North Carolina Shipbuilding Co.

In the Matter of NORTH CAROLINA SHIPBUILDING COMPANY and IN- DUSTRIAL UNION OF MARINE AND SHIPBUILDING WORT RS OF AMERICA, CIO Case No. R-5455.Decided July 12,1943 Messrs. Keith W. Blinn and George L. Weasler, for the Board. Mr. Harriss Newman, of Wilmington, N. C., for the Company. Mr. M. H. Goldstein, of Philadelphia, Pa., for the C. I. O. Mr. Joseph A. Padway, of Washington, D. C., Mr. W. J. Rowe, of Wilmington, N. C., and Mr. Charles E. Henry, of Washington, D. C., for the A. F. L. Mr. Alton A. Lennon, of Wilmington, N. C., for the U. S. A. Mr. William R. Cameron, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE Upon amended petition duly filed by Industrial Union of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America, CIO, herein called the C. I. 0., alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of North Carolina Shipbuilding Com- pany, Wilmington, North Carolina, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before William F. Guffey, Jr., Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at Wilmington, North Carolina, on May 27, 1943. The Company, the C. I. 0., the Metal Trades Department of the American Federation of Labor, herein called the A. F. L.,1 and the I The Metal Trades Department filed a motion to intervene, granted at the hearing, nam- ing itself and the following affiliates of the American Federation of Labor as those which are authorized to represent the employees at the Company's Wilmington, North Carolina, shipbuilding yards: International Association of Machinists International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers International Brotherhood of Boilermakers , Iron Shipbuilders, Welders and Helpers of America International Union of Operating Engineers International Association of Sheet Metal Workers United Association of Journeymen Plumbers and Steamfitters of America and Canada United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America 51 N: L. R. B., No. 55. 251 252 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATION'S BOARD United Shipbuilders of America, Inc., herein called the U. S. A., ap- peared, participated, and 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 hear- ing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. All parties were afforded opportunity to file briefs with the Board. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY North Carolina Shipbuilding Company is a North Carolina cor- poration having its principal place of business at Wilmington, North Carolina, where it is engaged in the construction of oceangoing and other cargo vessels, which are delivered to the United States Mari- time Commission to be used in interstate and foreign commerce. During the first 10 months of 1942, coal, lumber, other raw materials, and supplies, amounting in value to more than $1,000,000, were bought and shipped to the Company from points outside the State of North Carolina. The Company concedes that it is engaged in com- merce within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act. IT. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Industrial Union of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America is a labor organization, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the Company. Metal Trades Department is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to membership em- ployees of the Company. - United Shipbuilders of America, Inc., is an unaffiliated labor or- ganization, admitting to membership employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION, The C. I. 0., by letter lated December 21, 1942, notified the Com- pany that it claims toy represent a majority of the production and maintenance employees at the Wilmington, North Carolina, yard, and requested recognition as collective bargaining representative. The International Brotherhood of Painters and Decorators International Hod Carriers , Building and Common Laborers International Brotherhood of Blacksmiths , Drop Forgers and Helpers of America International Brotherhood of Teamsters , Chauffeurs , Warehousemen and Helpers of America International Federation of Technical Engineers , Architects and Draftsmen's Union Publicity News Writers & Office Workers NORTH CAROLINA SHIPBUILDING COMPANY 253 Company replied by letter dated January 4, 1943, that because of conflicting claims it was precluded from granting recognition. Statements of the Field Examiner and of attorneys for the Board, introduced in evidence, and of the Trial Examiner, read into the record, at the hearing, indicate that the C. I. 0., the A. F. L., and the U. S. A., each represents a substantial number of employees in the unit which it claims to be appropriate.2 We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the representation of employees of they Company within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The C. I. 0. seeks a unit composed of all. production and mainte- nance employees, including all material men, toolroom keepers and checkers in the steelyard and erecting departments, but excluding all supervisors of the rank of leadingman and above, all office and clerical employees, all employees in the plant-protection and piece-work counting departments, employees in the medical department except janitors, employees in the time-study department, job training and welding school employees except janitors and machinist, draftsmen, progressmen, employees in the production control and planning, blue- print and timekeeping departments, and all students. 3 The Field Examiner reported that the C. I. O. submitted application cards, 95 percent of which were dated from July 1942 through May 1943, and that 78 percent of the cards submitted which covered employees in three representative departments of the Company appeared to bear the genuine original signatures of persons whose names were on the Company's pay roll of May 3, 1943 , in these departments . By comparison of the cards submitted with the pay -roll list in these departments, it was estimated that the C. I. O. represents approximately 28 percent of the employees in the unit claimed by it to be appropriate . The attorneys for the Board reported that the C . I O. also submitted, cer- tain additional application cards, all dated within 30 days prior to May 26, 1943, which indicate that it represents an additional 2.1 percent of such employees , or a total of approximately 30 percent in all. The attorneys for the Board further reported that the Metal Trades Department of the A F. L. submitted authorization cards, designating the A. F. L. and its affiliated unions, most of such cards being dated within the last 6 months, which, when checked against the above-mentioned pay-roll list, indicat8 that the A . F. L. represents 4.7 percent of the employees in the unit which it claims to be appropriate. The International Union of Operating Engineers, A. F. L, appeared and stated at the hearing that it desired to be represented in this proceeding by the Metal Trades Depart- ment. It was agreed by the parties that its showing in support of claim of representation might be included with that of the Metal Trades Department. The attorneys for the Board reported that when the cards submitted by the International Union of Operating Engineers were added to those previously submitted by the Metal Trades Department, it was indicated , as a result, that the A. F. L. represents 4.9 percent of the employees in the unit claimed by it to be appropriate. The Trial Examiner stated that the U S A had submitted application cards, most of them dated in March, April , or May 1943, which , when compared with the Company's pay roll of May 24, 1943, indicated that the U. S. A. represents between 1 and 2 percent of the employees in the unit claimed by it to be appropriate. By reason of the confidential nature of the information involved , all figures given in the foregoing statements were expressed only in the form of percentages. 6 254 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD The A. F. L. also seeks a general production and maintenance unit, but seeks the inclusion within the .unit of foremen, quarter- men, leadingmen and other intermediate grades of supervisory em- ployees, and most of the clerical and technical employees, and would exclude secretaries, employees of the medical department, and em-. ployees in the categories of welding engineer in the administrative department, manager in the deferment department, chief auditor, staff supervisor in the tabulating department, cost accountant in the treasurer's office, staff supervisor in the war bond department, employment manager in the personnel department, chief, lieutenant, sergeant and assistant chief in the plant-protection department, time- study chief and assistant, and foreman in the transportation deparment. The U. S. A. seeks a unit similar to that sought by the A. F. L., but would include secretaries, cost accountants in the treasurer's office, orderlies and nurses in the medical department, and would exclude supervisors of the rank- of leadingman and above, and certain others of the employees sought also to be excluded by the C. I. 0. The Company also seeks the exclusion of supervisors of the rank of lead- ingman and above. The other exclusions sought by the Company are not as broad as those sought by the C. I. 0., and do not differ in principle, but only in detail, from the exclusions sought by the A. F. L. and U. S. A. The record shows that all employees of the rank of foreman, lead- ing assistant foreman, assistant'foreman, leading quarterman, quar- terman, and leadingman, spend their time exclusively in directing the work of other employees, and that action taken by foremen for discipline or-promotion of subordinate employees is based exclusively upon information furnished by the employees under them down to and including the leadingmen. We find that all employees, of the rank of leadingman and above are supervisory, and in accordance with the established policy of the Board, we shall exclude them from the unit.3 Employees in the administrative, comptrollers, auditing and book- keeping, tabulating, treasurer's bond, production control and planning, blueprint, purchasing, safety, welfare and service, deferment, per- sonnel, timekeeping, and job training departments work in offices sep- arate and apart from the production and maintenance employees. The piece-work counting and time-study departments also have sep- arate offices. All employees in these departments are paid on a weekly or salary basis, rather than at an hourly rate. We find that 3 See Matter of Armstrong-Blum Manufacturing Company, 44 N. L. R. B. 566; Matter of Chase Brass & Copper Co., Incorporated, 43 N. L R. B 862; Matter of National Fire- works, Inc, 33 N. L. R. B. 1115. 4 NORTH CAROLINA SHIPBUILDING COMPANY 255 they are clerical or technical employees whose interests are not suffi- ciently identified with those of the production and maintenance em- ployees to justify their inclusion in the unit, and we shall therefore exclude them. For similar reasons we shall also exclude all mate- rial and tool checkers, storekeepers, draftsmen, chemists, clerks and stenographers in all the departments, and all employees of the clinic or medicar department except janitors. It appears that all watchmen, firemen, and gas testers in the plant- protection department have been sworn in as members of the Coast Guard Reserves. It is our established practice to exclude militarized plant-protection employees from a production and maintenance unit, and we shall therefore exclude all plant-protection employees, includ- ing messengers and helpers. The Company maintains at its shipyard a school where students are taught welding, burning, chipping, riveting, and similar crafts, receiving pay during a 4 to 6 weeks period of schooling at` an hourly rate. The record indicates that the Company regards these students as permanent employees and retains them all on the pay roll in some ca- pacity at the completion of their schooling, regardless of whether they exhibit aptitude at the particular job for which they receive training. In view of these circumstances we shall include all students in the unit. Other employees concerning whom question arose at the hearing are drivers in the transportation department, and master of the yard tug, in the rigging department. The record discloses that the master of the yard tug is a supervisory employee having charge of a crew of men who operate the tug, and we shall exclude him from the unit. The drivers in the transportation department appear to be non- supervisory employees whose work brings them into association with the rest of the production employees, and, no sufficient reason to the contrary appearing, we shall include them in the unit. We find that all production and maintenance employees of the Company at its Wilmington, North Carolina, shipyards, including drivers in the transportation department, students and apprentices, but excluding supervisors of the rank of leadingman and above, blue- print, timekeeping, job training, piece-work counting, time-study, and plant-protection employees, progressmen, draftsmen, chemists, ma- terial and tool checkers, storekeepers, medical department employees except janitors, all other clerical and technical employees, and any other supervisory employees with authority to hire, promote, dis- charge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of em- ployees, or effectively recommend such action, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act. 256 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES We shall direct that the question concerning representation which has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em- ployees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay- roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction.4 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 Rela- tions Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby. DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa- tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with North Carolina Shipbuilding Company, Wilmington, North Carolina, an election by 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 supervision of the Regional Director for the Fifth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to Article III, Section 10, of said Rules and Regulations, among the employees 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 any who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by CIO Industrial Union of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America, by AFL Metal Trades Council, or by United Shipbuilders of America, Incorporated, for the purpose of collective bargaining, or by none. 4 The parties respectively requested that their names appear on the ballot as follows : CIO Industrial Union of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America ; AFL Metal Trades Council ; and United Shipbuilders of America, Incorporated. The requests are hereby granted.