Chase Aircraft Co., Inc.

In the Matter of CBASE AIRCRAFT COMPANY, INC., EMPLOYER and INTERNATIONAL UNION, UNITED AUTOMOBILE, AIRCRAFT AND AGRI- CULTURAL IMPLEMENT WORKERS OF AMERICA, C. I. O., LOCAL 181, PETITIONER Case No. 4-RC 5,92.-Decided September 15,1950 DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before John H. Wood, Jr., hearing officer. ' 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-member panel [Chairman Herzog and Members Houston and Murdock]. Upon the entire record in this case,2 the Board finds : 1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. The labor organization involved claims to represent certain em- ployees of the Employer. 3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa- tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. 4. The appropriate unit : The Employer, a New York corporation, is engaged in the manu- facture, at a plant in West Trenton, New'Jersey, of experimental air- ' The Employer's numerous offers to adduce additional evidence which would have been repetitious or immaterial were properly rejected by the hearing officer. In its brief the Employer alleged, in effect, that the record does not establish that the Petitioner has complied with the-filing requirements of Section 9 (f), (g), and (h) of the Act. A labor organization's compliance with these provisions of the Act is a matter for administrative determination by the Board and not subject to attack by the parties. Furthermore , the Petitioner has effected such compliance . Auto Supply & Equipment Co., Inc., 85 NLRB 893. 2 After the close of the hearing, the Employer moved to correct the transcript of the hearing in certain particulars . No objections having been received , the motion is hereby granted. The Employer further moved to delete as prejudicial certain observations of the hearing officer regarding delays in the hearing. As these observations were not prejudicial and we have not relied on them, the motion is hereby denied. The Employer's motion, in its brief, to dismiss the petition , is hereby denied for the reasons set forth herein. 91 NLRB No. 61. 288 CHASE AIRCRAFT COMPANY, INC. 289: craft for the United States Air Force. The Petitioner seeks to repre-; sent the Employer's timekeepers and inspectors as part of the produc tion and maintenance unit which it currently represents or, in the alternative, to establish the timekeepers and inspectors in a separate unit. The Employer contends that the timekeepers serve in a confi-, dential and administrative capacity, that the inspectors' are super- visors, and that, accordingly, neither group is entitled to representa- tion separately, jointly, or together with the production and, mainte- nance employees. Timekeepers: The Employer alleges that as the timekeepers are.part of its cost department, which in turn is part of the accounting depart-, ment,3 they are more closely allied in interests and working conditions to the other accounting department employees than, to- the employees in the production and maintenance unit or to the inspectors.,. .The primary function of the approximately 15 timekeepers. is to. accumulate labor cost data by collecting information on cost data cards as to the time the employees devote to particular jobs. Approxi, mately 75 percent of their working time is spent in close contad,with' the production employees. Two or three of the timekeepers are assigned in turn to work beyond the regular shift to "extend", this, ,data; multiplying the time worked by the employee's hourly rate., This information is then posted by accounting clerks in the,cost depart ment into ledgers which reflect the Employer's labor cost.for a par ticular job. The timekeepers' cards are maintained to determine, cost only and not to compute the pay due employees 4 • ' ' The timekeepers are qualified accountants when hired and have college training in accounting or its equivalent in experience..' ;.While. assigned :to timekeeping duties they become familiar with the Em ployer's accounting procedures, and are promoted to junior accounting clerks positions as they occur. The length of time spent as a time- keeper has varied generally from a month to a year. There is no inter- change, transfer, or promotion between employees in production and timekeeping positions, whereas timekeepers and accounting clerks are used interchangeably as necessity requires. The timekeepers are supervised by the chief timekeeper and their line of supervisory authority runs to the cost accountant,, the chief In addition- to the cost department , the accounting department is comprised of the:: accounts payable, accounts receivable , payroll , and inventory control departments. 4 Payrolls are made up by the payroll department from cards which are punched at time clocks wheii"employees enter and leave the plant. Although timekeepers ordinarily do no'i payroll work, they may, on occasion, assist in the payroll department. Although-,the timekeepers have some college training , we find , on the basis of the entire record, that they are not professional employees within the meaning of Section 2 (12) of the Act. s The primary function of accounting clerks is to record cost data in appropriateaccouht ing ledgers. 290 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD accountant, and the Employer's treasurer, a different hierarchy from that which supervises the production employees. Timekeepers are paid on a salary basis, receiving, as do the accounting clerks, between $36 and $60 for a 40-hour week. The production employees are hourly rated, the lowest paid receiving $1 an hour 7 The timekeepers record the lateness or absence of production em- ployees, and check the reasons therefor with the employees and the production supervisors. On occasion the timekeepers' notations are used by the payroll department to determine whether production employees are to be paid for lost time." The timekeepers also sign production employees' gate passes after they have been signed by the foremen and, at times, they distribute and collect production em- ployees' hospitalization and casualty insurance forms. Such forms are also furnished directly to employees and may be returned directly to the personnel department. Most of the timekeepers work the same hours as the production employees and receive substantially the same vacation benefits .9 The record is clear that the timekeepers do not have access to in- formation pertaining directly to the Employer's labor relations policy. Accordingly, we reject the contention that they are confidential em- ployees.'0 The duties of the timekeepers appear to be essentially similar to those of employees whom we have customarily found to be factory clerical employees 1' Moreover, they spend the major portion of their time in'close association with.production employees, and their wages, hours, and working conditions are, with minor variations, substantially the same as those of the production employees. The interests of the timekeepers are therefore closely allied to those of the production employees although in the future they may be promoted to accounting clerks. . Inspectors The approximately 40 inspectors work in the inspection department 12,a part of the quality control department, which is.headed by a quality control supervisor who reports directly to the president of the Employer. Immediately below the quality control supervisor are the assistant quality control supervisor, the chief inspector, and ' Porters receive $1 .20 an hour. The lowest paid office employee, the mail clerk, receives $27.50 a week. 8 The absence of production employees is also reported by their production foremen. ° Production and maintenance employees receive 1 week's vacation after 1 year, 60 hours after 2 years, and 2 weeks after 5 years . , All others receive 1 week after 1 year, 8 days after 2 years, and 2 weeks after 3 years. Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation (Fort Worth. Division), 60 NLRB 525. Bendix Aviation Corporation, Kansas City Division, 88 NLRB 1281. 12 There are 13 final assembly , 3 electrical and magnetic, 7\ precision detail, 2 detall, 4 power plant, 6 tool, 2 receiving, and 6 senior inspectors. ° CHASE; AIRCRAFT COMPANY, INC. 291 the assistant chief inspector. The inspectors use precision measuring devices and testing tools to determine whether parts and assemblies made by the production employees conform to blueprints, to the cri- teria set forth in the Employer's inspection manual, and to Air Force requirements 13 Approved work is marked with the inspector's iden- tifying stamp. The inspectors have authority to halt seriously defec- tive work in progress by attaching a "hold" tag, or to require work to be redone by attaching a "rework" tag. With the exception of receiv- ing inspectors, who inspect material shipped to the Employer, most of the inspectors work in close physical proximity to the production employees. On occasion, inspectors are sent to the plants of the Em- ployer's subcontractors to ascertain whether their products conform to specifications. Over 70 percent of the inspectors have had engineering training at the college level and 10 percent have college degrees.14 They are hourly rated, receiving between $1.40 and $1.85 an hour, and work the same hours as the production employees. However, at the time of the hearing their mode of payment was in process of conversion to a comparable salary rate. Although the inspectors may have authority to caution production employees when they do defective work, to call such work to the atten- tion of production supervisors for purposes of discipline, and, at times, to correct work in progress to prevent defects which will not pass inspection, the record is clear that responsible direction and super- vision of production employees remains in the production supervisors. Although defects revealed by inspection may result in discipline of production employees, the inspectors have no authority to discharge, transfer, reprimand, or penalize production employees. Accordingly, we find, contrary to the Employer's contention, that the inspectors are not supervisors.15 The fact that they are responsible for the quality of items manufactured does not warrant their exclusion from the production and maintenance unit 16 As the Board has held that both timekeepers and. inspectors may independently constitute separate appropriate units 17 we shall not, in the instant case, group these employees together as requested by the Petitioner. Although we have also afforded timekeepers and 18 Air. Force inspectors at the Employer's plant also have authority to make inspections. Generally, however, they inspect only those items whose inspection by them is mandatory. 14 Although many of the inspectors have some college training , we find, on the basis of the entire record, that they are not professional employees within the meaning of Section 2 (12) of the Act. 15 Clayton Mark cE Company, 76 NLRB 230. 18 Metal Textile Corporation, 88 NLRB 1326; Piper Aircraft Corporation, 73 NLRB 427. 17 Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation, 55 NLRB 577, 60 NLRB 525, 88 NLRB 49; Bell Aircraft Corporation, 61 NLRB 1352. 917572-51-vol. 91-20 292 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD inspectors separately the opportunity to indicate in a self -determina- tion election whether they desired representation in separate units or as part of a production and maintenance unit,18 the Petitioner has not made an adequate showing of representation as to the timekeepers and we shall therefore not direct an election as to them. However, as inspectors such as these may appropriately be represented in the same unit with the production and maintenance employees, or in a separate unit, and as the inspectors herein have not previously had an oppor- tunity, to select a bargaining representative, we shall afford them an opportunity to express their desires in the matter. We shall make no final unit determination at this time, but shall be guided in part by the desires of these employees as expressed in the election herein- after directed. If a majority vote for the Petitioner they will be taken to have indicated a desire to be part of the existing production and maintenance unit. Accordingly, we shall direct an election in the following voting group : All inspectors at the Employer's West Trenton, New Jersey, plant, excluding the chief inspector, the assistant chief inspector, senior inspector,19 and all other supervisors. [Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this volume.] 18 Chrysler Corporation, 76 NLRB 55 ; Chicago Pneumatic Tool Company, 81 NLRB 584; Bell Aircraft Corporation, supra. 19 The Petitioner took no position on the supervisory status of the senior inspectors. However, witnesses for the Employer testified without contradiction that the senior inspec- tors have authority effectively to recommend changes in the status of the other inspectors. who work under their direction. Accordingly, we shall exclude them.