United States Steel Corp.

522 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD United States Steel Corporation, Employer-Petitioner and United Transportation Union United States Steel Corporation and Union No. 11, United Association of Iron, Steel and Mine Workers, Petitioner. Cases 10-UC-24 and 10-UC-25 December 30, 1970 DECISION AND ORDER BY CHAIRMAN MILLER AND MEMBERS FANNING AND JENKINS Upon petitions duly filed under Section 9(b) and (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, a consolidated hearing was held before Hearing Officer H. Carlton Bryan, Jr. Following the hearing and pursuant to Section 102.67 of the National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations and State- ments of Procedure, Series 8, as amended, these cases were transferred to the National Labor Relations Board for decision by direction of the Regional Director for Region 10. Briefs have been filed by each of the Unions' and the Employer. Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, the National Labor Relations Board has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member panel. The Board has reviewed the Hearing Officer's rulings made at the hearing and finds that they are free from prejudicial error. They are hereby affirmed. Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds: 1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act and it will effectuate the purposes of the Act to assert jurisdiction herein. 2. The labor organizations involved claim to represent certain employees of the Employer. 3. No question affecting commerce exists concern- ing the representation of certain employees within the meaning of Sections 9(c)(1) and 2(6) and (7) of the Act. The Employer operates an in-plant railroad system at its Fairfield Works in Birmingham, Alabama. The employees on this system are currently represented by the three Unions involved herein in three different units: The engineers and firemen by the UTU; 2 the conductors by the Steelworkers; 3 and the switchmen by Local 11. i The United Steelworkers (hereinafter Steelworkers) intervened in both cases Union No 11, United Association of Iron, and Steel and Mine Workers (hereinafter Local 11), the Petitioner in Case 10-UC-25, intervened in Case 10-UC-24, and the United Transportation Union (hereinafter the UTU) the Union in Case 1O-UC-24 intervened in Case 10-UC-25 2 Formerly the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen The Employer, in its petition, asked that the newly created position of train operator (hereinafter opera- tor) be added to the unit currently represented by the UTU. The UTU supports the position stated in the petition. Local 11, in its petition, asks that the newly created position of train operator helper (hereinafter helper) be added to the unit it currently represents. The Steelworkers asks that both petitions be dis- missed on the basis that both the operator and the helper classifications constitute an accretion to the unit it represents. Each of the three Unions has indicated that it is willing to represent both classifica- tions in the unit it represents. Formerly, and for the most part currently, the train crews at the Employer's plant varied in size from five to three members with at least one member from each of the bargaining units on each crew.4 In December 1968 the Employer automated some of its trains and reduced the size of the crew on automated trains to one operator and one helper. In doing so the Employer reassigned the functions performed by members of the manual operation crew so that all functions could be performed by this two-man crew. On a manually operated train, the engineer's work consists of operating and making routine mainte- nance checks of the locomotive. The fireman, if there is one on the run, assists the engineer in performing his duties on the locomotive. Firemen normally progress to engineers after 3 years as firemen and after taking the engineer's examination. The switchman operates on the ground, coupling and uncoupling cars, connecting and disconnecting air hoses, throw- ing and lining up switches, and signaling and passing signals to the engineers. The conductor is in charge of the crew and must also perform the same switching functions as does the switchmen. Under manual control the normal progression is from switchman to conductor. All conductors are also switchmen and are included on both the conductors' seniority roster and the switchmen's seniority roster. Employees qualified as conductors may work as conductors on some occasions and as switchmen on others. Under remote control the operator operates the locomotive using a remote control device, commonly called "a little black box," which is strapped to him. In addition, he is in charge of the crew and performs switching functions identical to those performed formerly by conductors and switchmen. The helper performs the greater part of the manual labor The fireman classification is gradually being eliminated through attrition 3 As part of the larger production and maintenance unit 9 A five-man crew consisted of an engineer, fireman, conductor, and two switchmen , a four-man crew consisted of an engineer, fireman, conductor. and switchman, and a three-man crew consisted of an engineer, conductor, and switchman 187 NLRB No. 49 UNITED STATES STEEL CORP. 523 involved in the switching operation. Even though the operator is in charge of the crew, as a practical matter where the helper is also a conductor and is more familiar with the particular area in which they are operating, the operator follows the helper's directions. The Employer selected its present operators from among the employees on the fireman-engineer's rosters. It selected its present helpers from among employees on the switchmen's roster.5 Both the operators and the helpers were given approximately 2 weeks' training in their respective functions.6 Current- ly there are 90 to 100 qualified operators and 65 to 75 qualified helpers. There is some dispute as to the amount of training which would be required to train a switchman or conductor to become an operator. A UTU witness contended that an operator would need at least 3 years as a fireman to be able to qualify as an operator (the same as to qualify as an engineer) whereas employer and Steelworkers witnesses contended that a switchman-conductor could be adequately trained as an operator within 4 weeks.? At present there are two remote control locomotives and they take approximately 15 percent of the total runs.8 The Employer states that, after evaluation, it intends to extend remote control to additional runs over and above those which are to be taken by the two additional remote control locomotives it will receive shortly. The parties also presented a great deal of evidence with respect to the racial composition of the present units. The UTU represented unit is all white.9 The conductors' unit is racially mixed, as is the remainder of the production and maintenance unit. However, because of past discrimination, the white conductors are at the top of the seniority roster and the black conductors are at the bottom. The switchmen's unit is mixed, but the Local 11 membership is entirely black.10 The Steelworkers questions the effectiveness of Local 11 as a bargaining agent and points to the fact that, in the past, Local l1's contract with Employer was negotiated immediately after the Steelworkers contract and was closely similar in its provisions.1 t This case thus requires the application of our