General Motors Corp.

In the Matter of GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION, CHEVROLET MOTOR DIVISION, BALTIMORE and INTERNATIONAL UNION OF OPERATING EN- GINEERS, LOCAL 272 (AFL) Case No R-8789.Decided July 9, 1942 Jurisdiction: truck and chassis manufactuiing and assembling industry Investigation and Certification of Representatives . refusal to accord petitioner iecognition, election necessaiy Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all shift-operating engineers at the powerhouse of one of the Company's plants, excluding the chief engineer, boiler-room engineers, and ashmen, boiler-ioom engineers excluded, despite petitioner's request for then inclusion, on basis of past history of employee organization and collective bargaining Mr. Earle K. Sliawe, for the Board. Mr Henry M Hogan and Mr. Denton Jolly, of Detroit, Mich, for the Company Mr Jacob J. Edelman, Mm Isidor Roman, and Mr Roscoe Emin- izer, of Baltimore, Md , for Local 272 Mr Frank J Bender and Mr. Emil L Luter, of Baltimore, Md, Mr Maurice Sugar and Mr Ernest Goodman of Detroit, Mich, for the United Mr. Harry H Ruskin, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF TILE CASE Upon petition duly filed by International Union of Operating En- gineers, Local 272, affiliated with the Ameiican Federation of Labor, herein called Local 272, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of General Motors Corporation, Chevrolet Motor Division, Baltimore, Maryland, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board pro- vided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before Gustaf B. Erickson, Tiial Examiner Said hearing was held at Baltimore, Maryland, on April 30, 1942 The Company, Local 272, and Inter- national Union, United Automobile, Aicraft, and Agricultural Iim- plement Workers of America, affiliated with the Congiess of Industrial 42NLR B, No 51 224 1 Am GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION , 225 Organizations, herein called the United, appeared, 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 hearing, are free from prejudicial eiror and ate hereby affirmed The Board has considered the briefs which were filed by the Company and Local 272 on May 23, 1942, and by the United on May 25, 1942 Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following FINDINGS OF FACT I THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY General Motors Corporation is a Delawaie corporation with its principal office in New Yolk City and with other offices in Detroit, Michigan The Chevrolet Motor Division, one of the-Company's sev- eral unincorporated divisions, operates a plant at Baltimore, Mary- land, which is herein called the Baltimore Chevrolet plant and is the only plant involved in the present proceeding At this plant the Company is engaged in the manufacture and assembling of trucks and chassis More than 60-percent of the productive materials, including raw or partially fabricated materials, used at the Baltimore Chevrolet plant come from outside the State of Maryland, and more than' 60 pei cent of the finished products made at the plant are shipped out- side the State of Maryland by motor carriei, rail carrier, and other types of carrier The Company admits for the purpose of this pro- ceeding that at the Baltimore Chevrolet plant it is engaged in coin- meice, within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act II THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 272, is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, ad- mitting to membership employees of the Company. International Union, United Automobile, Aicraft, and Agricul- tural Implement Workers of America is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to member- ship employees of the Company. III THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION Prior to the filing of the petition herein, Local 272 requested recog- nition from the Company as the exclusive bargaining representative of the licensed employees in the powerhouse at the Company's Balti- more Chevrolet plant. The Company refused to recognize Local 272 472814-42-vol 42-15 226 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD as such representative for the reason that it had a contract with the United which covered some of the employees sought to be represented by Local 272 The United and the Company have had contractual relations cov- ering production and maintenance employees at various plants of the Company since June 24, 1940 On June 3, 1941, a contract 1 was executed superseding the agreement of June 24, 1940 The 1941 con- tract provided for recognition of the United as the exclusive representative of "production and maintenance employees and me- chanical employees in engineering department shops" of the Com- pany The Baltimore Chevrolet plant was among the Company's plants covered by the contract, which was by its terms to continue in effect until Apiil 28, 1942, and was subject to modificatioii, change, or termination upon written notice by either party to the other 60 days prior to April 28, 1942 In the absence of such notice, the contract was to continue in force subject to termination or modifica- tion thereafter upon 60 days' notice At the time of the hearing, the contract had expired, but the Company and the United were con- tinuing to operate under it with the understanding that its extension was abiding