Lookout Oil & Refining Co.

In the Matter of LOOKOUT OIL & REFINING COMPANY, and PACKING- HOUSE WORKERS ORGANIZING COMMITTEE Case No R-3985 -Decided July 16, 1942 Jurisdiction : vegetable oil refining industiy Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question re- fusal to accoid union recognition , contract about to expire held no bai , election necessary Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining . production and maintenance em- ployees including watchmen at the Chattanooga plant of the Company, ex- clusive of truck diivers, supervisory and clerical employees Mr. Paul E Blanchard, of Chicago, Ill, for the Company Mr G R. Hathaway, of Atlanta, Ga, for the P W 0 C Mr Paul Duncan, of Atlanta, Ga, for the Amalgamated Mr A Sumner Lawrence, of counsel to the Boaid. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE Upon an amended petition duly filed by Packinghouse Woikeis Oigamzuig Committee, affiliated with the C I O, herein called the P MMT 0 C , alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen conceiving the iepiesentation of employees of Lookout Oil & Refin- ing Company,' Chattanooga, Tennessee, heienn called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate healing upon due notice before Dan M. Byrd, Jr, Trial Examiner Said hearing was held at Chattanooga, Tennessee, on June 24, 1942 The Company, the P W. 0 C, and Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Mroikmen of North Ameiica, A F of L, herein called the Amalgamated, a labor oganization claiming to iepiesent employees directly affected by the investigation, appeai ed, participated, and ww ere afforded full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to Introduce evidence bearing on the issues The Trial Examinei's rulings made at the hearing ale free from prejudicial ei roi and are heieby affirmed Subsequent to the hearing the pal tie,, I Incorrectly described in some of the formal papers as Lookout Oil Refinery , Subsidiai% of Armour and Co of Chicago, Illinois, and eorieated by stipulation intioduced in avdence at the hearing 42N L R B, No 113 560 LOOKOUT OIL & REFINING COMPANY 561 entered ii to a stipulation correcting the recoi d The Board hereby orders that the stipulation be made a part of the record herein and that the iec.orcl be corrected in accordance with the stipulation Upon the entire iecoi d in the case, the Board makes the following FINDINGS OF FACT I THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Lookout Oil & Refining Company is a Delaware corporation with its principal office and place of business in the State of Tennessee The only plant involved in this proceeding is located at Chattanooga, Ten- nessee, where the Company is engaged in the refining and treating of crude cottonseed and other vegetable oils and fats During the year ending November 1, 1941, the Company caused to be shipped to its Chattanooga plant approximately 95,000,000 pounds of various oils, coal, cans, boxes, and other materials and supplies, 65 percent of which originated outside the State of Tennessee During the same period the Company manufactured and shipped approxi- mately 60,000,000 pounds of refined vegetable oils, vegetable shortening, and pure lard, of which 95 percent moved from the Chattanooga plant to points outside the State of Tennessee TI THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee is a,laboi organiza- tion affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admit- ting to member ship employees of the Company Amalgamated Meat Cutters & Butcher Workmen of North America is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to membership employees of the Company III THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On or about April 21, 1942, the P W 0 C requested recognition fl om the Company but the Company refused to extend recognition, contending that the contract which it had with the International Union of Amalgamated Meat Cutters & Butcher Workmen of North America (AFL) was a bar to recognition at that time At the hearing, the Amalgamated urged that the coati act was a bar to the present proceeding The contract between the Company and the International Union of Amalgamated Meat Cutters & Butcher Workmen of North America is effective for 1 year from September 4, 1941, and from year to year 472814-42-vol 42-36 562 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD thereafter subject to termination after notice thereof 30 days prior to the expiration date Subsequent to the making of this contract, the employees of the Company, who together with employees of Wilson & Co , Inc. constituted the membership of Local 323 voted 89 to 1 to withdraw from the Local and go over to the C I 0 After the vote in question, the Company's employees formed a new local affiliated with the P W 0 C and sent the charter of Local 323 to Wilson employees who later also withdrew and-sent the charter back to the international office of the Amalgamated We are of the opinion and find that inasmuch as the contract in question is about to expire, the contract is not a bar to a present deter - mmnation of representatives 2 A statement of a Field Examiner , introduced in evidence at the hearing, shows that the P W 0 C represents a substantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found to be apps opriate 3 We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company, -%w ithnn the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Rela- tions Act IV THE APPROPRIATE UNIT It was stipulated by the parties at the hearing that aside from the question of including or excluding watchmen, as to which the parties were in dispute, the appropriate unit should include all production and maintenance employees, excluding truck drivers and supervisory and clerical employees The exclusion of the watchmen is urged by both unions and is opposed by the Company It appears that the watchmen perform the duties of ordinary watch- men and are members of the P W 0 C local w-^hich the production and maintenance workers formed after .withdrawing from Local 323 of the Amalgamated The watchmen formerly belonged to Local 323 and during this period the Amalgamated bargained with the Company on behalf of the watchmen together with the production and mainte- nance employees - We are of the opinion and find, in view of the fact that the watch- men are present members of the same union as the production and maintenance employees and have in the past been represented for the Matter of Waterman-TVateibu;y Company 2nd United Electrical, Radio it Machine Workers of America, Local 1140, C I 0 , 38 N L It B 330 "The Field Examines reported that the P W 0 C submitted 137 signed author nation cards dated between April 1, 1942, and May 10, 1942, of w hich cards, 130 appeared to bear the signatures of persons whose names are on the Company's pa l roll of April 23, 1942, con- taining approximately 137 employees within the unit hereinafter found to be appropriate The Field Examiner further reported that Local No 323 had refused to furnish evidence in support of its claim to represent a majority of employees upon the ground that the contract reterred to above was a bar to this proceeding LOOKOUT OIL & REFINING COMPANY 563 purposes of collective bargaining by the Amalgamated which also rep- resented the pioduction and maintenance employees, that the watch- men have substantial interest in common with the production and maintenance employees, and should, therefore, be included in the unit We find that the production and maintenance employees of the Com- pany; including watchmen, at its Chattanooga, Tennessee, plant, but excluding ti uck di ivers, and supervisory and clef ical employees, con- stitute a unit appiopriate for the purposes of collective bai gaming within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act V THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES- We find that the question conceining repiesentation which has arisen can best be resolved by an election by secret ballot. Since it ap- pears that Local 323 may no longer be in existence, we shall not place that organization upon the ballot However, we shall accoid a place on the ballot to Amalgamated Meat Cutters & Butcher Workmen of North Ameiica (A F of L ), the international organization with which Local 323 was affiliated In accordance with the stipulation of the parties for use of a current pay roll to determine eligibilty to vote and our usual practice, we shall dnect that the employees of the Com- pany- eligible to vote in the election shall be those in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll pei iod immediately pre- ceding the date of the Direction of Election herein, subject to the limi- tations and additions set forth in the Direction DIRECTION OF ELECTION By virtue of and pun suant to the power vested in the National Laboi Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Rela- tions Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby - DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation ordered by the Board to ascertain representatives for the put poses of collective bargaining with Lookout Oil & Refining Company, Chattanooga; Tennessee, an election by seciet ballot shall be conducted as early as possible but not latei than thirty (30) days from the date of this Direction, under the direc- tion and supervision of the Regional Director for the Tenth 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 appiopriate in Section IV above, who were employed at the Company's Chattanooga, Tennessee, plant, during the pay-ioll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction, including any such employees who did not work during 564 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD said pay-roll pei iod because they were ill or on vacation or in the active militaiy service of training of the United States, or temporarily laid off, but excluding any who have since quit or been dischaiged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be repiesented by Packinghouse Workers Oiganizing Committee, affiliated with the C. I 0, or by Amalgamated Meat Cutters & Butcher Workmen of North America, affiliated with the A F of L , for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither Mn GERARD D REILLY took no part in the consideration of the above Decision and Direction of Election