Hawthorne Paper Company

In the Matter of HAWTHORNE PAPER COMPANY and UNITED PAPER MILL WORKERS, LOCAL INDUSTRIAL UNION 398 Case No. R-1059.Decided Apri13,1939 Paper Manufacturing Industry Investigation of Representatives : controversy concerning representation of employees : refusal by employer to recognize union as exclusive bargaining representative-Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargain, ing: stipulated ; hourly production and maintenance employees , consisting of the employees in the powerhouse, maintenance department, beater room, machine room, cutter room, finishing room, rag room, all the employees engaged in finishing processes, those employees commonly known as roustabouts or the bull-gang, watchmen , and a janitor, excluding office help and foremen who are engaged in supervisory capacities-Election Ordered Mr. Charles F. McErlean, for the Board. Stearns, Kleinstuck & Stapleton, by Mr. C. H. Kleinstuek, of Kala- mazoo, Mich., for the respondent. Mr. Ralph' Winkler, of counsel to the Board; DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On May 31, 1938, and September 30, 1938, respectively, United Paper Mill Workers, Local Industrial Union 398, herein called the Union, filed with the Regional Director for the Seventh Region (Detroit, Michigan) a petition and an amended petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representa- tion of employees of Hawthorne Paper Company,' Kalamazoo, Mich- igan, herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On September 13, 1938, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act, and Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional Director to conduct it and to provide for I Incorrectly designated Hawthorne Paper Company, Inc., in the petition. 12 N. L. R. B., No. 5. 43 44 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD an appropriate hearing upon due notice. On October 1, 1938, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the Union. Pursuant to the notice, a hearing was held on October 13, 1938, at Kalamazoo, Michi- gan, before Herbert Wenzel, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board.2 The Board and the Company were represented by coun- sel and participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing upon the issues was afforded all parties. During the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made rulings on several motions. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY The Hawthorne Paper Company, a Michigan corporation, is en- gaged in the manufacture, sale, and distribution of paper at Kala- mazoo, Michigan, where it employs approximately 145 employees. The raw materials used by the Company consist principally of rags, pulp, dyestuffs, chemicals, coal, starch, felts, wires, oil, and other miscellaneous materials and supplies. In 1937 the Company pur- chased raw materials valued at $700,000, approximately 90 per cent of which were obtained from points outside the State of Michigan. During the same year the Company sold finished products valued at $1,051,722.76, approximately 85 per cent of which were shipped out- side the State of Michigan. The Company admits that it is engaged in interstate commerce. H. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED United Paper Mill Workers, Local Industrial Union 398, is a labor organization affiliated with the Committee for Industrial Organiza- tion. It admits to membership the production and maintenance employees of the respondent. M. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On September 29 and October 20, 1937, the Union, claiming to represent a majority of the Company's employees within an appro- 2 The hearing was also on the issues raised in a complaint charging the Company with having engaged in unfair labor practices . On motion of counsel for the Board during the hearing the Trial Examiner dismissed the complaint. By order dated March 14, 1939, the Board severed the complaint case, No. VII-C-152, from the instant proceeding. HAWTHORNE PAPER COMPANY 45 priate unit, requested and was refused recognition by the Company as the exclusive bargaining agent for such employees. We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company. IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION We find that the question concerning representation which has arisen, occurring in connection with the operations of the Company described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial relation to trade, traffic, and commerce among the several States, and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The petition of the Union recites and the parties at the hearing stipulated that the hourly production and maintenance employees, consisting of the employees in the powerhouse, maintenance depart-. ment, beater room, machine room, cutter room, finishing room, rag room, all the employees engaged in finishing processes, those em- ployees commonly known as roustabouts or the bull-gang, watchmen, and a janitor,8 excluding office help and the foremen who are engaged in supervisory capacities, constitute a unit appropriate for the pur- poses of collective bargaining. We see no reason to alter the agreed unit. We find that the hourly production and maintenance employees, consisting of the employees in the powerhouse, maintenance depart- ment, beater room, machine room, cutter room, finishing room, rag room, all the employees engaged in finishing processes, those em- ployess commonly known as roustabouts or the bull-gang, watchmen, and a janitor, excluding office help and the foremen who are engaged in supervisory capacities, constitute a unit appropriate for the pur- poses of collective bargaining and that said unit will insure to employees of the Company the full benefit of their right to self- organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES The parties agreed at the hearing that the question which has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company can best be resolved by an election by secret ballot. The parties fur- 8 Neither watchmen nor the Janitor are referred to in the petition. The stipulation, however, includes these employees and we shall include them in the unit. 46 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD ther agreed that, in the event the Board should direct an election, the eligibility of employees to participate therein should be determined by the Company's pay roll of October 8, 1938, which was introduced into evidence. No reason appears for departing from the wishes of the parties in this regard. We find that the question which has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of the Company can best be resolved by an election by secret ballot. We shall direct that those employees of the Company within the appropriate unit who were on the Company's pay roll on October 8, 1938, shall be eligible to vote, excluding those who have since quit or have been discharged for cause. Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : CONCLusIONs OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the rep- resentation of employees of Hawthorne Paper Company, Kalamazoo, Michigan, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. The hourly production and maintenance employees, consisting of the employees in the powerhouse, maintenance department, beater room, machine room, cutter room, finishing room, rag room, all the employees engaged in finishing processes, those employees commonly known as roustabouts or the bull-gang, watchmen, and a janitor, ex- cluding office help and the foremen who are engaged in supervisory capacities, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act. 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 1, as amended, it is hereby DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation ordered by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Hawthorne Paper Company, Kalamazoo, Michigan, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted within fifteen (15) days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Seventh 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 hourly pro- HAWTHORNE PAPER COMPANY 4i duction and maintenance employees of Hawthorne Paper Company, consisting of the employees in the powerhouse, maintenance depart- ment, beater room, machine room, cutter room, finishing room, rag room, all the employees engaged in finishing processes, those em- ployees commonly known as roustabouts or the bull-gang, watchmen, and a janitor, whose names appear upon its October 8, 1938, pay roll, excluding office help, foremen who are engaged in supervisory capac- ities, and all employees who have since quit or have been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by United Paper Mill Workers, Local Industrial Union 398, affiliated with the Committee for Industrial Organization, for the purposes of collective bargaining. [SAME TITLE] SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION AND ORDER May 1, 1939 On April 3, 1939, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, issued a Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled case. The Direction of Election directed that an election by secret ballot be conducted within fifteen (15) days from the date of the Direction among the hourly production and main- tenance employees of Hawthorne Paper Company, consisting of the employees in the powerhouse, maintenance department, beater room, machine room, cutter room, finishing room, rag room, all the employees engaged in finishing processes, those employees commonly known as roustabouts or the bull-gang, watchmen, and a janitor, whose names appear upon its October 8, 1938, pay, roll, excluding office help, foremen who are engaged in supervisory capacities, and all employees who have since quit or have been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by United Paper Mill Workers, Local Industrial Union 398, affiliated with the Committee for Industrial Organization, for the purposes of collec- tive bargaining. Pursuant to the Direction, an election by secret ballot was con- ducted on April 18, 1939, at Kalamazoo, Michigan, under the di- rection and supervision of the Regional Director for the Seventh Region (Detroit, Michigan). Full opportunity was accorded all the parties to the investigation to participate in the conduct of 48 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD the secret ballot and to make challenges. On April 19, 1939, the Regional Director, acting pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended, issued and served upon the parties an Intermediate Report on the ballot. No exceptions to the Intermediate Report have been filed by any of the parties. As to the balloting and its results, the Regional Director reported as follows : Total number eligible to vote________________________________ 121 Total number of ballots cast________________________________ 117 Total number of ballots counted_____________________________ 117 Total number of votes for United Paper Mill Workers, Local Industrial Union 398, affiliated with the C. I. O_____________ 33 Total number of votes against United Paper Mill Workers, Lo- cal Industrial Union 398, affiliated with the C. I. 0--------- 84 Total number of challenged ballots__________________________ 0 Total number of blank ballots______________________________ 0 Total number of void ballots________________________________ 0 The results of the election show that no collective bargaining rep- resentative has been selected by a majority of the employees. The petition for investigation and certification of representatives of employees of Hawthorne Paper Company, Kalamazoo, Michigan, will therefore be dismissed. ORDER By virtue of Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Sections 8 and 9, of Na- tional Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition for investigation and certi- fication of representatives of employees of Hawthorne Paper Com- pany, Kalamazoo, Michigan, filed by United Paper Mill Workers, Local Industrial Union 398, affiliated with the Committee for In- dustrial Organization, be, and it hereby is, dismissed. 12 N. L. R. B., No. 5a.