unit placement guidelines where automation has not only resulted in a reduction in the size of the crew but also, of necessity, in substantial realignment of the func- tions of the crewmembers. We note, first, that there are no longer any clearly functional job classifica- tions. On the contrary, the functions of the crewmem- bers now overlap substantially: both members of the crew operate from the ground and both perform the same switching and related manual tasks. This overlap, in our view, results in a much closer community of interest between operator and helper than exists among crewmembers under manual operation. Adding to this closer community of interest is the fact that Employer intends to establish a line of progression from helper to operator. The fact that it takes as little as 4 weeks to train employees in the automated operation of locomotives 12 indicates that helpers will ordinarily have little difficulty in acquiring the skills necessary for promotion. All of this suggests, and we find, that employees assigned to these new classifications have such a close community of interest that they should be placed in the same bargaining unit. Having determined that the two classifications belong in the same unit we now must determine in which unit they belong. As the functions of these two classifications are the same as, or substitutes for, functions performed by the various members of the crew under manual operation, and as the employees who have been trained to do the work of these new 5 All conductors are included on the Switchmen's roster. Both conductors and switchmen bid for and were selected to fill the helper position. 6 The training was essentially the same except that the helpers did not operate the "box" and were not required to take an examination. 7 Operators are required to operate the locomotive manually when the remote control device fails. (Remote control equipment is operated manually approximately 15 percent of the time.) The Employer states that conductors and switchmen could be trained to perform the manual operation within 4 weeks . In addition, at least a three-man crew is necessary to operate manually. This requires some time delay to send for a third man and there is nothing to indicate that an engineer could not be sent out as fast as a switchman or conductor. There was some dispute as to the difficulty of operating the locomotive pulling a train on a main line run as opposed to operating it in the yard. Currently, approximately 65 percent of Employer's runs are yard runs (including all of the remote control runs) and 35 percent are main line runs (with Employer indicating that he expects to use remote control on these runs when it receives the two additional locomotives now being converted to remote control). The difference between the two types of runs is that on a main line run it is necessary to control the "slack" action (the control of the play between the cars by proper braking). The Employer's estimate that it would take 4 weeks to train a conductor or switchman to become a train operator did not exclude main line runs , however. 8 A run is one 8-hour shift. Approximately 5 percent of the remaining runs have 5-man crews, approximately 45 percent have 4-man crews, and approximately 35 percent have 3-man crews. 9 The UTU's national membership includes blacks. Prior to the March 24, 1968, agreement between the Employer and the UTU on the elimination of firemen, some black employees were training as firemen. However, under the agreement employees with little seniority were not given job protection. As a result of this provision all unprotected employees, including all of the blacks and some whites, were discharged. The UTU states that it is willing to represent both blacks and whites without discrimination. 10 At one time I I white employees belonged to Local 11, but all have since resigned their membership . At least some of the II are still working within the unit. Local II actively solicits white switchmen to become members of its organization. 11 No one questioned Local It's status as a functioning labor organization. 12 Employer's statement that only 4 weeks is required to train a train operator helper to become a train operator is supported by the fact that Employer has trained employees to perform these functions in that length of time at some of its other locations. 524 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD classifications are drawn from all three units, each of the Unions presents a substantial claim that the new classifications belong in the unit it represents. With full knowledge of the difficulties presented by this situation we have carefully considered and balanced the various factors. We conclude that the new classifications most properly constitute an accretion to the unit represented by the Steelworkers. We base our finding on the following major considerations: 1. The employees in the new classification of operator perform three basic functions: directing the crew, operating the locomotive, and switching. Help- ers are primarily engaged in switching duties but may, in addition, be called upon to direct the crew or undergo training in operation of the locomotive. Each function is essential and no one of them is of sufficient importance to dominate the other two.13 Under manual operation only the conductors perform more than one of these functions: they not only direct the crew but also perform switching functions. Thus, the Steelworkers is the only representative which has represented dual-function employees. 2. Under automation the degree of skill required to perform at least some of these functions has decreased from what was required under manual operation. Conversely, however, each operator or helper must master a broader range of skills. The result of the lowering but broadening of the overall skill requirement is that employees assigned to these 13 The UTU contends that operation of the locomotive is relatively more important as it requires the greater degree of skill However, the evidence that an operator can be trained to Employer's satisfaction in as classifications now have an increased community of interest with other production and maintenance employees who are similarly skilled. Principally on the basis of these two factors we conclude that the two new classifications constitute an accretion to the production and maintenance unit represented by the Steelworkers. On the basis of present practice at the plant, we expect the practical effect of this determination to be that the Steelworkers will bargain on behalf of operators and helpers for such time as they are working in these classifications, in the same manner as they now bargain on behalf of conductors who work only part time in that classification. We expect, further, that employees who work only part time as operators and helpers and who are assigned as switchmen, engineers, or firemen during their remain- ing work time will continue to be represented for such remaining time in units to which these latter classifi- cations respectively belong. As we have found that the operator and helper classifications constitute an accretion to the unit represented by the Steelworkers, we shall dismiss the petitions herein. ORDER It is hereby ordered that the petitions filed herein be, and they hereby are, dismissed. little as 4 weeks indicates that the additional skill required to operate a locomotive under these circumstances does not invest this function with dominating importance