Food Fair Stores, Inc.

FOOD FAIR STORES, INC. 497 Mississippi, plant, including truckdrivers, truckdriver helpers, dock checkers, and leadmen, but excluding salesmen, office clerical em- ployees, foremen, watchmen-guards, cattle buyers, and supervisors as defined in the Act. [Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.] Food Fair Stores, Inc.' and Office Employees International Union, Local No. 128, AFL-CIO, Petitioner. Case No. 12-RC-937. April 17,1958 DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, a hearing was held before Herbert N. Watterson, hear- ing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. 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 [Chairman Leedom and Members Bean and Fanning]. 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 organization involved claims to represent certain em- ployees of the Employer. 3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa- tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of. the Act. The Petitioner seeks to represent about 135 office clerical employees at Food Fair's Southern Division main office, .warehouse building office, maintenance shop building office, and employment office, all located in Miami, Florida. It would also include office clericals at Lady Fair Bakery Company, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Food Fair, located at Miami, Florida. Food Fair agrees generally that the unit is appropriate, but would include 10 office clerical employees of its 2 other wholly owned subsidiaries, Simon Tobacco and, Candy Company, and Merchant Green Trading Stamp of Florida, Inc., and 2 office clerical employees of Food Fair Stores, Inc., Federal Credit Union.' Food Fair, a Pennsylvania corporation, operates retail food stores throughout the United , States. Its operations in Miami, Florida, 1 Hereinafter called Food Fair. 2 Hereinafter called Simon, Merchant, and Credit Union, respectively. 120 NLRB No. 72. 483142--59-vol. 120-33 Ogg DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD which are alone here involved, are conducted by its Southern Division and a number of subsidiary corporations, all of the stock of which is owned by Food Fair. The main office of the Southern Division is located at 7000 N. W. 32d Avenue, Miami, where Merchant also has its offices, and where all payroll and personnel records of the Southern Division and the subsidiaries are maintained. Adjacent to the main office is Food Fair's maintenance shop office building where some office clerical employees are employed.' Food Fair also has an employment office located at 531 W. Flagler Street, 6 miles from the main office, where 3 office clerical employees are employed and where the Credit Union's office is located.' Lady Fair Bakery Company, Inc., is located at 1895 S. W. 8th Street, about 7 miles from Food Fair's main office, and Simon is located at 1180 N. W. 23d Street, about 4 miles from that office. The office operations of Food Fair and its subsidiaries, including hiring, discharge, and labor relations policies, are directed by the Comptroller of Food Fair's Southern Division. All office clerical employees of Food Fair, Lady Fair Bakery Company, Inc., Simon, and Merchant are hired at Food Fair's main office. There is inter- change of employees between Food Fair and the foregoing subsidiary corporations, and also among the various offices of Food Fair as the needs of Food Fair require. All employees perform the usual duties of office employees and enjoy the same employee benefits regardless of assignment. Although Simon and Merchant sell products to, and service, other customers, they make substantial sales to, and perform substantial services for, Food Fair. The office employees of Merchant are supervised by an individual on the payroll of Food Fair. In view of the common ownership of all of the corporations involved herein, the centralized control of their labor relations policies, the similarity of employee benefits, and the interchange of employees de- scribed above, we find that Food Fair and its foregoing subsidiaries constitute a single Employer and that a unit composed of office clerical employees of Food Fair, Lady Fair Bakery Company, Inc., Simon, and Merchant 5 at the various locations described above is alone appropriate.6 There remains for consideration the inclusion of Credit Union's em- ployees. As stated previously, Food Fair would include two full-time employees who work in the office of Credit Union adjoining Food 3The record does not disclose the location of the warehouse building office However, as already stated , there is no issue as to the inclusion of the employees in that office. 4 At the heanng the Employer stated that the 531 w Flagler Street location is a tem- porary expedient caused by lack of office space of the main office e Although only Food Fair was named in the petition, the other companies involved were represented at the heanng and no issue was raised as to the propriety of their inclusion in the proceeding 6 See Weiner Wood Products Co., 117 NLRB 1895, Triangle Tanning Co., 115 NLRB 271, 275 SHERMAN WHITE & COMPANY 499 Fair's employment office. The record discloses that Credit Union is established under the provisions of the Federal Credit Union Act' Its stock is owned by its members, and it is managed by directors elected by such members, and by officers appointed by the directors. Under the statute, only the officers and directors of Credit Union have author- ity to hire, discharge, and direct the activities of its employees.' Ac- cordingly, we find that Credit Union is a separate employer for jurisdictional and unit purposes and that the two employees involved herein are employees of Credit Union alone.' As no warrant appears for including these employees in the same unit with the employees of the instant Employer, we shall exclude them. We find that the following employees constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Sec- tion 9 (b) of the Act: All office clerical employees of Food Fair Stores, Inc., at its South- ern Division office, 7000 N. W. 32d Avenue, Miami, Florida, and at its warehouse building office, maintenance shop building office, and em- ployment office at 531 W. Flagler Street, Miami, including office clerical employees of Lady Fair Bakery Company, Inc., Simon Candy and Tobacco Company, and Merchant Green Trading Stamp Company of Florida, Inc., all of Miami, Florida, but excluding office clerical employees of Food Fair Stores, Inc., Federal Credit Union, confiden- tial employees,10 all other employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act. [Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.] 7 11 USC 1751, et seq. 8 The record slows, moreover, that Credit Union does in tact supervise its office em- ployees , and, although there was uncontroverted testimony that they were "hired" by Food Fair for assignment to Credit Union, such hiring would be legally ineffective until, approved by Credit Union. While Food Fair pays part of the salary of Credit Union's office employees , such payments are admittedly voluntary and do not, under the circum- stances here existing , suffice to render the recipients employees of Food Fair. 8 See Nanzm's, Inc., 81 NLRB 1019. 18 In accord with the stipulation of the parties, secretaries to Food Fair's comptroller and its public and industrial officer are excluded from the unit as confidential employees. Sherman White & Company and Local 543, International Broth- erhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America, Petitioner. Case No. 13-RC-5480. April 17,1958 DECISION AND CLARIFICATION OF UNIT Pursuant to a stipulation for certification upon consent election executed by the parties on April 25, 1957, an election by secret ballot was conducted on May 3, 1957, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Thirteenth Region, among certain 120 NLRB No. 71.