Vermont Marble Co.

In the Matter Of VERMONT MARBLE COMPANY and UNITED STONE AND ALLIED PRODUCTS WORKERS OF AMERICA (C. I O ) Case No R-3793 -Decided July 8, 1942 Jurisdiction - marble quarrying and lime manufacturing industry Investigation and Certification of Representatives existence of question con- flicting claims of riNal iepiesentati`es, contract entered into after institu- tion of proceedings held no bat , prior certification in effect for over a yeas, of an organization which admitted that it presently represented only a small percentage of employees in the unit found appropriate, held no bat, election necessary Unit Appropriate for Collective Baigaining partial system unit production, maintenance, and railroad employees of the Company and its auxiliary com- panies at specified locations within a state, including the tablemen and helpers, the sampler, the office janitors, the passenger chauffeurs, the truck drivers, and the automobile iepaiimen, but excluding supervisory, clerical, office, and powerhouse employees, executives, pact-time exhibit employees, mill graders, mill checkers, shop designers, shop checkers, and watchmen Mr Edmund J. Blake. of Boston, Mass , for the Company Mr Samuel E Ango ff , of Boston, Mass, for the United Mr James S. Abatiell, of Rutland, Vt, for the Independent Mr Robert R Hendricks, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE Upon petition duly filed by United Stone and Allied Products Workers of America (C I O ), herein called the United, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of Vermont Maible Company, Proctor, Ver- mont, heiem called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, provided for an appiopriate hearing upon due notice befoie Albert J Hoban, Trial Examiner Said hearing was held at Rutland, Vermont, on April 30, 1942 The Com- pany, the United, and Independent Maible Workers of Vermont, herein called the Independent, appeared, participated, and were af- forded full oppoitunity to be heaid, to examine and cioss-examine, 42NLRB,No39 185 186 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues The Trial Examiner's rulings, made at the hearing, are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following. FINDINGS OF FACT I THE BUSINESS OF TIIE COMPANY Vermont Maible Company is a Vermont corporation with its prin- cipal office at Proctor, Vermont The Company also operates under the trade name of "Vermaico Lime Company ," and owns the entire capital stock of the Clarendon and Pittsford Railroad, a Vermont corporation. The Company is engaged in the quairynrg, finishing, and sale of marble, and the manufacture , distribution , and sale of lime During the calendar year 1941, the Company converted , and it is continuing to convert, a substantial part of its operations to the boring , planing, and machining of metals and the processing of wood It maintains and operates plants and quarries at West Rutland, Center Rutland, Danby, Pittsford, and Middlebury,' Vermont The Company also owns plants and quarries, which are not now in operation , at Middle- bury, Swanton , Isle-La-Motte , Roxbury, Rochester, and Windham, Vermont Blanch sales offices of the Company are located at Boston, Massachusetts , New-York City, and Cleveland, Ohio Manufactur- ing plants and offices are located at Philadelphia , Pennsylvania; Chicago, Illinois , Dallas, Texas , and San Francisco , California In the course of operating its business during the calendar year 1941, the Company purchased materials and supplies , including oils, steel, and chemicals , valued at more than $100,000 More than 50 percent of these materials and supplies was purchased outside of, and was shipped into , the State of Vermont During the same period, the Company produced finished products valued at approximately $2,000,000, of which more than 50 percent was shipped to points outside the State of Vermont. The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act II THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED United Stone and Allied Products Workers of America is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations Independent Marble Workers of Vermont is an unaffiliated labor organization These labor organizations admit to membership employees of the Company in the State of Vermont 'Operations at the Middlebury quarry are restricted to the production of "granite" VERMONT MARBLE COMPANY III THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION 187, On May 18, 1940, the United 2 petitioned the Board for an investi- gation and certification of representatives of the Company's em- ployees A similar petition was filed by the Independent and the two cases were consolidated On January 14, 1941, the Board ordered an election with both unions on the ballot 3 In the election subse- quently held, the Independent received a majority of the votes cast and, on March 4, 1941, it was certified by the Board Shortly there after, on June 30, 1941, the Company and the Independent entered into a contract wherein the Company recognized the Independent as the exclusive representative of the Company's employees in the unit previously found by the Board to be appropriate The contiact, %vliicli made provision for rates of pay, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment, was, by its teams, to remain in effect until May 1, 1942 On February 9, 1942, the United informed the Company in writing that it represented a maloiity of the Company's employees in the unit theretofore designated by the Boaid and requested a meeting for the purpose of negotiating a contract 5 The Company answered by stating that the Independent had been certified by the Board as the exclusive bargaining representative of the Company's employees. -On March 30, 1942, a month prior to the expiration of the contract between them, the Company and the Independent entered into a new contract wherein the Independent was again accorded exclusive recog- nition and certain pay increases were provided" It appears that, prior to enteiing into the new contract, the Independent,' as well as the Company, was aware of the United's claim The new conti act, having been entered into after institution of the present proceeding and after notice to the contracting parties of the United's claim of majority representation, presents no bar to an immediate determina- tion of representatives 8 The Company contends, however, that since little more than a year has elapsed since the preceding election and certification of repre- ' The United at that time WW as known as Quarry workers' international Union of Noith Ame,ica (C 1 0) Matter of Vermont Marble Company and Independent Marble Workers of America, 28 N L R B 1239 4Matter of Vermont Marble Company and Independent Hasble Wosress of Ames,ca, 30 N L R B 58 5111 its Lett, r the United "notified" the Company to refrain, in