Rosedale Knitting Co.

In the Matter of ROSEDALE KNITrINO COMPANY and ROSEDALE EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION Case No. R-1792.-Decided May 6,1940 Sosiery Manufacturing Industry Investigation of Representatives: contro- versy concerning representation of employees : employer's refusal to grant recognition to union on ground of subsisting contract with rival union; three- year contract no bar to investigation and certification after one and one-half years-Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining: stipulated; production em- ployees of the Company, exclusive of office employees, clerical employees, managers, executives, supervisory employees, maintenance employees, watch- men, and laborers-Election Ordered Mr. Samuel G. Zack, for the Board. Stevens cC Lee, by Mr. Harry W. Lee, of Reading, Pa., for the Company. Mr. William M. Rutter, of Reading, Pa., for the Association. Mr. Isadore Katz, of Philadelphia, Pa., for the Federation. Miss Charlotte Anscltuetz, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On February 24, 1940, Rosedale Employees Association, herein called the Association, filed with the Regional Director for the Fourth Region (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representa- tion of employees of Rosedale Knitting Company, Laureldale, Penn- sylvania, 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 March 8, 1940, 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 Regula- tions-Series 2, as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice. - 23 N. L. R. -B., No. 43. 527 528 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD On March 18, 1940, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the Association, and the American Federation of Hosiery Workers, Branch No. 10, affiliated with the C. I. 0., herein called the Federation, a labor organization claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on April 8, 1940, at Read- ing, Pennsylvania, before Joseph L. Maguire, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. The Board, the Company, the Asso- ciation, and the Federation were represented by counsel and partici- pated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded all parties. During the course of the hearing, the Trial Examiner made several rulings on motions and on objec- tions to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. On April 22, 1940, the Federation filed a brief and on April 24, the Association filed a brief in reply, both of which have been considered by the Board. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Rosedale Knitting Company, a Pennsylvania Corporation main- taining its principal place of business at Laureldale, Pennsylvania, is engaged in the manufacture, sale, and distribution of silk and rayon full-fashioned hosiery. The principal raw materials used by the Company are silk, cotton, dyestuffs, rayon, boxes, cellophane, paper, and glue. Approximately 92 per cent of these raw materials are purchased outside the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. During 1.939, the value of the raw materials used was $1,992,597.21. During the same year, the Company manufactured and sold 936,693 dozen pairs of stockings, approximately 90 per cent of which were shipped to points outside the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The value of the gross sales amounted to $5,186,415.43. II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Rosedale Employees Association is an unaffiliated labor organiza- tion admitting to its membership all production employees of the Company, excluding office employees, clerical employees, managers, executives, supervisory employees, maintenance employees, watch- men, and laborers. ROSEDALE KNITTING COMPANY 529 American Federation of Hosiery Workers, Branch #10, is a labor organization affiliated with Textile, Workers Union of America and with the Congress .of Industrial Organizations. It admits to its membership all production employees of the Company, excluding office employees, clerical employees, managers, executives, supervisory employees, maintenance employees, watchmen, and laborers. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION During 1938 and 1939, the Association, claiming to represent a majority of the employees of the Company,, made several requests that the Company bargain collectively with it. The Company re- fused these requests on the ground that under a subsisting contract the Federation was the recognized bargaining representative for its employees. In its petition the Association claimed that 900 of the Company's employees in a unit of 2000' employees had designated the Associa- tion as their representative for collective, bargaining. The Associa- tion had submitted to the Regional Director 916 authorization cards, an analysis of which is in evidence. The Regional Director found that the cards were dated between July 15, 1939, and March 25, 1940 (except one which was undated), and bore genuine, original signa- tures, 884 of which were names of persons appearing on the Com- pany's pay roll of February 29, 1940. The Federation is at the present time a party to a contract with the Company, one of the terms of which provides for a check-off of union dues by the Company when the individual worker signs an authorization permitting such check-off and submits it to the Com- pany. The Federation had submitted 1189 of these check-off au- thorizations to the Regional Director. He found that they were undated but because they were signed pursuant to the contract here- inbefore mentioned, dated August 26, 1938, they must have been signed between August 26, 1938, and February 29, 1940. The Regional Director found that all 1189 signatures appeared to be genuine, original signatures, and all were the names of persons appearing on the Company's pay roll of February 29, 1940. The Federation denies the power of the Board to hold an election or to certify representatives because of the subsisting contract between the Company and the Federation. This contract, which was entered into on August 26, 1938, does not terminate until August 31, 1941. By the terms of the contract the Company agreed to prefer members of the Federation in the employment of new help. Since, however, more than one and one-half years of the term of the con- tract have already expired, we conclude, in conformity with prior 530 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD decisions,' that'the contract cannot preclude us from determining and certifying the organization which a majority of the employees in the appropriate unit now wish to represent them. We find that a question has arisen concerning representation of employees of the Company. IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON COMMERCE 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 All the parties stipulated that the appropriate unit for purposes of collective bargaining consists of employees of the Company "engaged in production work at the mill, except persons employed in the office or in clerical work, managerial, executive, or supervisory capacity, or as maintenance employees, or as watchmen or laborers." It was stipulated during the hearing that "laborers" include persons ',employed in the shipping room; those carrying work to and from machines in the knitting department; men working on the grounds of the property; cleaners and janitors; gray stock room employees, that is, men getting the merchandise ready for the dye-house; men giving out and cleaning work in looping, seaming and examining departments." It was stipulated also that "maintenance employees" include "carpenters, machinists, electricians, tinsmiths, machine fixers, plumbers, and others who perform other and similar types of work." We see no reason to alter the unit agreed upon. We find that all production employees of the Company, excluding office employees, clerical employees, managers, executives, super- visory employees, maintenance employees, watchmen, and laborers, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargain- ing and that said unit will insure to employees of the Company the 1 Matter of M. ck J. Tracy, Inc. and Inland Boatmen's Union, 12 N. L R. B 936; Matter of Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc. and American Communications Association (For- merly American Radio Telegraphists' Association), 8 N. L. R. B. 508; Matter of Metro- Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, and Motion Picture Producers Assn, et at. and Screen Writers' Guild, 7 N. L. R. B. 662; Matter of Hubinger Company and Corn Products Workers Union No. 199.11 and Hubinger Company Employees Representation Plan, 4 N. L. R. B. 428. Cf Matter of The National Sugar Refining Company of New Jersey, L. I. City Refinery and Local 1476, Sugar Refinery Workers, International Longshoremen's Ass'n., 10 N. L. R B. 1410. ROSEDALE KNITTING COMPANY 531 full benefit of their right to self-organization and collective bargain- ing and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES It is apparent from what has been stated previously that the ques- tion concerning representation which has arisen can only be resolved by an election. We shall accordingly direct an election to be held. During the hearing, 3 pay-roll schedules were introduced in evi- dence. One was a "master payroll" containing the names and ad- dresses of from 2400 to 2600 persons the Company considered in its employ as of February 29, 1940, whether or not they drew pay at that time. The other two listed the names of employees who drew pay for the pay-roll periods ending February 29, 1940, and March 28, 1940; containing respectively from 1100 to 1300 and from 1400 to 1600 names. The persons named on the master pay roll were either work- ing for the Company on February 29, 1940, or had worked for the Company in the past and might be reemployed in the future. The parties were unable to agree what employees should be eligible to vote. During normal business periods the Company seems to have employed approximately 2300 employees. Following October 1939, employment fell sharply due to a general economic depression in the industry. This condition was' caused in part by a drop in the price of :ilk and the introduction of "Nylon" hosiery. It is difficult, if not impossible, to forecast the extent of future employment. The Company desired that the master pay roll be selected as the basis of eligibility to vote; both the Association and the Federation objected on the ground that many might be voting who would never again work for the Company. At the same time, they admitted that the choice of a pay roll nearest the date of election containing only names of employees actually drawing wages for that period might prejudice bona fide employees temporarily laid off. It was suggested by the Company and acquiesced in by the Association, that those em- ployees be allowed to vote "who have received pay from September 1, 1939 to the present time, less such persons who have definitely secured other positions and who are no longer employees of the Company." The Federation objected on the ground that it is impossible to deter- mine whether these persons will be recalled to work. As we have observed, the Company has not operated under normal business conditions since October 1939 and it is the respondent's cus- tom to retain on its master pay roll the names of employees who have been laid off except those known to the Company to have received employment elsewhere. Under the circumstances, we shall direct that all employees within the appropriate unit who have worked for 532 DECISIONS -, OF' NATIONAL: LABOR RELATIONS BOARD the. Company at, any time, from September 1, 1939 ', to the end of the pay-roll period next,"preceding •'the date of the Direction of Election, whose names appear on the master pay roll as of the pay-roll period next preceding the date of the Direction of Election , excluding those who have since quit or have been discharged for cause , shall be eligi- ble to participate in the election., 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 repre- sentation of employees of Rosedale Knitting Company, Laureldal'e, Pennsylvania, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6), and (7) of the Act. 2. All production employees of the Company, excluding office employees, clerical, employees, managers, executives, supervisory employees, maintenance employees, watchmen, and laborers, 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 Rela- tions Act, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby Dnmc'r that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for collective bargaining with Rosedale Knitting Company, Laureldale, Pennsylvania, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of this Direction of Election under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Fourth Region, acting in the matter as agent for the National Labor Rela- tions Board, and subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among the production employees of Rosedale Knitting Company, Laureldale, Pennsylvania, who have worked for the Com- pany at any time from September 1, 1939, to the end of the pay-roll period next preceding the date of this Direction of Election, whose names appear on the master pay roll as of the pay-roll period next preceding the date of this Direction of Election, excluding office employees, clerical employees, managers, executives, supervisory employees, maintenance employees, watchmen, laborers, and those employees who have since quit or have been discharged for cause, ROSEDALE KNITTING COMPANY 533 to determine whether they desire to be represented by Rosedale Em- ployees Association or by American Federation of Hosiery Workers, Branch #10, affiliated with Textile Workers Union of America and with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by neither, for the purposes of collective bargaining. 283034-41-vol. 28-35