Federal Paper Stock Co.

574 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD FEDERAL PAPER STOCK COMPANY and UNITED TEXTILE WORKERS OF AMERICA, AFL, AND ITS LOCAL 1157,1 Petitioner. Case No. 14-RC-2173. June 12, 1953 DECISION AND ORDER Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, a hearing was held before Harry G. Carlson, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.2 Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member panel [Members Houston, Murdock, and Peterson]. Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds: 1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act. 2. The labor organizations involved claim to represent employees of the Employer. 3. No question affecting commerce exists concerning the representation of employees of the Employer within the mean- ing of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act, for the following reasons: The Intervenor asserts that its current contract with the Employer constitutes a bar to this proceeding. The Employer takes no position concerning the contract-bar issue. The Petitioner contends that the contract is not a bar because a schism has occurred in the ranks of the Intervenor. The Intervenor was certified by the Board in 1949, as the bargaining representative of the Employer's production and maintenance employees, and the parties have had contractual relations since that time. The current contract was executed on January 8, 1953, and expires by its own terms on December 10, 1953. On January 23, 1953, the Intervenor accepted the resignation of William Doyle, its business agent. A few days thereafter Doyle joined the organizing staff of the Petitioner. About January 31, 1953, Doyle met with the officers of Local 1157, CIO, at the home of Lavell Williams, then president of the Local, and discussed the procedure to be followed in dis- affiliation from the CIO and affiliation with the AFL. Shortly thereafter, at another meeting, Doyle of the AFL discussed with about 12 of the Employer's 77 employees the desirability of disaffiliation from the CIO. This meeting was not publicized and was held in the AFL hall rather than at the CIO's Local 1157 regular meeting place. A motion was adopted at this 1 The name of the Petitioner appears as amended at the hearing. 2 Textile Workers Union of America, CIO, Local 1157, was permitted to intervene in the proceeding upon the basis of its current contract with the Employer Local 1157. CIO, is an amalgamated local comprised of employees of Federal Paper Stock Company; American Waste Materials Corp.; and General Waste Trading Company However, the employees of the latter two are not involved in this proceeding 105 NLRB No 76. KENNEDY-VAN SAUN MFG. AND ENGINEERING CORPORATION 575 meeting to call a special meeting on February 28, 1953, for the purpose of voting on disaffiliation from Local 1157, CIO. The February 28 meeting was also held in the AFL hall and attended by 3 representatives of the AFL , 2 of whom spoke on the motion to disaffiliate from the CIO . Forty of the Employer ' s seventy - seven employees in the unit covered by the Intervenor ' s contract , attended and voted unanimously to disaffiliate from Local 1157, CIO, and to affiliate with the AFL. Thereafter , on March 11 , 1953, at a meeting called by the AFL, officers were elected and a charter was issued to its new Local 1157. The Petitioner contends that the foregoing events have given rise to such confusion and uncertainty with respect to the status of the bargaining representative at the Employer ' s plant as to warrant the Board directing an election at this time under the "schism doctrine ." We do not agree . The disaffiliation meeting and the preliminary meeting thereto were held at the petitioning Union ' s hall, and it is clear that at all times repre- sentatives of the Petitioner actively assisted the dissident employees in their efforts at disaffiliation . From these facts, the Board concludes that the Petitioner ' s control over the dis- affiliation proceedings were of such nature as to preclude application of the schism doctrine .' Furthermore , the In- tervenor still functions and is ready, able , and willing to ad- minister the contract. Upon the basis of the foregoing and on the entire record in this case, we find that the current contract between the Intervenor and the Employers bars the determination of representatives at this time. Accordingly , we, shall dismiss the petition. [The Board dismissed the petition.] 'See Bendix Products Division , Bendix Aviation Corporation, 98 NLRB 1180 ; Boyle-Midway, Inc., 97 NLRB 895. KENNEDY-VAN SAUN MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEER- ING CORPORATION and UNITED STEELWORKERS OF AMERICA, CIO, Petitioner . Case No. 4-RC-1930 . June 12, 1953 DECISION AND ORDER Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, a hearing was held before Herbert B. Mintz, hearing officer. The hearing officer ' s rulings made at 105 NLRB No. 75.