the interim, from negotiating a contract with any other labor organ zation Under its tetras, the new contract became effective 1 week prior to the date of its execution and was to run until May 1, 1943 'On March 6, 1942, the Independent foimally refused the United s request that it consent to an election ' See Matter of Robe t L 11 elcon Co , Inc and United Paper Wos kcrs Union, Local 292, C I 0, 39 N L R B 1168 Mattes of 11 illanmette Valley Lan,be, Compawy and Local # ,7-91, Inte,nat,onal Woodwo,kcos of An,er,ca, affiliated with C I 0, 35 N 1. R 11 805, and cases cited therein 188 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD sentatives, a new election is "not necessary at this time." In the election held pursuant to the Board's Direction of January 14, 1941, the United received approximately 41 percent of the votes cast I In the present proceeding, the United submitted to the Regional Director membership cards bearing the apparently genuine signatures of ap- proximately 32 percent of the employees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate 1° While this indicates that the United represents a sub- stantial number of employees in the unit, it is an appreciably weaker showing than the United made in the election held in 1941. At the healing heieui, however, the president of the Independent admitted that, as of March 1, 1942, the Independent's membership was only approximately 6 percent of the Company's employees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate 1' Under the circumstances, we find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of the Company, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.12 IV THE APPROPRIATE UNIT In the previous representation proceeding, in which the parties weie the same as those in the present proceeding, we found that the pro- duction, maintenance, and railroad employees of the Company and its auxiliary companies, Vermarco Lime Company and Clarendon and Pittsford Railroad, at Center Rutland, West Rutland, Danby, Florence, Proctor, Swanton, and Middlebury, Vermont, including the tablemen and helpers, the sampler, the office janitors, the passenger chauffeurs, the truck drivers, the automobile repairmen, and Mario Gatti and Armand Vardi, but excluding supervisory, clerical, office, and powerhouse employees, executives, part-time exhibit employees other than Mario Gatti and Armand Vardi, mill graders, mill check- ers, shop designers, shop checkers, and watchmen, constituted an appropriate unit The United contends in the present proceeding that the above unit is appropriate 13 The Independent and the Company are in substan- 830 N L R B 58 "A statement of the Regional Director, introduced in evidence at the heating, shows that the United submitted 234 membeiship cards bearing dates ranging floor September 1941 to March 1942 The Regional Diector reported that 194 of these cards bore the apparently genuine signatures of persons whose names appear on the Company's pay roll of March 25 , 1942 The Company's pay roll of March 25 , 1942, contains 609 names, approximately 600 of which are in the unit hereinafter found appropriate n This witness testified that he thought the Independent had 35 members on Match 1, 1942 As set forth in footnote 10, supra, the Company's pay roll of March 25 , 1942, con- tained approximately 600 names 12 But of Matter of General Electric Company and The G E Industrial Union of the Bridgeport Works Inc 75 N L R B 1018 v At the hearing herein, the United without objection amended its petition to exclude Armand Vardi and Mario Gatti from the unit alleged to be appropriate It appears that the Company no longer employs these men and has employed no other men in the positions formerly held by them j9'x VERMONT MARBLE COMPANY 189 teal agreement, but contend, as they did in the prior proceeding, that, in the event an election is directed, powerhouse employees, mill checkers, shop designers, and shop checkers should be included in the unit It also appears, although the record is not entirely clear, that the Company wants mill graders included in the unit As indicated above, the powerhouse employees, mill checkers, shop designers, shop checkers, and mill graders were specifically excluded from the unit found appropriate in the prior proceeding No new evidence to war- rant the inclusion, at this time, of these groups of employees has been presented herein. We have reviewed the record in the prior proceeding and, for the reasons stated in our prior Decision,14 we shall-exclude the powerhouse employees, mill checkers, shop designers, shop checkers, and mill graders We find that the production, maintenance, and railroad employees of the Company and its auxiliaiy companies, Vermarco Lime Com- pany and Clarendon and Pittsford Railroad, at Center Rutland, West Rutland, Danby, Florence, Proctor, Swanton, and Middlebury, Vermont, including the tablemen and- helpers, the sampler, the office janitors, the passenger chauffeurs, the truck drivers, and the auto- mobile repairmen, but excluding supervisory, clerical, office, and powerhouse employees, executives, part-time exhibit employees, mill graders, mill checkers, shop designers, shop checkers, and watchmen, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargain- ing, within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act. V THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES We shall direct that the question concerning representation which has arisen be resolved by means of an election by secret ballot among the employees in the appropriate unit who were employed duiing the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of the Diiection of Election herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Du ection - DIRECTION OF ELECTION By viitue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, 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 Vermont Marble Company, Proctor, Vermont, an election by secret ballot shall be 11 28 N L R B 1239 0 190 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD conducted as early as possible, but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of this Direction of Election, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the First 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 all employees of the Company in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Diiection of Election, includ- ing employees who did not work during such pay ,roll period because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military service or train- ing of the United States, or temporarily laid off, but excluding employees, who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by United Stone and Allied Products Woikers of America (C I 0 ), or by Inde- pendent Marble Workers of Vermont, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither '