United Foods, Inc.

UNITED FOODS, INC. 91 United Foods, Inc., Dulaney Foods Division and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, AFL-CIO. Case 5-RC-6355 January 10, 1969 DECISION ON REVIEW, AND DIRECTION BY CHAIRMAN MCCULLOCH AND MEMBERS BROWN AND ZAGORIA On May 22, 1968, the Regional Director for Region 5 issued his Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceeding, in which he found appropriate a unit of the Employer's maintenance employees. Thereafter, in accordance with National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations, the Employer filed a timely request for review of the Regional Director's Decision, in which it contended that the Regional Director departed from established Board precedent in finding the maintenance unit to be appropriate. By telegraphic Order dated August 15, 1968, the National Labor Relations Board granted the request for review and stayed the election. The Employer filed a timely brief on review. 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 entire record in this case, with respect to the issues under review, and makes the following findings: The Petitioner primarily seeks, and the Regional Director granted, a unit of the Employer's year-round maintenance employees.' The Employer contends inter aiia, that the requested employees lack a community of interest sufficiently distinct from that of its other employees to warrant the establishment of a separate maintenance unit. We find merit in this contention. The Employer operates a plant and a cold storage facility at Exmore, Virginia, where it is engaged in the processing, packaging, warehousing and shipping of frozen vegetables.2 Its busy season, during which it processes various vegetables such as spinach, peas, and corn, runs from April until December. It employs some 65 year-round production, maintenance and cold storage employees, but during its busy season, the total employee complement expands to a peak of about 400 employees in the fall. There is no bargaining history for any of the Employer's employees. The Employer's plant is under a plant manager and is divided into production, maintenance, and 'in the alternative, the Petitioner seeks a single unit comprising both maintenance and storage employees. 'No contention is made that any of the employees in dispute is an agricultural employee. cold storage operations, each with its own separate supervision. The maintenance crew consists of about 20 year-round employees who report to the plant engineer and perform minor maintenance work and new construction. About 13 of the maintenance employees work in the main processing building and during the busy season about 6 of them are permanently stationed close to the production lines, where they adjust conveyor belts, replace chain drives and electric motors, repair wooden pallets, maintain the cornhusker and attend the blancher. Some of these six maintenance employees regularly set up and start the packaging machines and occasionally perform other production functions. When working near the production lines, these maintenance employees are subject to the direction of production supervisors. The remainder of the 13 maintenance employees who work in the main processing building install, build, and repair machinery. Although these 13 employees have sometimes utilized a small maintenance shop and tool crib in the main processing building, they perform the bulk of their work in the production areas. The remaining seven maintenance employees are not normally assigned to the main processing building but instead report to the cold storage buildings. Four are compressor operators, who attend the refrigeration compressors around the clock; the others are a "man and his helper" and the janitor-helper-painter. Maintenance employees stationed in the cold storage buildings are subject to the direction of the storage supervisor as well as the plant engineer. None of the 20 maintenance employees performs work requiring the exercise of craft skills, as such work is done by independent contractors. The maintenance employees were recruited from high schools, gasoline stations, and the armed forces, or have transferred from the production group. None is licensed, none has served an apprenticeship, and none was selected because he possessed a particular skill. All received their training on the job. The production work force is composed of about 26 year-round employees supplemented by about 325 other employees employed at various times during the busy season . During the busy season, the year-round production employees occupy such "key" jobs as freezer operators and line operators, or pushers, while the busy season employees appear to perform only unskilled work. Although all production employees are primarily engaged in processing, packing, freezing and wrapping vegetables during the busy season, some also perform the same functions as those maintenance employees who are stationed close to the production lines. During the slack season, very little production work is performed, and the year-round 26-man production force is almost entirely engaged in maintenance work, such as new construction and the repairing, rebuilding, cleaning and painting of the 174 NLRB No. 18 92 - DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD plant and its equipment. At such times production employees work in close association with the year-round maintenance employees, and, like the latter, are under the direction of the plant engineer. The storage employees, whose number varies from 20 to 35, perform receiving, storage, and shipping functions throughout the year. At times during the busy season they also perform production functions. During the slack season, they also perform occasional maintenance functions. Some key production employees have higher wage rates than the maintenance employees, and all year-round employees appear to receive higher wages than busy season employees. The year-round employees enjoy the same paid vacations, holidays, and other conditions of employment, while few if any of the busy season employees work for a sufficient period to become eligible for paid vacations. Maintenance employees share timeclocks with production and storage employees. Relying on American Cyanamid Company,; the Regional Director concluded that the Employer's maintenance employees constitute a cohesive and readily identifiable group with a distinct community of interest which warrants their representation in a separate unit. We disagree. We conclude, based on the record as a whole, that the maintenance employees lack the identity and cohesiveness which is required for their representation in a separate unit. During the busy season, the maintenance employees work largely in production areas in close contact and cooperation with production employees and frequently work under the direction of production supervisors. The work of the maintenance employees at such times is essential to, and closely integrated with, the Employer's production processes. On the other hand, during the slack season, the production employees are almost entirely engaged in maintenance functions, and apparently perform such work to the Employer's satisfaction. Storage employees also do maintenance work during the slack season. None of the maintenance work at this plant seems to require craft training or skills, and the maintenance employees do not possess such skills. Finally, the maintenance employees share no conditions of employment distinguishing their interests from the interests of other year-round employees. In consideration of these factors we find that a unit limited to the Employer's year-round maintenance employees is inappropriate. The same factors, however, establish the appropriateness of a unit of the Employer's year-round production, maintenance and cold storage personnel. Thus, these employees constitute the Employer's permanent "blue collar" work force and share the basic responsibility of providing continuity of plant operations from year to year. '131 NLRB 909. The employees of each group, on the basis of frequent interchange and work under common supervision, have developed, sufficient skills to perform each others' functions and to work together. Further, all the year-round employees share the same terms and conditions of employment including paid vacations. We find therefore that a unit of the Employer's year-round production, maintenance and cold storage employees excluding the busy season employees4 is appropriate.5 Accordingly, and as the Petitioner has a showing of interest adequate for an election in a unit of the year-round employees, we shall direct an election therein." The appropriate unit is: All year-round production, maintenance and cold storage employees employed by the Employer at its Exmore, Virginia plant and cold storage facility, excluding busy season employees, temporary employees,7 office clerical employees, professional employees, agricultural employees, watchmen, guards and supervisors as defined in the Act. Direction The case is hereby remanded to the Regional Director for Region 5 for the purposes of conducting an election according to his Decision and Director of Election as modified herein, except that the eligibility date shall he the payroll period immediately preceding the date of issuance. 8 4The busy season employees are less skilled than the year-round employees, and perform only routine production assignments under production supervision, The busy season employees receive lower wages, and few, if any, are entitled to a paid vacation. Further, it does not appear that any of the busy season employees have the opportunity to become year-round employees Because the record establishes that the busy season employees do not share the same community of interest as the year-round employees, and since Petitioner does not seek to represent them, we exclude the busy season employees See, for example, Franklin County Sugar Company, 92 NLRB 1341; Bear Creek Orchards, 87 NLRB 1348, Hunt Foods, Inc, 68 NLRB 800; Stokely Brothers & Company, Inc., and Van Camp's, Inc., 15 NLRB 872; Bishop & Company, Inc., 4 NLRB 514 'See Maine Sugar Industries, 169 NLRB No. 31, Franklin County Sugar Company, supra, Bear Creek Orchards, supra, Hunt Foods, Inc., supra But see California Vegetable Concentrates, Inc., 137 NLRB 1779, where seasonal employees sought by the union therein were included in a unit with year-round employees. 'However, as the unit found appropriate is broader than that sought by the Petitioner, the Petitioner may withdraw its petition without prejudice upon written notice to the Regional Director within 10 days from the date of this Decision on Review. Independent Linen Service Company of Mississippi, 122 NLRB 1002. 'At times during the busy season, the Employer employs extra maintenance employees on a temporary basis. They appear to be temporary employees and, in accord with the Board's customary practice, are excluded. 'A corrected election eligibility list, containing the names and addresses of all the eligible voters, must be filed by the Employer with the Regional Director for Region 5 within 7 days after the date of this Decision on Review, and Direction. The Regional Director shall make the list available to all parties to the election. No extension of time to file this list shall be granted by the Regional Director except in extraordinary circumstances Failure to comply with this requirement shall be grounds for setting aside the election whenever proper objections are filed . Excelsior Underwear Inc , 156 NLRB 1236