit comprising this plant and its other plant which it has recently begun operating. Frost c Jacobs, by Mr. Cornelius J. Petzh,old, of Cincinnati, Ohio, for the Company. Mr. Arthur L. Garfield, of Dayton, Ohio, and Mr. Waldo Stager, of Cincinnati, Ohio, for the Union. Mr. George H. Gentithes, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ' ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On January 13, 1942, Local 766, United Electrical, Radio & Ma- chine Workers of America (C. I. 0.), hereinafter called the Union, filed with the Regional Director for the Ninth Region (Cincinnati, Ohio) a petition, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of King Machine Tool Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, herein called the Company, and request- ing an investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On January 26, 1942, 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 Re- lations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, ordered 39 N. L. R. B., No. 1. 1 2 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD an investigation and authorized the Regional Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice. On January 26, 1942, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the Union. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on January 28, 1942, at Cincinnati , Ohio, before Alba B . ,Martin, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. At the hearing the Com- pany and the Union appeared and participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard , to examine 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 several rulings on motions and on objections to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial -Ex- aminer and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. Upon the entire record in the case , the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY King Machine Tool Co. is an Ohio corporation engaged in the manufacture of a machine tool known as a vertical boring and turn- ing machine. It owns and operates two plants in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1941 the Company purchased raw materials consisting of iron and steel, 40 percent of which came from sources outside they State of Ohio. During 1941 the value of the sales from these plants ex- ceeded $1,000,000. Approximately 90 percent of these finished prod- ucts were shipped outside the State of Ohio. The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within they meaning of the Act. H. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED Local 766, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION The Company refused to bargain collectively with the Union until it is certified by the Board as the statutory representative . A state- ment of the Field Examiner, supplemented by investigation, of the Trial Examiner, introduced in evidence, shows that the Union rep- KING MACHINE TOOL CO. 3 resents a substantial number of employees in the alleged appropriate unit.' 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 operation 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 com- merce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The parties agree that all production and maintenance employees, including employees in the tool room, but excluding office employees, foremen, assistant foremen, supervisors, leadmen, plant guards, and all other employees having the right to hire and discharge, constitute the classifications of employees which should comprise the appro- priate unit. The Union contends that the above-described employees of Plant 1 alone constitute an appropriate unit. The Company contends that such employees of both Plant 1 and Plant 2 constitute a single appro- priate unit. The Company bases its contention on the fact that the operations of the two plants are closely integrated and supplement each other in the manufacture of finished products turned out by the Company. However, production work at Plant 2 had begun only some 3 weeks before the hearing and had reached only one-third of its capacity. At that time there were 275 employees at Plant 1 and 110 at Plant 2. The Company contemplates hiring some 200 additional men, most of whom will be allocated to Plant 2. The Union has limited its organizational activities largely to Plant 1, although it expects to organize the employees of Plant 2.2 In view of the present 'The Field Examiner 's statement, supplemented by the Trial Examiner 's investigation, shows that 142 authorization and membership cards were submitted Forty of these were undated and the others were dated between August 1941 and January 1942, with the single exception of a card dated January 1941 Of the 142 union cards bearing genuine original signatures, 115 correspond with the names listed as employed in Plant 1 and,8 correspond with the names listed as employed in Plant 2, as of the January 19, 1942 , pay roll. This pay ioll of January 10, 1942, included 187 names in the category stipulated as appropriate in Plant 1 and 84 additional names in Plant 2 2 While Plant 2 was still under construction , the Union distributed a handbill urging the employees of Plant 2 to attend a union meeting in preparation for organizing at Plant 2. t 4 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD restricted use of the productive capacity of "Plant 2 and the con- templated expansion of personnel and since the self -organization of employees has not extended substantially beyond Plant 1, we are of the opinion that the employees of Plant 1 constitute at the present time an appropriate bargaining unit. This finding will not preclude a later redetermination of the question of the appropriateness of a two-plant unit upon proper proceedings . We therefore find that all production and maintenance employees , including employees in the tool room, but excluding office employees , foremen, assistant fore- men, supervisors, leadmen, plant guards, and all other employees hav- ing the right to hire and discharge, employed at Plant 1 of the Com- pany, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. We further find that such 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 We find that the question which has arisen can best be resolved by the holding of an election by secret ballot. In accordance with our usual practice we 'shall direct that an election by secret ballot be held among the employees of the Company in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately ' preceding the date of this Direction of Election, subject to such limitations and additions as are 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 repre- sentation of employees of King Machine Tool Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. All production and maintenance employees , including employees in the tool room, but excluding office employees , foremen , assistant 'foremen, supervisors , leadinen, plant guards, and all other employees having the right to hire and discharge , employed at Plant 1 of the Company, constitute a unit apropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (c) of the National -Labor Relations Act. KING MACHINE TOOL CO. 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, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby DIuECTEID that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with King Machine Tool Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, 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 Ninth 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 at Plant 1 of the Company, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction, including employees in the tool room, 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 office employees, foremen, assistant foremen, supervisors, leadmen, plant guards, and all other employees having the right to hire and discharge, and employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by Local 766, United Electrical, Radio & Machine - Workers of America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations for the purposes of collective bargaining. CHAIRMAN MILLIS took no part in the consideration of the above Decision and- Direction of Election. In the Matter of KING MACHINE TOOL Co.and LOCAL 766, UNITED ELEC- TRICAL, RADIO & MACHINE WORKERS OF AMERICA, C. I. O. ' Case No. R_3496 CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES March 27,1942 On February 19, 1942, the National Labor Relations Board issued a Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceeding., Pursuant to the Direction of Election, an election by secret ballot was conducted on March 13, 1942, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Ninth Region (Cincinnati, Ohio). On March 14, 1942, the Regional Director, acting pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regula- tions-Series 2, as amended, issued and duly served upon the parties an Election Report. No objections to the conduct of the ballot or the Election Report have been filed by any of the parties. As to the balloting and the results thereof, the Regional' Director reported as follows : - Total on eligibility list-------------------------------------- 181 Total ballots cast------------------------------------------- 175 Total ballots challenged ------------------------------------- 1 Total blank ballots ------------------------------------------ 0 Total void ballots------------------------------------------- 1 Total valid votes counted------------------------------------ Votes for Local 766, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Work- 173 ers of America, C. I. 0------------------------------------- 136 Votes against Local 766, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, C. I 0------------------------------- 37 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, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Sections 8 and 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series- 2, as amended, IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that Local 766, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, C. I. 0., has been designated and se- lected by a majority of all production and maintenance employees at 139 N. L. R. B. 1. 39 N L R. B, No. la 6 KING MACHINE TOOL CO. 7 Plant 1 of King Machine Tool Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, including em- ployees in the toolroom, but excluding office employees, foremen, supervisors, leadmen, plant guards, and all other employees having the right to hire and discharge, as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining, and that, pursuant to the provisions of Sec- tion 9 (a) of the National Labor Relations Act, Local 766, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, C. I. 0., is the exclusive representative of all such employees for the purposes of collective bargaining with respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment. I k