the resolution of certain points of disagreement between them A statement of the Regional Director, introduced into evidence at the hearing, shows that Local 272 represents a substantial number of employees in the unit herein found to be appropriate 2 The United submitted no authorization or membership-application cards, but relied upon its contract with the Company and asserted that it represented five boiler-room engineers and two ashmen in the power- house, as members We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company, within the mean- ing of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act IV THE APPROPRIATE UNIT Local 272 contends that all boiler-room engnleeis and shift-open at- ing engineers employed in the powerhouse at the Baltimore Chevro- let plant, excluding the chief engineer and ashmen , constitute an 'The contract was executed by the Company and "Interiratioual Union, United Auto- mobile Worl.eis of America, C I 0," the name by which the United wis then known 2 The Regional Ditector iepoitecl that Local 272 submitted eight authorization and membership application carers, dated as follows one in 14 Irv 1939, six in November 1941, and one in Februaiy 1942, that all the Garda bin e signatures which appeared to be genuine, and that all the names on the cards were on the Cempai i s pav toll of Feb- ruary 25, 1942 As fuitber proof of such representation, Local 272 introduced into e%idence eight authorization ( aids which boie the names of the shift operating engineers and thiee boiler-room engineers employed at the powerhouse at the time of the heaiing There are five employees in the unit herein found to be appropriate - GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION 227 appropriate unit The United does not object to a unit of only the shift-operating engineers, but opposes the inclusion of the boiler- room engineers in such a unit The Company likewise contends that the unit sought by Local 272 is inappropriate, but takes the position that, if the Board should find a unit of shift-operating engineers appropriate, the chief engineer should be excluded Both the Com- pany and the United are opposed to having the ashmen and the boiler- s oom engineei s in separate units The Company and the United contend that the contract of June 3, 1941, covered the boiler-room engineers Pursuant to a Decision and Direction of Elections 3 issued by the Board on February 28, 1940, elections wei e conducted among all production, maintenance and mechanical employees at the Baltimore Chevrolet plant, excluding the shift-opei atmg engineers and the chief engineer, among others On August 2, 1940, on the basis of the elections, the Board certified the United as the exclusive representative of the employees at the Balti- more Chevrolet plant in the unit set forth above 4 Thereafter, the United supplemented the 1941 agreement by negotiating with the local management of the Baltimore Chevrolet plant with respect to wages and conditions of employment of hourly paid employees, in- cluding the boiler-room engineers and the ashmen The boiler-room engineers were not expressly excluded from the production and main- tenance unit found appropriate by the Board in the Decision and Direction of Elections of February 28, 1940, and there is testimony that they were permitted to vote in the subsequent elections The Company and the United have been bargaining for the boiler-room engineers at 70 other plants of the Company in which similar units were held appropriate The powerhouse at the Baltimore Chevrolet plant occupies a separate building about 200 yards from the assembly line and about 75 yards from the service building It supplies steam and generates power for the Baltimore Chevrolet plant and for the nearby Fishei Body_ plant of the Company. Regardless of the work schedule at the plant, the powerhouse is operated daily on a 24-hour basis by five boiler-room engineers, five shift-operating engineers, two ashmen, and one chief engineer The boiler-room engineers work in the boiler room, where they fire and steam the boilers They also look after the operation of the engines when requested to do so- by the shift- opei ating engineers or by the chief engineer They hold second- grade licenses issued by the State of Maryland, and they are hourly paid The shift-operating engineers work in the engine room, are Mattei of Ceneial Mntorc Coipoiation and International Union, U A W A, affiliated with, the A F L, et (17, 20 N L R B 950 4Matter of Genet at Motoia Co, potation and International Union, U A W A, affiliated with the A I L , et at , 26 N L R B 60 228 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD in chaige of the shift at the powerhouse, and aie iesponsible for major repairs to the boileis and engines They can iecommend hir- ing, discharge, and advancement of other employees, but the final decision in these matters is left to the chief engineer They hold first-grade licenses issued by the State of Maryland, and they are paid on a salary basis Theie is testimony that the practice of the Company has been to require a second-grade license for the posi- tion of boiler-room engineer and a first-grade license for the position of shift-operating engineer, although the Company disputes the requirement as to boiler-room engineers. The ashmen clean the ashes from the ash pits, do general cleaning, and haul coal They are not mechanics, ai e not licensed, and are hourly paid The chief engineer is in complete charge of the powerhouse and is a licensed, first-grade engineer. Local 272 includes only licensed engineers within its jurisdiction. It contends that the boilei-ioom engineers and the shift-operating engineers should be included in the same unit, since the employees in both these classifications are licensed mechanics and are qualified to do the same kind of work, except for the limitations imposed by their respective licenses. The United contends that a license is not a prerequisite for membership in its organization, that it has bar- gained for the boiler-room engineers in the past, and that, if the boiler-room engineers aie excluded fiom the unit now in effect, they will be deprived of their plant-wide seniority under the contract between the United and the Company There is evidence that one of the boiler-room engineers was formerly a production employee The United contends further that the classification of ashnien is no different from that of boiler-room engineers, since the ashnien, at times, do some of the work of the boiler-room engineers and, like the boiler-room engineers, are subject to the orders of the shift- operating engineers The Company_ contends that State licenses furnish no sound basis for determining what unit is appropriate, and that it would be improper to carve a unit from a larger unit in which bargaining has already proved satisfactory The history of employee organization in the Baltimore Chevrolet plant, our certification of the United as the representative of the employees in an industrial unit, the benefits (including plant-wide seniority) which the boiler-room engineers have received as a result of bargaining by the United, and the fact that the boiler-room engi- neers are essentially firemen with certain additional duties, all indicate the appropiiateness of an industrial unit including the boiler-room engineers However, the shift-operating engineers are presently without representation, and there is testimony that they desire to bargain with the Company through a representative of their own GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION 229 choosing. Accordingly, we find that all shift-operating engineers of the Company at the powerhouse of the Baltimore Chevrolet plant, excluding the chief engineer, boiler-room engineers, and ashmen, con- stitute a unit appropriate. for the purposes of collective bargaining, 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 an election by seciet ballot among the employees 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 The United would not commit itself at the hearing as to whether or not it wanted to appear on the ballot should the Board find appro- priate a unit consisting only of shift-operating engineers. Since theie is no showing that the United has any representation among the shift-operating engineers, and since the United has not bargained for them with the Company, we shall omit the United's name from the ballot. Since we have found appropriate a unit different from that uuged by Local 272 in its petition and at the hearing, leave is hereby given local 272 to withdraw its petition, if it should so desire, by giving notice to that effect to the Regional Director'within five (5) days after the date of this Decision and Direction of Election 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 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 General Motors Corporation, Chevrolet Motor Division, Baltimore, Maryland, 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 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among the employees in the unit found appro- priate in Section IV, above, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately pieceding the date of this Direction, including 230 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD employees who did not work during such pay-ioll 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 employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to deter- mine whether or not they desire to be represented by International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 272, affiliated with the Ameri- can Federation of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining. In the Matter of GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION, CHEVROLET MOTOR DIVISION, BALTIMORE and INTERNATIONAL UNION OF OPERATING EN- GINEERS, LOCAL 272 (AFL) Case No R-3789 AMENDMENT TO DIRECTION OF ELECTION August 11, 1942 On July 9, 1942, the National Laboi Relations Boaid, herein called the Board, issued a Decision and Direction of Election in the above- entitled pi oceedings,l the election to be held within thirty (30) days from the date of the Direction under the direction and supervision of the Regional Directoi for the Fifth Region (Baltimore, Maiyland) The Board, having been advised k',v the Regional Director that a longer time within which to hold the election is necessary, hereby amends the Direction of Election issued on July 9, 1942, by striking therefrom the words "not latei than thirty (30) days from the date of this Direction" and substituting theiefor the words "at such future time as the Board may hereafter direct " MR. Wm M. LEISERsoN took not part in the consideration of the above Amendment to Direction of Election. ' 42 N L R B 224 42N L R B, No 51a 231 '