E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Inc.

In the Matter of E. I. DU PONT DE NEMOURS & COMPANY, INC., RAYON DIVISION and TEXTILE WORKERS UNION OF AMERICA (CIO) Case No. 10-R-1450.-Decided June 6, 1945 !lVlr E. C. First, Jr., of Wilmington, Del., for the Company. Messers. Edward C. Cluney and L. W. Bee, of Nashville, Tenn , for the C. I. O. Mr. Whitworth Stokes, of Nashville, Tenn., for the Council. Mr Bernard Goldberg, of counsel to the Board DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE Upon a petition duly filed by Textile Workers Union of America (CIO), herein called the C'. I. 0., alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc., Rayon Division, Old Hickory, Tennessee, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before Mortimer H. Freeman, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at Old Hickory, Tennessee, on April 25 and 26, 1945. The Company, the C. I. 0., and Old Hickory Rayon F_niployee's Council, herein called the Council, appeared and participated. All parties 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. The separate requests of the Company and the Council for oral argument are hereby denied. All'parties were afforded an opportunity to file briefs with the-.)Board. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc., is a Delaware corporation 62 N. L. R. B., No. 22. -146 E. I. DU PONT DE NEMOURS & COMPANY, INC. 147 engaged in the manufacture of continuous filament rayon yarn at its plant in Old Hickory, Tennessee. During the 1944 calendar year, the Company used at this plant raw materials valued at about $4,800,000, of which approximately 82 percent was shipped to the plant from points outside the State of Tennessee. During the same period the Company manufactured at this plant finished products valued at about $22,000,000, of which approxi- inately 97 percent was shipped out of the State. The Company admits for the puropse of this proceeding that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act. H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Textile Workers Union of America, affiliated with the Congress of Indus- trial Organizations, is a labor organization admitting to membership employees of the Company Old Hickory Rayon Employee's Council, unaffiliated, is a labor organi- zation admitting to membership employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On March 12, 1945, the Company refused the C. I O.'s request for recog- nition as the exclusive bargaining representative of the Company's employ- ees, asserting that the Council was so recognized by it under the terms of its unexpired collective bargaining contract with the Council. Although this agreement between the Company and the Council will not expire until September 2, 1945, neither contracting party contends that it is a bar to this proceeding. A statement of a Board agent, introduced into evidence at the hearing. indicates that the C. I. O. represents a substantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate? We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The C. I. O. seeks a unit of all production, maintenance, and powerhouse employees at the Company's plant and village,' including the employee" listed in Appendix A attached hereto, but excluding salaried employees. guards, office and clerical employees, wash court mechanic leader, control 1 The Field Examiner reported that the C. I O. submitted 1,042 authorization cards; that, of these cards, 1,011 were dated between July 1944 and February 1945, and 31 were undated; and that these were 2,725 employees in the petitioner's unit At the hearing, the Council submitted a list containing the names of apps oxnn,itely 2,200 p.ud up members of its organization whose dues were being checked off by the Company It also relies upon its contract to establish its interest 2 The village is adjacent to the plant and consists of dwelling houses. store,- and other buildings, all of which are owned by the Company 148 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD inspectors, laborer leaders, trash pick-up leader, and supervisory personnel. The Company and the Council disagree with the C. I. 0. only with respect to the hereinafter discussed employees whom they would include in the unit. Clerical and technical employees: The Company and the Council rely upon an 8-year bargaining history to support their contention that the salaried clerical and technical employees should be included in the same unit with the hourly paid production and maintenance employees. As a general rule, the Board has, except in unusual circumstances, excluded clerical and technical employees from a production and maintenance unit even where there has been a history of collective bargaining for all three groups on a single unit basis' This rule is based on the Board's considered opinion that the commingling of clerical and technical employees with pro- duction and maintenance workers in a single unit is not conducive to effec- tive collective bargaining in view of the significant dissimilarity in their work, working conditions, and interests. We see no reason in the instant case -for departing from the general rule. Accordingly, we shall exclude clerical and technical employees from the unit.' Relief foremen: They are regular operating employees who may be called upon to substitute for regular foremen for a total of a few weeks each year while the latter are out sick or on vacation. The assumption of supervisory duties by these employees is too infrequent and irregular to bring them within the Board's definition of a supervisory employee and to warrant their exclusion, as such, from the unit. We shall include them: Instructors: These employees are generally highly skilled operators dele- gated to the task of instructing newcomers in manufacturing technique. When not instructing learners, they work as regular operators. While the instructors make progress reports to the foremen, who have supervision of both the learners and the instructors, it appears that such reports are merely objective statements of accomplishment unaccompanied by any reconunen- dations. We are satisfied that these instructors are not supervisors within the Board's definition and we shall, therefore, include them in the unit.° Production control clerks: Under the direct supervision of the produc- tion control supervisor are a number of salaried clerical employees, includ- ing a shipping clerk, an invoice clerk, an invoice stenographer, a typist- 3 Matter of Boston Edison Company, 51 N. L. R. B. 118; Matter of Sierra Pacific Power Company, 56 N. L. R. B. 458 ; Matter of The Cincinnati Gas and Electric Company, 57 N. L. R. B. 1298. 4 With respect to the opposing positions of the parties herein as to the inclusion of salaried employees in the same unit with hourly paid employees , it is well established that the Board in determining the appropriateness of a unit will not distinguish between employees solely on the ground of the difference in mode of payment but will look to their general interests, duties , nature of work, and working conditions . See Matter of Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation, Pittsburgh Works, 57 N. L. R. B. 357; Matter of Edgewater Steel Company, 56 N. L. R. B. 1778. e Matter of Aluminum Company of America, et at. 61 N. L. R. B. 1066. We shall, however, in agreement with the parties, exclude Orbie Davis who has been serving for many months in place of a regular foreman on extended leave of absence. 6 Matter of General Steel Casting Corporation, 41 N. L.R. B. 350. E. I. DU PONT DE NEMOURS & COMPANY, INC. 149 teletype operator and a number of record and schedule clerks engaged in production control and scheduling work. The production control super- visor has his desk in the main office of the plant where most of these clerical employees also work; a few of the clerks are stationed in operating areas As previously stated, all these employees work under the supervision of the production control supervisor and not of foremen in the operating areas. In addition, all perform purely clerical work. Under the circumstances, we are of the opinion that no distinction should be made between the clerical employees who work in the main office and those who work in the oper- ating area : we shall exclude all as clerical employees. Millwright leader. This employee makes estimates on repair orders that come to the maintenance department, checks on materials necessary for repair work, and makes sketches, where necessary, for minor repair jobs. He has no subordinates, although he does occasionally substitute for the foreman on a relief basis. Like production and maintenance workers, he is an hourly rated employee. We are not persuaded that this employee is a supervisor within the Board's definition ; we shall include him. Rigger leader. This employee directs the activities of a group, averaging four men, engaged in rigging work. It appears that he has the power effec- tively to recommend change in the status of his subordinates. We find that he is a supervisory employee within the Board's definition and we shall exclude him from the unit. Technical assistants under power supervisor: There are three salaried employees in this category engaged in inspecting, and reporting on, the operation of various types of powerhouse and filter equipment. They are former powerhouse employees, who have been promoted to their present positions and have qualified for the work not by college technical training but by special training on the job and by taking correspondence courses in related subjects. We are of the opinion that these technical assistants fall within the classification of technicians ; we shall exclude them. Chemist under power supervisor: This employee makes studies of, and reports on, the recovery and treatment of trade waste and also the equip- ment used in water purification. Although he has not had the professional training of a chemist, he performs some experimental work in the recovery and treatment of trade waste. Like the technical assistants referred to above, he has been promoted from the ranks of production and maintenance em- ployees and is now paid on a salary basis. As in the case of the technical assistants, we believe that this employee is a technician despite his lack of formal academic training; we shall exclude him. Draftsmen and checkers: The draftsmen perform the usual duties asso- ciated with that position; the checkers assist the draftsmen and occupy the position of trainees. Inasmuch as their work is of the character denominated 1 .)0 DECISIONS oUNATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD technical, we shall, in accord with our practice, exclude them from the unit.' Two technical assistants working under the mechanical assistant supervisor have duties similar to those of the draftsmen. We shall also exclude these technical assistants. Technical assistants under chemical assistant supervisor: There are four employees in this category; two of them mix and test oils and finishes; the other two make some of the simpler process development and trouble shoot- ing tests in connection with experimental rather than control work, and make reports and summaries thereof. All four are salaried, have their offices in the main office section and, although much of their work is done in plant areas, are supervised by the chemical assistant supervisor rather than by plant foremen. Under all the circumstances, we shall exclude these employ- ees as technicians. Clicimsts, undergraduate chemists, and technical assistant under process control supervisor: Working in the plant laboratories, these employees are engaged in making standardized analytical tests on essential materials and the simpler types of special tests on material that has been produced. Three of the chemists have college degrees in chemistry ; the other chemist has had considerable practical experience. The college graduates perform work that has not been written up in the Company's manual of procedure, whereas the non-graduate chemists, the undergraduate chemists, and the technical assistant follow the manual procedure. All the employees in this group, however, receive approximately the same pay, all are salaried, and all work under the supervision of the chief chemist. Since all these employees clearly appear to be technicians, we shall exclude them from the unit. Technical assistant in spinning, funnel, and roller guide laboratory: This employee who has his desk in the front office makes various tests and reports in connection with denier control. He works independent of, and apart from, the hourly paid employees in the laboratory and reports directly to the denier control supervisor. As a technician, we shall exclude him from the unit. Paint and paper hanger leader: This employee takes measurements of walls for papering, consults tenants of company houses as to scheduling of painting and papering work, gets up order of paint and wallpaper needed, and transports men from job to job. He has no supervision over any of the painters or paper hangers except when he substitutes for a foreman in a relief capacity, in a manner similar to that of relief foremen discussed above. We find that this employee is not a supervisor and we shall include him in the unit Dispatcher: This employee, who is salaried, works in the garage office answering the telephone, taking requests for the movement of cars and 7 Matter of Chicago Rawhide Manufacturing Company, 59 N L R 13 1234, and cases cited therein. E. 1. DU PONT DE NEMOURS & COMPANY, INC. 151 trucks, and keeping records of the amount of gasoline consumed. The dis- patcher has no supervisory duties with respect to the truck drivers and chauffeurs who are responsible to the yard foreman. Since his duties are entirely clerical, we shall exclude him from the unit. Watchmen: There are four armed, non-militarized, and non-deputized medical technician, and two clerical assistants. The duties and interests of these employees obviously differ from those of production and maintenance employees; we shall exclude them from the unit. Watchmen: There are four armed, non-militarized, and non-deputized watchmen who patrol the premises at night, primarily to detect fires. In accordance with our practice, we shall include these watchmen in the unit.' Junior gateman: This employee is stationed at the gatehouse and escorts people from the gate to various parts of the plant. He is neither armed, uniformed, deputized, nor militarized. Although he may occasionally assist the militarized guard at the gate, this is not sufficient in our opinion to justify his exclusion from the unit; we shall include him. Firemen and the fire inspector: The Company maintains a small fire department in the company village to protect plant and village property. In addition to their fire-fighting duties, the firemen, who are hourly paid, make regular inspections of plant fire-fighting equipment. The Company also employs one salaried fire 'inspector who inspects village homes and village business property exclusively. He has many duties similar to those of the firemen, and like the firemen he makes his headquarters in the village fire hall and is under the supervision of the fire chief. Although the fire inspec- tor's work pertains entirely to the village, we shall include him in the unit along with the firemen. Cafeteria leaders • The parties have agreed on the inclusion of the cafeteria employees but have disagreed with respect to cafeteria leaders who move about the cafeteria adjusting difficulties and insuring smooth function of the facilities. They have no subordinates and, so far as appears from the record, no supervisory duties. We shall include them. Utility operators: Under the supervision of the editor of the plant publi- cation are three utility operators who make posters and drawings of various kinds in connection with patriotic campaigns, safety drives, and other matters. Since their work is obviously different from that of the production and maintenance employees, we shall exclude them from the unit. Theatre employees: The Company operates a motion picture theatre in the village and employs, in addition to the manager, a salaried motion pic- ture operator and an hourly paid ticket taker. We shall exclude these employees since the nature of their work differs from that of the other employees in the unit. We find that all production, maintenance, and powerhouse employees of 'Matter of Ideal Roller & Manufacto,tog Company, The, 60 N. L R B 1105 152 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD the Company at its plant and village in Old Hickory, Tennessee, including relief foremen, instructors, millwright leader, paint and paper hanger leader, watchmen, junior gateman, firemen, fire inspector, cafeteria leaders, and all employees listed in Appendix A attached hereto, but excluding guards,' wash court mechanic leader, control inspectors, laborer leaders, trash pick- up leader, rigger leader, technical assistants, chemists, undergraduate chem- ists, draftsmen, checkers, nurses, medical technicians, utility operators, motion picture operator, ticket taker, office and clerical employees as listed in Appendix B attached hereto," and all supervisory employees with au- thority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively recommend such action, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (h) of the Act. V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES The parties stipulated that all relief foremen with the exception of Orbie Davis and those employees who may be acting as relief foremen between the date of the eligibility pay roll and the date of the Board's Decision and Direction of Election shall be permitted to vote. We have found in Section IV, sitpra, that the relief foremen, with the exception of Orbie Davis, are not supervisory employees and have included them in the unit. They, there- fore, have the same right to vote as have other employees in the unit regard- less of whether or not they may be temporarily acting as foremen at or about the time of the election. Accordingly, we shall not honor this agreement between the parties but shall permit all relief foremen except Orbie Davis to vote in the election. We shall direct that the question concerning representation which has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the employees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period imme- diately preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction. 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, and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of the National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, as amended, it is hereby DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc., Rayon Division, Old Hickory, Tennessee, an election by O The guards are militarized. 10 Appendix B includes employees not discussed hcieui, but whom we find on the basis of the record to be office and clerical employees. E. I. DU PONT DE NEMOURS & COMPANY, INC. 153 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 super- vision of the Regional Director for the Tenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to Article ITi, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regulation,,, among the employ- ees 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 employees 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 those employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the (late of the election, to determine whether they desire to be represented by Textile Workers Union of America (CIO) or by Old Hickory Rayon Employee's Council, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither. APPENDIX A The underlined classifications are agreed supervisory employees ; they are listed in the following appendices for the purpose of better identifying the inclusions and the exclusions in Appendices A and B, respectively, which follow the underlined classifications. I. Manufacturing Superintendent A. Chief Supervisor Operators Waste leader Cone core preparation leaders Schedule operators Laborers Box machine and conveyor men B. Production Control Supervisor Pipefitter IT. Works Engineer A. Maintenance Supervisor Mechanics and helpers Laborers B. Power Supervisor Operators Laborers Bunker and silo men Coal leaders ' III. Technical Superintendent A. Mechanical Assistant Supervisor Machinist B. Chemical Assistant Supervisor CH test checkers Janitor C. Process Control Supervisor Day specification laboratorian Head shift laboratorians Laboratorians Janitors D. Spinning, Funnel, and Roller Guide Laboratory Funnel -conditioners Spinneret cleaner Spinneret repairman Spinneret guide conditioner Tension and roller checker Head funnel operator 154 - DECISIONS OIL NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD Spinning guide inspectors Funnel laboratory inspectors Head spinneret operators E. Knit and Dye Laboratory Knitting machine operators Dyers Billing factor analyst Cake sampler Head knitter Head dyer F Physical Testing Laboratory Operators I V. Service Superintendent A. Village Service Supervisor Mechanics and helpers Truck drivers Laborers B.'Plant Service Supervisor Cloth cutting operators Laborers, janitors, maids Stores operators Truck drivers-chauffeurs" Garage mechanics Electrical trucker C. Cafeteria Supervisor Cooks Maids, porters, janitors Operators Cashiers APPENDIX B I Manufacturing Superintendent A. Production Control Supervisor Shipping clerk Invoice clerk Invoice stenographer Spinning production record clerks Textile production record clerks Textile production schedule clerks ' Miscellaneous production schedule clerk Miscellaneous production record clerk Process control record clerks General production record clerk Typist-teletype operator II. Service Superintendent A. Plant Service Supervsior Caption clerks Compliance clerks Salvage clerk Stationery stores clerk Dispatcher Stores cashier Stenographers Typist-clerks B. Medical Supervisor Clerks C Safety and Protection Supervisor Stenographer D. Employment Supervisor Clerks and stenographers E Plant Publication Stenographer III. Chief Clerk A. Cost Supervisor Cost clerks Payroll distribution clerks Power clerks Maintenance clerks Meter reader and invoice clerks B. Chief Timekeeper Payroll clerks 11 This includes the salaried chauffeur. E. I. DU PONT DE NEMOURS & COMPANY, INC. 155 Addressograph operator Bookkeeping machine operator Employment rate record clerks Utility and relief clerk C. Chief Clerk Employees sales clerk Bookkeeping machine operator Collectors D. Central Stenographer Supervisor Stenographers and typists Telephone operator Messengers Mail and duplicating machine operators File clerks IV. Methods and Standards Supervisor Checkers V. Local Buyer Clerk