Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corp.

682 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD Kaiser Aluminun & Chemical Corporation and United Steelworkers of America, AFL-CIO, Petitioner. Case 20-RC-8241 June 30, 1969 DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION BY MEMBERS FANNING, BROWN, AND JENKINS Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9(c) of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, a hearing was held before Hearing Officers Walter L. Kintz, Jr., and Donald E. Twohey. Following the hearing, this case was transferred to the National Labor Relations Board in Washington, D.C., pursuant to Section 102.67 of the National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations and Statements of Procedure, Series 8, as amended. Thereafter, the Petitioner, Employer, and intervening Lithographers and Photoengravers International Union, Local 17-L, AFL-CIO,' herein called Lithographers, filed briefs. 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 Officers' 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, including the briefs filed herein, the Board finds: 1. The parties stipulated, and we find, that the Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act, and that 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. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representation of certain employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section 9(c)(1) and Section 2(6) and (7) of the Act. This case involves a new plant of Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corporation, the Employer, located at Union City, California. The Petitioner seeks a unit of all production and maintenance employees at this plant, excluding office clerical employees, guards and supervisors as defined in the Act. The Employer and the intervening Machinists and Longshoremen agree as to the appropriateness of this unit. The intervening Lithographers, however, seek a unit consisting of all employees engaged in 'Permitted to intervene on the basis of a showing of interest. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, AFL-CIO, District Lodge No 115, herein called Machinists, and the International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen' s Union, Local No. 6, herein called Longshoremen, were also permitted to intervene on the basis of a showing of interest the metal decorating functions, including specifically those employees engaged in the operation of the offset printing equipment, coating equipment, inside spraying equipment, and the technicians related to that equipment, excluding all other employees. The Employer's Union City plant is designed, equipped, and utilized for the fabricating, coating, and decorating of seamless cans for beverage producers, and the customers currently being served are those producing Budweiser Beer, Hamms Beer, and Coca-Cola. The plant has three production lines, the first two of which were operational at the time of the hearing herein, and the third was then in the "debugging" phase. The three production lines contain similar equipment, with minor differences in location and capacity. As of the initial date of the hearing, there were approximately 94 employees and the Employer had no plans for any material increase in hiring within the next 2 years. The existing job categories include the following: line technician; coater-printer operator; draw and iron operator; equipment tender; quality control inspector; tool repairman general; repairman mechanical; repairman electrical; material distributor; tool inspector; receiving clerk; and laborer. There are currently two methods used in the manufacturing of cans. The more traditional method is known as the three-piece operation and consists of a steel body, a steel bottom, and an aluminum top, all of which are made independently of each other on separate production lines. Sheets of raw material are sheered into flat sheets and transported to coating and printing lines. After coating, if required, and printing, the sheets are taken to a press punch line where the printed portions are cut or punched into the size of flat can bodies, and are then taken to an assembly line where the flat side pieces are rolled into a cylindrical form, crimped and soldered, and the bottoms are attached. The plant involved herein uses exclusively the more recently developed method known as the two-piece operation which has the unique capacity of not only fabricating a seamless aluminum can from a sheet of raw material, but also, coating and decorating the can in one continuous production process. This is accomplished through the utilization of an intricate trackwork system that moves the product automatically from the uncoiler, the first piece of equipment, to the automatic palletizer, the last piece of equipment on the production lines. All components on each production line are interconnected and are dependent upon each other for overall operation. In addition to the operating dependency of all components, each production line is actuated automatically by electrical sensing devices. Other than for inspection and maintenance, the cans are not touched by human hands from fabricating through packaging. The production process involves the running of a coil of aluminum from an uncoiler through a lubricator to a cupping press which stamps out 177 NLRB No. 67 KAISER ALUMINUM & CHEMICAL CORP. 683 circular pieces of aluminum into cups about 2 inches high. These cans are then extruded by bodymakers into the desired cylindrical form and size. After being ttimmed to a prescribed height, the cans are washed in a chemical solution, rinsed, dried, and coated,'if required.' The coating process involves the automaitic transferring of the cans to a spindle on the coater which rotates past a roller that transfers a solid white coating to the cans. After drying, the cans are conveyed to the Rutherford printer' where they are automatically inserted on a rotating wheel that passes by a blanket in the printer and decorates the can with the customer's label. The decorated cans are dried and then conveyed to the inside sprayer where they are sprayed by a jet