Bellmont Iron Works

In the Matter of BELMONT IRON WORKS and INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIA- TION OF BRIDGE, STRUCTURAL AND ORNAMENTAL IRON WORKERS Case No. R-956.Decided November ^?5, 1938 Structural Steel hudustry-Investigation of Representatives: controversy con- cerning representation of employees : employer's refusal to grant recognition of union until question of representation is determined by Board ; rival organiza- tions-Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining: production and maintenance employees, excluding those engaged in a clerical or supervisory capacity, fore- men, and assistant foremen who have the power to hire and discharge ; geo- graphical differences; past bargaining history-Representatives: proof of choice : comparison of pay roll with union membership cards-Certification of Representatives: upon proof of majority representation. Mr. Louis Libbin, for the Board. Syme & Simons, by Mr. Benjamin R. Simons, and Cllr. M. Herbert Syme, of Philadelphia, Pa., for the International. Mr. M. H. Goldstein, of Philadelphia, Pa., for the Amalgamated. Mr. Francis V. Paone, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES STATEMENT OF THE CASE On March 3, 1938, International Association of Bridge Structural and Ornamental Iron Workers, herein called the International, filed with the Regional Director for the Fourth Region (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Royers- ford, Pennsylvania, plant of Belmont Iron Works, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, herein called the Company, and requesting an investi- gation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On May 17, 1938, the International filed an amended petition with the Regional Director. On May 25, 1938, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act and Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Rela- tions Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice. 9 N. L R. B., No. 109. 1202 I DECISIONS AND ORDERS 1203 Thereafter, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, upon the Interna- tional, and upon Lodge No. 1390, Amalgamated Association of- Iron, Steel and Tin Workers of North America, herein called the Amall. gamated, a labor organization claiming to represent employees, di. rectly affected by the investigation.' Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on July 21 and 22, 1938, at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, be, fore Joel Berrall, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. At the hearing the Trial Examiner granted the motion of the Amal- gamated to intervene. The' Board, the International, and, the Amalgamated were represented by counsel, and the Company by its officers; all participated in the hearing. Full opportunity, to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evi- dence bearing on the issues was- afforded • all parties. During the course of the hearing,. the Trial Examiner made : several rulings on motions and objections to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. Subsequent to the hearing the =International requested an oppor- tunity to present oral argument before the Board. Pursuant to not tice duly • served upon all the parties, a hearing for the purpose of oral argument``ivas held in Washington, D. C., on October 18, 1938. Only the International appeared before the Board and participated in the argument. , Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY The Company is a Pennsylvania corporation engaged in the manu- facture, sale, and distribution of structural steel and miscellaneous steel. It maintains a branch office in New York City and plants at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Eddystone, Pennsylvania; and Royers- ford, Pennsylvania. This proceeding concerns only the plant located in Royersford, Pennsylvania. In the manufacture of its finished products, the Company uses rolled steel plates, shapes, bars, bolts, rivets, sheets, and paint, of which approximately 5 per cent are purchased outside the Com- monwealth of Pennsylvania. Approximately • 75 per cent of its fin- ished products are shipped to points outside the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Company's manufactured products in 1937 amounted to 35,000 tons, valued at approximately $3,500,000. "On April 28, 1938, the Amalgamated had filed with the Regional Director a motion to intervene in the proceeding 134068-39-vol ix-77 1204 N ATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED International Association of Bridge, Structural and Ornamental Iron Workers is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. It admits to membership all employees of the Company at its Royersford plant, except those engaged in a clerical or supervisory capacity, foremen, and assistant foremen who have the power to ' hire and discharge. Lodge No. 1390, Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel and Tin Workers of North America, is a labor organization affiliated with the Committee for Industrial Organization and with the Steel Work- ers Organizing Committee, herein called the S. W. O. C. It admits to membership all employees of the Company, except those engaged in a clerical or supervisory capacity, foremen, and assistant fore- men who have the'power to hire and discharge. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION In March 1937 the S. W. O. C., on behalf of the Amalgamated, started to organize the employees of the Eddystone and Philadelphia plants of the Company' and on April 28 of the same year entered into a 'contract with the Company whereby the latter agreed to recog- nize the S. W. O. C. as the exclusive representative of all the em- ployees in each plant when the employees therein should ratify the contract. Such ratification was obtained in the Eddystone and Phila- delphia plants. The Royersford plant, which had remained closed since 1931, resumed operations in July 1937 and the International commenced an organization campaign among the employees of this plant. In March 1938 the Company renewed its contract with the S. W. O. C. to cover the employees of the Eddystone and Phila- delphia plants. Provision was also made to recognize the S: W. O. C. at the Royersford plant when "the union is there established as-the sole bargaining agency." Prior to the renewal of this contract, how- ever, the International sought to negotiate with the Company for the Royersford plant. Since the S. W. O. C., on behalf of the Amalga- mated, also claimed to represent employees of this plant, the Com- pany refused to negotiate with the International until it received certification by the Board. We find that a question has arisen concerning representation of employees of the Company ,it its Royersford plant. IV. TIIE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON COMMERCE We find that the question concerning representation which, has arisen, occurring in connection with the operations of the Company DECISIONS AND ORDERS 1205 described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial relation to trade, traffic, and commerce among the several States and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT At the hearing it was agreed by all the parties that the appro- priate bargaining unit should include all production and maintenance employees. except those engaged in•a clerical or supervisory capacity, foremen, and assistant foremen who have the power to hire and discharge. The International claims that the above-described employees of the Royersford plant should constitute a separate unit. The Amalga- mated contends that the appropriate unit should consist of the em- ployees of all three plants. The work performed in all the plants is basically the same, and all three plants utilize the same classification of workers. There is a shifting of work from one plant to another and some interchange of employees. In July 1937 the Royersford plant reopened and a number of employees were transferred to it from the Eddystone plant., Some products, are partially' manufac- tured • in one plant • and then transferred to another ' for completion. All purchases of raw materials' ar'e' handled by- one,production •man- ager. Allocations of orders to the several plants are made by this same production manager, as are decisions as to rates of pay, hours, and working conditions. The production manager has general super- vision. over the work at all plants, ' although there is a mill superin- tendent at each plant who has direct supervision. While it appears from the above-facts that a bargaining unit in- cluding the employees in all 'three plants of the Company would be practicable, other factois strongly support the claim of'the Interna- tional. Whereas the Eddystone and Philadelphia plants are only 14 miles apart, the Royersford plant is 35 miles distant from; each of the others. Moreover, the history of organization on the part 'of both unions shows that they have never considered the employees in the three plants as constituting a single appropriate unit.' Indeed; the S. W. O. C., organizing on behalf of the Amalgamated, has al- ways limited its claim to exclusive recognition to each plant in which the employees designated it as their representative by virtue of their ratification of the S. W. O. C.'s contract with the Company. The renewal agreement executed in March 1938, covering the employees of the Eddystone and Philadelphia plants, contained a provision specifically excluding the Royersford plant until such time as the S. W. 0.' C. was established as the sole bargaining agency in-that plant. Accordingly, the S. W..0. C. bargained, only-,for the em= 1206 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD ployees of the Eddystone and Philadelphia plants, nor did it ever claim to represent a majority of employees of all three plants until after the International had started to organize the employees of the Royersford plant. Furthermore, as set forth below, virtually all the employees at the Royersford plant are members of the International, whereas the Amalgamated claims not more than four or five members among the Royersford employees. The fact that the Company has centralized the management of the three plants to a great extent is not conclusive in the determination of the appropriate unit or units for collective bargaining . • The coin- parative isolation of the Royersford plant from the other two, the past' bargaining history in the plants , and the fact that the Amalga- mated claims only four or five members in the Royersford plant impel us to the conclusion that the employees in the Royersford plant properly constitute a separate appropriate unit. We find that the production and maintenance employees - of 'the Company at the Royersford plant; except those engaged in .a clerical or supervisory capacity , foremen, and assistant foremen who have the power to hire and discharge, constitute a,unit appropriate for the purposes ,of. collective, bargaining and that said unit will insure to' employees of the Company the full benefit of their' right to, self- organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES The Company 'submitted in evidence its pay rolls at the Royers- ford plant for the months of March , May, and July, 1938. These pay rolls listed the names of 50, 59, and 54 employees in the appropriate unit during these; respective ' months. The International then intro- duced in evidence 58 membership cards, the signatures on which were, duly authenticated by two members of the International who testified that they had witnessed the signatures . A comparison of these cards with the pay roll of July 1938 shows that of the 54 employees in the appropriate unit, 52 were members of the International . The Amal- gamated introduced no evidence of its membership in the Royersford plant, although it claimed to have four or five members therein; nor did it discredit by competent testimony the evidence of membership introduced by the International. The Company did not question the validity of the, union membership cards introduced 'in evidence. We find that the International has been designated and selected by a majority of the employees in the appropriate unit as their repre- sentative for the purposes of collective bargaining. ^ ' It is, therefore, the exclusive represelitative of all . the employees 'in such unit ,for )the purposes of collective bargaining, :and. we will so certify. , DECISIONS AND ORDERS 1207 Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of Belmont- Iron Works at, its Royersford, Pennsylvania, plant, within the meaning of Section '9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. All employees of the Company at its Royersford, Pennsylvania, plant, excluding those engaged in a clerical or supervisory capacity, foremen, and assistant foremen who have the power to hire and dis- charge, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, with the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act. 3. International Association of Bridge, Structural and Ornamental Iron Workers, is the exclusive representative of all the employees in such unit for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Section 9 (a) 'of the National Labor Relations Act. CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National. Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela- tions Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended, IT IS I3EREBY CERTIFIED that International Association of Bridge, Structural and Ornamental Iron Workers has been designated and selected by a majority of the employees of the Company at its Royers- ford, Pennsylvania, plant, excluding those engaged in a clerical or supervisory capacity, foremen, and assistant foremen who have the power to hire and discharge, as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining and that, pursuant to the provisions of Sec- tion 9 (a) of the Act, International Association of Bridge, Structural and Ornamental Iron Workers is the exclusive representative. of all such employees for the purposes of collective bargaining in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment.