Winton Lumber Co.

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.