nozzle. After inside spraying, the cans are conveyed to the necker-flanger where they receive a slightly indented neck around the top edge and a rounded lip or flange, all of which prepares the cans so that they can receive tops after being filled with the customer's product. The final steps along the production line involve the automatic testing of the cans, packaging, and storing for shipment to the customer. The wet-offset lithographic process is used in the three-piece operation, and the dry-offset process is used exclusively in the two-piece operation. Under the traditional wet-offset process, the image to be reproduced is engraved on a copper and steel plate and ink and water is applied to the plate during the printing process, with the ink adhering to the image or copper portion of the plate and being repelled by the steel portion which attracts the water. The inked portion of the plate is then brought into contact with a rubber blanket which receives the image which is then transferred, or offset, from the blanket to the material being printed. Under the dry-offset process, a plastic plate is used which has a raised image that takes the ink directly, after which it is brought into contact with the rubber blanket and then offset onto the material being printed. In sum, the dry-offset is based upon mechanical separation of the inked and uninked areas, and the wet-offset is based upon a chemical separation through the interaction of ink and water of the inked and uninked portions of the plate. The wet-offset process requires the development of more skills than is required for dry-offset printing and considerably more training in the exercise of those skills. The Lithographers only seek to represent those employees engaged in the operation of the coater, printer, inside sprayer, and the technicians related to that equipment, excluding all other employees. All such equipment is located on that part of the production lines that is identified in the record as the Deco department and also includes the 'Coating is not required on the cans made for Coca-Cola. 'This is a recently designed printer that has the capacity to decorate a cylindrical form which was not possible in the traditional three-piece operation: The Rutherford printer can only be used in a two-piece operation. necker-flanger, Borden tester, and automatic palletizer. Job classifications regularly assigned to operate all of the equipment in the Deco department are line technician, coater-printer operator, and equipment tender. Line technicians in the Deco department are primarily responsible for overall troubleshooting and repairing equipment. On the day and the afternoon shifts, a line technician is normally assigned to the coater, printer, and related equipment, and another line technician is normally assigned to the inside sprayer, necker-flanger, Borden tester, and automatic palletizer. Line technicians are regularly supervised by a Deco shift supervisor. However, a line technician can be used elsewhere on the production lines and when so used he is under the supervision of the supervisor in charge of that area. A line technician from the Deco department is also assigned to the graveyard shift where he is under the supervision of the maintenance supervisor. On the coater, the line technician's main function is one of repair and replacement of rolls. In the absence of a coater-printer operator, the line technician will operate the coater on a production basis. On the printer, the line technician is primarily responsible for the changing of plates, rollers, blankets, adjusting the flow of ink from the well to the roller, and adjusting the pressure between the plates and the blankets on original setup. It takes about 6 months to 1 year to train a line technician to perform all of the functions on the Rutherford printer so that he can do so without supervision. In hiring line technicians, the Employer usually looks for an individual who has had plant maintenance mechanical experience. There is no apprenticeship or formalized training program at the instant plant. Coater-printer operators are primarily responsible for operating the coating and printing equipment. On the coater, this will involve putting a specified enamel or base coat into the equipment, setting the rollers so that there will be sufficient pressure against the can so as to produce adequate coating, and operating the equipment. On the printer, his duties involve placing a specified ink into the ink well, setting the rolls, by use of handle adjustments, to attain proper pressure against the plates, and operating the equipment. Coater-printer operators are regularly supervised by a Deco shift supervisor. However, they do spend a substantial amount of time away from their assigned equipment doing such added duties as clearing jams, routine maintenance, and can sorting. While performing these added duties they are supervised by the supervisor in charge of that area. No special qualifications or skills are required for the hiring of coater-printer operators. It takes about a week to train a coater-printer operator. Equipment tenders in the Deco department are regularly assigned to operate the inside sprayer, necker-flanger, Borden tester, and automatic palletizer. They also work on the trackwork system, 684 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD ovens, and assist the line technicians in maintaining the equipment. An equipment tender is regularly assigned to the graveyard shift and is supervised by the maintenance supervisor. Although equipment tenders are also regularly supervised by a Deco shift supervisor, they still spend a substantial amount of time away from their regular assigned areas performing such added duties as working on the trackwork system, ovens, assisting the line technicians in maintaining the equipment, can sorting, and packaging. While performing these other than regular assigned duties, they are supervised by the supervisor in charge of that area. It takes about 3 or 4 days to train an equipment tender to operate the inside spraying equipment. No formal training or experience is required in the hiring of equipment tenders, but the Employer requires an applicant to be physically acceptable, literate, and to have a reasonable mechanical aptitude. Line technician, draw and iron operator, and equipment tender comprise the job classifications regularly assigned to the Forming department. Line technicians, as are their counterparts in the Deco department, are generally responsible for overall troubleshooting and repairing the equipment. They can also be utilized up and down the production lines. They receive the same hourly pay as the line technicians in the Deco department, and use the same facilities, have the same working conditions, and receive the same fringe benefits as do all of the other employees. Although line technicians are regularly supervised by a Forming shift supervisor, they also can be and are utilized elsewhere on the production lines and on such occasions are supervised by the supervisor in charge of that area. The draw and iron operators are primarily responsible for operating the overhead crane, uncoiler, lubricator, cupping press, and bodymakers. Although they are also regularly supervised by a Forming shift supervisor, they still spend a substantial amount of time working in other areas where they are under the supervision of the supervisor in charge of that area. They receive an hourly pay somewhat comparable to that received by the coater-printer operators. Equipment tenders are regularly assigned to the washer and the scrap bailer.' They are also regularly supervised by a Forming shift supervisor, but as do their counterpart in the Deco department, they spend a substantial amount of time performing duties away from their regular assigned areas and on such occasions are supervised by the supervisor in charge of that area. They also receive the same hourly pay as the equipment tenders in the Deco department. Other employees include quality control inspectors who are regularly assigned to the Forming and Deco departments. Their primary duties involve inspection of incoming raw material and making in-process inspections all along the production lines. They are in constant contact with the production employees. There are also material distributors assigned to the warehouse areas whose duties involve receiving and transporting incoming raw material to their proper storage areas and transporting the finished cans from the palletizers to the storage areas awaiting shipment to the customers. They also have substantial contact with the production workers. The remaining classifications of tool repairman general, repairman mechanical, repairman electrical, tool inspector, receiving clerk, and laborer have duties which require their presence on the production lines. With respect to the unit sought by the Lithographers, it appears that the employees involved therein do not work entirely under separate supervision; they spend a substantial amount of time in nonprinting duties; they do not work in a separate location, but rather as part of the Deco department, on printing equipment which is part of the production lines; the line technicians and equipment tenders in the Deco department receive the same hourly pay as the same classifications in the Forming department; the coater-printer operators receive an hourly pay somewhat comparable to that received by the draw and iron operators in the Forming department; and all of the employees use the same facilities, have the same working conditions, and receive the same fringe benefits. Moreover, the Employer does not have an apprenticeship or formalized training program, does not specifically require lithographic experience in the hiring of employees, and the dry-offset printing process is used exclusively, which requires less skill and which the Board has distinguished from "traditional" lithography printing.' The foregoing factors persuade us that the line technicians, coater-printer operators, and equipment tenders sought by the Lithographers do not have a sufficient community of interests to warrant their establishment as a separate bargaining unit. It is, of course, true that the Board has long recognized that employees engaged in the lithographic process may constitute an appropriate bargaining unit in appropriate circumstances. We do not find this to be such a unit. Whatever separate community of interests flow from the performance of lithographic functions are far outweighed by the larger community of interests these employees share with other employees in the plant by reason of shared supervision, common location on the production line, and shared responsibility for and participation in the operation of the nonprinting equipment along the production lines. Accordingly, we find that they do not by themselves constitute a unit appropriate for purposes of collective bargaining. The scrap bailer compresses into briquettes the scrap from the cupping presses and the bodymakers. 'Continental Can Co, 171 NLRB No 99. KAISER ALUMINUM & CHEMICAL CORP. However, the facts set forth above demonstrate that all of the production and maintenance employees involved herein are an identifiable and distinct group with a community of interests, and they constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. 4. We find that the following employees constitute a unit ; appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9(b) of the Act: All production and maintenance employees at the Employer' s Union City, California, plant, excluding office clerical employees, guards and supervisors as defined in the Act. 685 [Direction of Election' omitted from publication.] 'In order to assure that all eligible voters may have the opportunity to be informed of the issues in the exercise of their statutory right to vote, all parties to the election should have access to a list of voters and their addresses which may be used to communicate with them Excelsior Underwear Inc, 156 NLRB 1236, N.L R B v. Wyman-Gordon Company, 394 U.S 759. Accordingly, it is hereby directed that an 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 20 within 7 days of the date of this Decision and Direction of Election 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 to 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.