Emil J. Paidar Co.

In the Matter of EMIL J. PAIDAR COMPANY, A CORPORATION and UNITED FURNITURE WORKERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL 18-B, AFFILIATED WITH THE CONGRESS OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS , and FURNITURE, WOODWORKERS & FINISHERS UNION, LOCAL 18-B OF THE UPHOL- STERERS INTERNATIONAL UNION OF NORTH AMERICA, AFFILIATED WITH THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF LABOR Case No. R-1846.-Decided June 7, 1940 Furniture Manufacturing Industry-Investigation of Representatives: con- troversy concerning representation of employees : rival organizations ; employer refuses to recognize either union until question of majority is decided ; em- ployer's statement of policy no bar to-Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargain- ing: all employees in the machine wood shop and the cabinet and finishing de- partments, craters, employees in the assembly, mirror, and loading departments, and employees in the electrical and repairing departments, excluding supervisory and clerical employees-Election Ordered Mr. Stephen M. Reynolds, for the Board. Wolf efi Love, by Mr. Stephen Love, of Chicago, Ill., for the Company. Meyers & Meyers, by Mr. Ben Meyers, of Chicago, Ill., for the United. Mr. Joseph M. Jacobs, of Chicago, Ill., for the Upholsterers. Mrs. Augusta Spaulding, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE ' On March 7, 1940, United Furniture Workers of America, Local 18-B, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations,' herein called the United, filed with the Regional Director for the Thirteenth Region (Chicago, Illinois), a petition alleging that a question affect- ing commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Emil J. Paidar Company ,(Chicago, Illinois), herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of repre- I The name of petitioner was amended at the hearing . The petition was filed under the name of Furniture and Bedding Workers, Local 18-B, of the United Furniture Workers of America, C. I. O. 24 N. L. It. B., No. 47. 502 EMIL J. PAIDAR COMPANY 503 sentatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On April 27, 1940, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pur suant to Section 9 (c) of the Act and Article III, Section 3, of Na- tional Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional Di- rector to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice. On May 6, 1940, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the United, and Furniture Woodworkers & Finishers Union, Local 18-B of the Up- holsterers International Union of North America, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, a labor organization claiming to rep- resent employees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to the notice, a hearing was held on May 20 and 21, 1940, at Chicago, Illinois, before Josef Hektoen, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. All parties were represented by counsel and participated in the hearing. At the commencement of the hear- ing the Company moved to dismiss the proceedings on the ground that it had never refused to bargain collectively and that a valid and bind- ing collective bargaining agreement was in existence. The Trial Ex- aminer did not rule on this motion. The motion is hereby denied since we find in Section III below that no collective agreement exists. 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, objections to the admission of evidence, and the form of questions. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. The Company has filed a brief which the Board has considered. Upon the entire record in the case, the -Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY The Company, Emil J. Paidar Company, is an Illinois corporation. In addition to its main plant in Chicago, Illinois, it owns a subsidiary corporation, Emil J. Paidar Co., Inc., in New York City. At its Chicago plant the Company is engaged in the manufacture of standard and special equipment for barber shops and beauty parlors, consisting of barber chairs, barber poles, steel furniture, mirror cases, booths, and cabinets. During the period. from March 1, 1939, to March 1, 1940, the Company purchased for use at the plant raw materials, 504 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD consisting of steel, iron, leather, glass, wood, glue, sandpaper, oil, coal, and plating materials, to the approximate value of $260,000, of which $200,000 represented purchases and shipments to the plants from points outside Illinois. During the same period, sales of finished products manufactured at the plant amounted to approximately $700,000, of which $500,000 represented sales and shipments to points outside Illinois. II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED . United Furniture Workers of America, Local 18-B, is a labor or- ganization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations. It admits to membership production and maintenance employees of the Company. Furniture, Woodworkers & Finishers Union, Local 18-B of the Upholsterers International Union of North America, is a labor or- ganization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. It admits to membership production and maintenance employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION In the past the Company had had some dealings with the Uphol- sterers, including a statement of policy, but had not entered into any collective agreement with it. During February 1940 a representative of the United called on the Company and requested recognition of the United as sole bargaining agent of all employees in the cabinet department and the machine mill wood shop. The Company refused to recognize the United, or the Upholsterers, until it had been deter- mined which union represented a majority of its employees. We find that a question has arisen concerning the 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 The United contends that all employees in the cabinet department and the machine wood shop constitute an appropriate bargaining unit. The Upholsterers and the Company contend that all employees in the machine wood shop and the cabinet and finishing departments, EMIL J. PAIDAR COMPANY 505 craters, employees in the assembly, mirror, and loading departments, and employees in the electrical and repairing departments, excluding supervisory and clerical employees, constitute an appropriate bar- gaining unit. The only basis, urged by. the United for the smaller unit is the strength of its membership in the two departments named. The past labor history in the plant and in other plants of, similar type in the same vicinity support the larger unit urged by the Upholsterers and the Company.2 We find that all employees in the machine wood shop and the cabinet and finishing departments, craters, employees in the assembly, mirror, and loading departments, and employees in the electrical and repairing departments, excluding supervisory and clerical employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes 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 stipulated, and we find, that both the United and the Upholsterers have a substantial membership among the employees in the unit we found appropriate in Section V above. We find that an election will best resolve the question concerning representation. Those eligible to vote in this election shall be the employees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction of Election, including employees who did not work during said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation and employees who were then or have since been discharged for cause. The United shall be designated on the ballot as Local 18-B, C. I. 0., and the Upholsterers as Local 18-B, A. F. of L. Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire record in this case, the Board makes the following : CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of Emil J. Paidar Company, Chicago, Illinois, plant, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2 See five companion cases, involving the same unions, decided this day : Matter of S. Karpen & Bros. et al., 24 N. L. R. B. 474 ; Matter of Fen8ka Bros ., Inc., et al., 24 N. L. R. B. 482; Matter of American Furniture Novelty Company at al., 24 N. L. R. B. 487; Matter of International Furniture Company at al., 24 N. L. R. B. 492; Matter of Butler Specialty Company et al., 24 N. L. R. B. 497. 506 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD . 2. All employees in the machine wood shop and the cabinet and finishing departments, craters, employees in the assembly, mirror, and loading departments, and employees in the electrical and repairing departments, excluding supervisory and clerical employees, 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 2, 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 Emil J. Paidar Company, Chicago, Illinois, 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, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Thirteenth 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 all employees in the machine wood shop and the cabinet and finishing departments, craters, employees in the assembly, mirror, and loading departments, and employees in the electrical and repairing depart- ments, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction, including employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation, and employees who were then or have since been temporarily laid off, but excluding supervisory and clerical employees and employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by United Furniture Workers of Amer- ica, Local 18-B, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organiza- tions, or Furniture, Woodworkers & Finishers Union, Local 18-B of the Upholsterers International Union of North America, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither.