Globe Mills, Inc.

In the Matter of GLOBE MILLS, INC. and UNITED MILL WORKERS LOCAL INDUSTRIAL UNION No. 1168, C.•I. 0. - Case No. R-3704.- Decided May 19, 1942 Jurisdiction : flour and lee manufacturing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re- fusal to accord petitioner recognition ; contracts executed with knowledge of petitioner's claim to representation held not to constitute bars; elections necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em- ployees of Company 's flour mill and ice plant , excluding all clerical , technical, and supervisory employees, and including refrigeration men and truck drivers ; operating engineers and oiler permitted to determine whether they shall constitute a separate bargaining unit or be a part of the production and maintenance unit-head miller, assistant miller, flour warehouse foreman, chief engineer, and the storage foreman , excluded as supervisory ; employees hired to replace men who had quit or entered military service held not to be temporary and included in unit. Mr. Paul D. Thomas and Mr. William Flournoy, of El Paso; Tex., for the Company. Mr. Harry Hafner, Mr. A. R. Hardesty, and Mr. Joe Rueda, Jr., of El Paso, Tex., for the C. 1. 0. Mr. Joseph J. Roybal, Mr. A. F. Cadena, and Mr. Robert C. Scott, of El Paso, Tex., for the Teamsters and the Engineers. Mr. Charles W. Schneider, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECT-IONS STATEMENT OF THE CASE Upon petition and amended petition duly filed by United Mill Workers Local Industrial Union No. 1168, C. I. 0., herein called the C. I. 0., alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Globe Mills, Inc., El Paso, Texas, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before Clifford W. Potter, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at El Paso, Texas, on April 1, 1942. The Company, the C. I. 0., Inter- national Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen and Helpers of America Local No. 941, A. F. of L., herein called the Teamsters, and International Union of Operating Engineers, Locals 41 N. L. R. B., No. 20. 94 GLOBE IvIILLS, ' INC. '95 590, 590-A, A. F. of. L., herein called the Engineers, appeared, par- .ticipated,,and were afforded full opportunity to be heard,'to examine and cross-examine 'witnesses and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues.' At the hearing the C. I. O. moved to dismiss the inter- vention of the Teamsters and the Engineers on the ground that exist- ing contracts between the Company and those organizations were :collusive' and that the organizations were company dominated. The Trial 'Examiner referred the motion to the Board. Without ruling on the merits of those allegations, the motion is hereby denied. The Trial Examiner's'rulings made at the hearing are free from preju- dicial error and are hereby affirmed. Upon the entire record in the, case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPA NY Globe Mills', ,Inc., ' is a' Delaware corporation 'having its principal place of business at El Paso, Texas, where it is engaged in the manufacture, sale, and distribution of flour and ice. From December 1, 1940, to November 30, 1941, the Company used raw materials valued at $438,402.86, of which amount $332,859.86 represented purchases 'from sources outside the State of Texas. During The same period the- Company Sold 'manufactured products valued at $672,196.17, of which amount $169,239.33 represented sales outside the State of Texas. H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED United Mill Workers Local Industrial Union No. 1168 is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations; admitting to membership employees of the Company. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen and Helpers of America Local No. 941, and International Union of -Operating Engineers, Locals' 590, 590-A, are labor organizations affiliated with the American, Federation of Labor, admitting to mem- bership employees 'of the Company. , III. THE, QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On December, 3, 1941, the C. I. 1 0. notified the Company that it represented a majority„ of, the Company's employees and requested Iecognition as exclusive bargaining representative: The Company did not grant the requested recognition. On January 14, February 13, March 20, and"March 27, 1942, respectively, the Company entered into a series of :four collective bargaining contracts with the Team- ' The Teamsters and the Engineers appeared by the American Federation of Labor 96 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD sters and the Engineers. These agreements are, in effect, closed-shop contracts, which together appear to embrace all the Company's em- ployees.2 The . Teamsters and the Engineers contend that these contracts are valid and constitute bars to an election. The C. I. O. contends that the contracts are invalid' because entered into with notice of the C. I. O. claims. The Company takes no position with reference to the validity of the contracts. The evidence leaves no doubt that the Company, the Teamsters, and the Engineers had knowledge of the C. I. O. claims at the time the contracts were executed. We therefore find that they do not constitute bars to an election at this time. Each of the labor organizations submitted evidence that it repre- sents a substantial number of employees in the alleged appropriate units.-3 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 National Labor Relations Act. IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The Company takes no position as to the appropriate unit or units. The C.-I. O. contends that the appropriate unit comprises "all permanent production and maintenance employees . . . excluding all clerical, technical, and supervisory employees, and including refrigeration men and truck drivers." The Operating Engineers requests a unit composed of engineers and oilers. The Teamsters' position is not definitely stated, but that union appears to want a unit of all production and maintenance employees excluding those claimed by the Engineers. The flour mill and the ice plant are under the same general super- vision and are located on the same plot of ground. They have a 'Three of the contracts expire on November 30, 1942; the fourth expires on January 31, 1943. All are automatically renewable from year to year thereafter unless written notice of an intent to change or modify them is given at least 30 days prior to the expiration dates It is not clear which of . the agreements the parties consider to be in effect at the present time 8 The C. I'O submitted 30 application cards to a Field Attorney of the Board. All the cards bore apparently - genuine. original signatures , of which 35 were the names of persons on the Company 's December 27, 1941, pay roll. According to the March 31, 1942. pay roll , there are approximately 60 employees in the total production and maintenance group The Teamsters submitted in evidence a notarized list of 35 employees claimed to be "bona fide members" of the Teamsters . All the names on that list appear on the Company's pay roll of March 31 . The Teamsters also . submitted in evidence, and to the Field Attorney . other evidence of representation. The Engineers submitted to the Field Attorney six cards "in a unit composed of engineers, oilers, and wipers," all bearing apparently genuine, original signatures. All the signatures were names of persons on the December 27 pay roll . There are approxiL niately seven employees in the unit claimed by the engineers. GLOBE MILLS, INC. 97 common maintenance force and there is said to be some interchange of personnel. No issue is raised as to the appropriateness of a unit composed of employees of both plants. Total production and main- tenance employment of the flour mill is about 27, consisting of various categories of workmen. Total employment in the ice plant is 35. The ice plant personnel comprises a chief engineer, 3 operating engineers, a repairman, a labor or storage foreman, an oiler, 2 me- chanics' helpers, 16 ice pullers, and 10 ice-storage men. The engineers operate the ice machines and to some extent also "boss" the ice pullers. The ice plant operates on three 8-hour shifts. The chief engineer operates the day shift. The fourth engineer is a swingman. The oiler oils the machines operated by the engineers. We find that the engineers and oiler 4 employed in the ice plant may properly constitute a separate bargaining unit or be merged with the other employees of the Company as part of a larger unit. We shall direct that separate elections be held (1) among the oper- ating engineers and oiler employed in the ice plant to determine whether they desire to be represented by the C. I. O. or by the Operat- ing Engineers for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither, and (2) among the remainder of the Company's production and maintenance employees, with the exclusions noted below, to determine whether they desire to be represented by the C. I. O. or by the Teamsters, or by neither. Upon the results of these elections will depend the appropriate unit or units. If the majority in each group selects the C. I. 0., they will together constitute a single appropriate unit. If the engineers and oiler choose the Operating Engineers, that group will constitute a separate appropriate unit. Supervisory employees Three of the employees of the flour mill are considered by the Company to be supervisors : Stevens, the head miller; Carskadeon, second or assistant miller; and Gaal, the flour warehouse foreman. None of the parties specifically indicated whether it desires the three to be excluded or included. Stevens is the chief supervisor in the flour mill and hires and discharges. Carskadeon is in charge when Stevens is off duty. Although Carskadeon has never exercised authority to discharge, the Company's vice president and general manager testified that if Cars- kadeon found such action necessary he would probably be upheld by the Company. Gaal is in charge of the flour warehouse and had ' A combination oiler and sweeper, Andreas Mendoza , is employed in the flour mill. We assume that the Engineers are not claiming him as part of their unit we find that he should be included in the larger group claimed by the C I. 0 and the Teamsters. 463562-42-vol 41--7 98 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD under' him some 8 or 10 employees. He has hired and discharged in the past - We: find Stevens, Carskadeon, and Gaal to be supervisory em ployees: They will therefore be excluded from the bargaining unit.' . The chief engineer's 'testimony indicates that there are two super- visory employees' in, the ice plant: the chief engineer and L. F.' McKinney; labor or storage foreman: None of the parties specifically indicated. whether it wishes these employees to be excluded or in cluded; although the fact that McKinney is said to be a member of the Operating Engineers may be an indication that that organization desires, that he be included in the Engineers' unit. The chief engineer is the chief supervisor in the ice plant although he operates the ice machines- on the day shift. He will therefore be excluded from the bargaining unit. McKinney has charge of the ice-storage men. His crew normally consists of 8 or :9 employees, although the number may sometimes be as high as 15. He has authority to hire and discharge. We find that McKinney is a supervisor. He will therefore be excluded. "Temporary" employees The C. I. O. contends that since its petition was filed the Company has hired about 15 "temporary" employees, and that these should be excluded from the bargaining unit. The evidence indicates, however, that such employees as were recently hired were merely replacements of men who had quit or entered upon military service and are not considered to be temporary employees. The Company's present expectation is that ' the present staff of the ice plant will remain throughout 1942. We find that none of the employees is temporary. V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES We shall direct that the question concerning representation which has arisen be resolved by elections by secret ballot among the groups of employees indicated in the Direction of Elections hereinafter, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Elections, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction. DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS 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, '49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of GLOBE MILLS, INC. 99 National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain repre- sentatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Globe Mills, Inc.,.-El' Paso, - Texas,- elections- by secret ballot shall be, conducted as early as possible but not later, than thirty--(30) days from the date of this Direction of Elections, raider the 'direction and super- vision of the Regional Director for the Sixteenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board and subject to Article - III, Section 9; -of said -Rules and Regulations, among the following : 1. All production and maintenance employees of the Company who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction of Elections, including employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military service or training of the United States, or temporarily laid off, but excluding clerical and supervisory employees, the chief engineer in the ice plant, the labor or storage foreman in the ice plant, operating engineers and oilers employed in the ice plant, the head miller, the second assistant miller, the flour warehouse foreman, and any employees who- have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be repre- sented by United Mill Workers Local Industrial Union No., 1168, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by Inter= national Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen and Help- ers of America Local No. 941, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor,- for the purposes of collective bargaining, or: by neither; and 2. Among all operating engineers and oilers employed in the ice plant of the Company during the pay-roll period immediately pre- ceding the date of this Direction of Elections, including employees who did not work during such pay=roll period because they were ill or on, vacation or in the active military service or training of the United States, or temporarily laid off, but excluding the chief engi- neer, the labor or storage foreman, and any employees who' have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether' they desire to be represented by United Mill Workers Local Industrial Union No. 1168, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organiza- tions, or by. International Union of- Operating Engineers, Locals 590, 590-A, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither. In the Matter of GLOBE MILLS, INc. and UNITED MILL WORKERS LOCAL INDUSTRIAL UNION No. 1168, C. I. O. Case No. B-37041 SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION AND CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES June 25, 1942 On May 19, 1942, the National Labor Relations Board issued a Decision and Direction of Elections in the above-entitled proceed- ings.1 Pursuant to the Direction of Elections, elections by secret ballot were conducted on June 3, 1942, under the direction and super- vision of the Regional Director for the Sixteenth Region (Fort Worth, Texas). On June 6, 1942, the Regional Director, acting pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, issued and duly served upon the parties an Election Report on the ballot. No objections to the conduct of the ballot or to the Election Report have been filed by any of the parties. As to the balloting and its results, the Regional Director reported as follows : BALLOT "A" (Production and maintenance employees) Total on eligibility list___________________________________ 54 Total ballots cast________________________________________ 51 Total ballots challenged__'________________________________ 2 Total blank ballots--------------------------------------- 0 Total void ballots---------------------------------------- 0 Total valid votes counted--------------------------------- 49 Votes cast for United Mill Workers Local Industrial Union No. 1168, C. I. 0--------------------------------------- 32 Votes cast for International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen and Helpers of America, Local 941, A. F. of L--------------------------------------------- 15 Votes cast for neither___________________________________ 2 141 N. L . R.B.94 41 N. L. R. B., No 20a. 100 GLOBE MILLS, INC. BALLOT "B" I 101 (Operating engineers and oilers) Total on eligibility list___________________________________ 4 Total ballots cast________________________________________ 4 Total ballots challenged__________________________________ 0 Total blank ballots_______________________________ .___" 1 0 Total void ballots________________________________________ 0 Total valid votes counted_________________________________ 4 Votes cast for United Mill Workers Local Industrial Union No. 1168, C. I. 0-------------------------------------- 0 Votes cast for International Union of Operating' Engineers, Locals 590 and 590-A, A. F. of L________________________ 4 Votes cast for neither____________________________________ 0 - In the Decision and Direction of Elections previously referred to, the Board made no final determination as to the appropriate unit, stating that if the engineers and oilers employed in the Company's ice plant chose the Operating Engineers as their collective bargain- ing representative, those employees would constitute a separate appropriate unit. I Upon the, entire record in the case, the Board makes the following: SUPPLEMENTAL FINDINGS OF FACT We find that all production and maintenance employees of Globe Mills, Inc., El Paso, Texas, excluding clerical and supervisory em- ployees, the chief engineer in the ice plant, the labor or storage foreman in the ice plant, operating engineers and oilers employed in the ice plant, the head miller, the second assistant miller, and the flour warehouse foreman, constitute a unit appropriate for the pur- poses of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act. We further find that the operating engineers and oilers employed in the ice plant of Globe Mills, Inc., El Paso, Texas, excluding the chief engineer, and the labor or storage foreman, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the 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, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Sections 8 and 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that United Mill Workers Local Industrial Union No. 1168, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organiza- 102 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD tions, has been designated and selected by a majority of all produc- tion and maintenance employees of Globe Mills, Inc., El Paso, Texas, excluding clerical and supervisory employees, the chief engineer in the ice plant, the labor or storage foreman in the ice plant, operating engineers and oilers employed in the ice plant, the head miller, the second assistant miller, and the flour warehouse foreman, as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining, and that, pursuant to Section 9 (a) of the Act, United Mill Workers Local Industrial Union No. 1168, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, is the exclusive representative of all such employees for the purposes of collective bargaining with respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment. IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that International Union of Operating En- gineers, Locals 590 and 590-A, affiliated with the American Federa- tion of Labor, has been designated and selected by a majority of the operating engineers and oilers employed in the ice- plant of Globe Mills, Inc., El Paso, Texas, excluding the chief engineer, and the labor or storage foreman, as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining and that, pursuant to Section 9 (a) of the Act, International Union of Operating Engineers, Locals 590 and 590-A, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, is the exclusive representative of all such employees for the purposes of collective bargaining with respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment.