American Radiator and Standard Sanitary Corp.

In the Matter of AMERICAN RADIATOR AND STANDARD SANITARY CORPORATION and U. A. W.-C. I. O. Case No. R-5796.-Decided August 30, 19.1E3 Mr. William D. Macmillan, of Baltimore, Md., for the Company. Mr. Frank J. Bender, of Baltimore, Md., for the UAW-CIO. Messrs. Joseph Stamm and Edward K. --Flaherty, of Baltimore, Md., for the Federal Union. - Mr. George M. Evaul, of Baltimore, Md., for the Firemen & Oilers. Mr. F. Nicholas Kershaw, of Baltimore, Md., for the I. A. M. Mr. Harry Cohen, of Baltimore, Md., for the Teamsters. Mr. William R. Cameron, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE Upon petition duly filed by the U. A. W.-C. I. 0., herein called the UAW-CIO, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of American Radiator and Standard Sanitary Corporation, Baltimore, Maryland, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before Earle K. Shawe, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at Baltimore, Maryland, on July -12, 29, and 30, 1943. The Company, the UAW-CIO, Federal Labor Union No. 20972, A. F. of L., herein called the Federal Union, the International Brotherhood of Firemen, Oilers and Power House Operators, Local No. 341, herein called the Firemen & Oilers, My Maryland Lodge No. 186, International Association of Machinists, herein called the I. A. M., and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen & Helpers of America, Truck Drivers & Helpers Local Union No. 355, herein called the Teamsters, appeared, participated, and were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues. The Trial Examiner's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. All parties were afforded opportunity to file briefs with the Board. 52 N. L. R. B., No. 43. 330 AMERICAN RADIATOR AND STANDARD SANITARY CORFORATION 331 Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY The American Radiator and Standard Sanitary Corporation, a Delaware corporation, has its principal office in New York City and operates manufacturing plants, warehouses, and sales offices in a num- ber of the States of the Union. We are here concerned only with its plant located at Baltimore, Maryland, where the-Company formerly manufactured various kinds of cast iron enamel plumbing fixtures, but is now engaged in war production. During the 12-month period ending June 30, 1943, the Company purchased raw materials and sup- plies which were shipped from points outside the State of Maryland to its plant in Baltimore, amounting in value approximately to $2,000,000. During the same period, the Company sold and shipped finished products from its Baltimore plant to points outside the State of Maryland, amounting in value to more than $4,000,000. The Com- pany concedes, for the purposes of this proceeding, that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act. II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED The U. A. W.-C. 1. 01 is a labor organization affiliated with the Con- gress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the Company. ' Federal Labor Union No. 20972 is a labor organization, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to membership employees of the Company. International Brotherhood of Firemen, Oilers and Power House Operators, Local No. 341, is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to membership employees of the Company. My Maryland Lodge No. 186, International Association of Ma- chinists, is a labor organization admitting to membership employees of the Company. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehouse- men & Helpers of America, Truck Drivers & Helpers Local Union No. 355, is a labor organization, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to membership employees of the Company. I The Union is so designated in the petition filed in this proceeding . The Board takes notice, however , that this designation refers to International Union, United Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations. 332 D 1CISIJONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOAR'D' III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On May 10, 1943, the UAW-CIO notified the Company by tele- gram that it claimed to represent the Company's employees. The Company did not reply to this, because of its contract with the Fed- eral Union. The Company also received from certain of its employ- ees a copy of a resolution purporting to have been adopted by the members of the Federal Union, at a meeting in April 1943, in which it was set forth that the Federal Union severed its connection with the American Federation of Labor, directed its officers to make im- mediate application for a charter of affiliation with the UAW-CIO, and further directed its officers to secure the signing of a supplemental agreement to modify the existing contract with the Company by sub- stitution of the UAW-CIO as the recognized bargaining representa- tive. The Company, on April 20, 1943, acknowledged receipt of this copy of the resolution and, in reply, referred the local union, under its new affiliation, to the Board for certification. At the hearing the Federal Union made a motion to dismiss the petition of the UAW-CIO on the ground that the cards designating the UAW-CIO which had been presented to the Board were obtained by fraud and intimidation. The UAW-CIO at the hearing, did not request certification but only an election. It is not the policy of the Board in such case to permit the examination of these cards in open hearing or to receive evidence to challenge them and thus to expose the employees involved to the possibility of reprisal. Membership or authorization cards are required in a representation proceeding not as a basis for determining the appropriate representative, but simply to provide a reasonable safeguard against the indiscriminate institution of representation proceedings by labor organizations which might have little or no membership in the unit claimed to be appropriate. The motion of the Federal Union is therefore denied. A statement of the Field Examiner introduced in evidence, and a statement of the Trial Examiner read into the record at the hearing, indicate that the UAW-CIO and the Federal Union each represents a substantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found to be appropriate.2 2 The Field Examiner reported that the UAW-CIO had submitted 247 application- for-Membership cards , dated in April 1943, of which 154 appeared to bear the genuine original signatures of persons whose names are on the Company's pay roll containing ,255 names as of June 8, 1943. The Trial Examiner reported that the Federal Union submitted at the hearing 104 application-for-membership cards, 58 being dated in May 11943 and 46 undated, of which 96 appear to bear the genuine original signatures of persons whose names are on the pay roll above-mentioned . The Federal Union also submitted a ledger book setting forth the record of dues payments , which indicated that 105 persons had paid dues to the local during April or May 1'943. The Federal Union also relied upon its closed -shop contract, the term of which had not expired at _ the time of the hearing, as sufficiently establishing its interest in this proceeding. AMERICAN RADIATOR AND STANDARD SANITA1RY ,COR?OORRATION 333 We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company within the meaning of Section 9 (Sc) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The UAW-CIO, contends that all production and maintenance em- ployees, excluding supervisory employees, plant-protection employ- ees, confidential clerks, time-study employees, timekeepers, production clerks, office workers, and all salaried employees, constitute an appro- priate unit. The UAW-CIO would also exclude all employees who are members of the I. A. M., the Firemen & Oilers, and the Teamsters, and are covered by the contracts of these Unions with the Company. This is substantially the unit now represented by the Federal Union and covered by its contract which expired on August 7, 1943. Each of the Unions which appeared at the hearing agreed that the unit sought by the UAW-CIO constitutes an appropriate unit. The Com- pany, however, contends that all of the Company's production and maintenance employees, including those now represented by the I. A. M. and the Firemen & Oilers, but excluding those represented by the Teamsters, constitute the appropriate unit. This is based upon the further contention of the Company that the collective bargaining unit was originally a single plant-wide unit, and that at the present time the Company's contractual relations consist of a single "master contract" with the Federal Union, to which its contracts with the Firemen & Oilers and with the I. A. M. are merely "supplements." The Federal Union on August 13, 1937, executed a brief memoran- dum of agreement with the Company, of indefinite duration. The parties operated under this agreement until, on August 7, 1941, fol- lowing a consent election in which the Federal Union was successful, the Federal Union and the Company entered into a contract for the term of 1 year with provision for automatic renewal for yearly periods in the absence of 30 days' notice to amend. This contract, like the preceding agreement, by its terms covered all employees in a general production and maintenance unit. The Teamsters, however, on Sep- tember 4, 1941, entered into a closed-shop contract with the Company covering truck drivers, and the Federal Union relinquished its claim to represent these employees. On August 7, 1942, the, Firemen & Oilers and the I. A. M. filed representation petitions with the Board claiming the employees in their respective crafts as appropriate units. A cross-check by the Board of designations for representation indi- cated that these Unions represented a majority of the employees in their respective craft units. The Federal Union waived jurisdiction of these employees. On August 31, 1942, the Federal Union, and on September 2, 1942, the Firemen & Oilers and the I. A. M., entered into contracts with the Company as of August 7, 1942, fora term extend. v 334 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD ing to August 7, 1943. The contracts of the Firemen & Oilers and of the I. A. M., though by their terms they adopted, with certain minor revisions, the terms of the contract between the Federal Union and the Company, nevertheless were separately negotiated, embodied- in sep- arate instruments, and each was executed only by the representatives of the specific union therein concerned. The record further discloses that neither the Firemen & Oilers nor the I. A. M. has collaborated with the Federal Union in collective bargaining nor in the ; adjust- ment of grievances, since obtaining the separate contracts above set forth. ' In view of the history of collective bargaining, it is apparent that the truck drivers, the employees in the machine shop and metal pat- tern department, and the employees in the boiler room, desire to be represented in separate bargaining units from that of the rest of the production and maintenance employees. The representative of the bulk of the production and maintenance employees does not seek to include them. Each of these constitutes a well recognized craft group such that they may properly constitute separate appropriate units. We shall therefore exclude them from the unit hereinafter found to be appropriate. We find that all production and maintenance employees of the Company in its Baltimore plant, excluding plant-protection em- ployees, confidential clerks, time-study employees, timekeepers, pro- duction clerks, office employees, salaried employees, all employees in the machine shop under the supervision of the machine shop foreman, all employees in the metal pattern department under the supervision of the metal pattern department foreman, all stationary engineers and coal passers in the boiler room, all chauffeurs or truck drivers, and all supervisory employees with authority to hire, promote, dis- charge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of em- ployees, or effectively recommend such action, constitute a unit ap- propriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the mean- ing of Section 9 (b) of the Act. V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES We shall direct that the question concerning representation which has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em- ployees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay- roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Elec- tion herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction. O The parties respectively requested that their names appear on the ballot as follows : UAW-CIO ; and American Federation of Labor, Local 20972. The requests are hereby granted. AMERICAN RADIATOR AND STANDARD SA1\TT'ARIY 0ORPOORATIION 335 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 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa- tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with American Radiator and Standard Sanitary Corporation, Baltimore, Maryland, an elec- tion 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 Fifth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to Article III, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regulations, among the employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction, including em- ployees who did not work during said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or temporarily laid off, and including employees in the armed forces of the United States who present themselves in person at the polls, but excluding any who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be repre- sented by UAW-CIO, or by American Federation of Labor, Local 20972, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither. CHAIRMAN MILLIS took no part in the consideration of the above Decision and Direction of Election.