Godchaux Sugars, Inc.

In the Matter of GODCHAUX SUGARS, INC. and SUGAR WORKERS' LOCAL UNION No. 21934 AFFILIATED WITH THE AMERICAN FEDERA- TION OF LABOR Case No. R-1920.-Decided August 2, 1940 Jurisdiction : sugar refining industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: dispute as to appropriate unit; refusal to accord recognition to union; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em- ployees of the Company at its Reserve, Louisiana, plant, including sugar boilers, ground and yard employees, narrow gauge railroad employees, Servall department employees, electric truck operators, longshoremen, samplers, entrainment men, car knockers, toolroom employees, but excluding supervisory, agricultural, and clerical employees, chemists and bench chemists, truck drivers and garagemen, welfare-department employees, watchmen, and specifically named employees. Although by-product plant is housed in a separate building employees thereof are included in unit by virtue of the similarity of wages, hours, and other working conditions, its dependence on the main plant, its treatment by the Company as an integral part of the Company's operations, and the absence of any history of collective bargaining by said employees as a separate unit. Longshoremen allegedly hired through an independent contractor included in unit since they are treated by the Company the same as other employees, are paid directly by the Company which keeps all work and payroll records and pay unemployment insurance on their wages, use the Company's facilities without charge and where said alleged independent contractor considered himself an employee of the Company. Narrow gauge railroad employees whose duties include a substantial amount of maintenance work included in unit, although one of the unions would exclude them on ground they are not within the jurisdiction of the A F. of L where there is no history of collective bargaining or organization among these employees as a separate unit. Mr. Emile Godchaux, of New Orleans, La., for the Company. Mr. Ed. Long, of Birmingham, Ala., for the Sugar Workers' Union. Mr. Eugene E. Saunders and Mr. William A. West, of New Orleans, La., for the Council. Mr. Gilbert V. Rosenberg, of counsel to the Board. 26 N. L R. B , No. 3. 33 34 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On May 24,1940-, Sugar Workers' Local Union No. 21934, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the Sugar Work- ers' Union, filed with the Regional Director for the Fifteenth Region (New Orleans, Louisiana), a petition 1 alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Godchaux Sugars, Inc., Reserve, Louisiana; herein called the Com- pany, and requesting an investigation and certification of representa- tives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat 449, herein called the Act. On June 10, 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 Regulations-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. On Jlme 13, 1940, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were served upon the Company,. the Sugar Workers' Union, and Godchaux Sugars Employees Labor Council, herein called the Council; it labor organization claiming to represent employees of the Company Pursuant to notice, and after a postponement, a hearing was held on June 25 and 26, 1940, at New Orleans, Louisiana, before Samuel Lang, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. The Company and the Council were represented by counsel and the Sugar Workers' Union by a representative; all 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. At the opening of the hearing the Council filed a petition to intervene which was granted by the Trial Examiner. During the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several rulings on motions and objections to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed all the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. After the hearing the Council filed a brief with the Board. Upon the entire record-in the case, the Board makes the following FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Godchaux Sugars, Inc. is a Louisiana corporation, having its princi- pal place of business in New Orleans, Louisiana. It owns and operates I On June 13 , 1940, the Sugar Workers' Union filed an amended petition , and on June 24, 1940, a second amended petition GODCHAUX SUGARS, INC. 35 plants located at Raceland and at Reserve , Louisiana, and is licensed to do business in 18 States other than Louisiana These proceedings involve only the Company 's plant at Reserve The, company 's operations include the cultivation, transportation, and milling of sugar cane , refining of raw sugar , and processing of various byproducts More than 80 per cent of the raw materials and supplies used at the Reserve plant in the course of manufacture during the past several years were shipped to the plant from outside the State of Louisiana . Raw sugar , the principal of these raw mate- rials , is procured in part from within Louisiana , and in part from Puerto Rico, the Philippine Islands, and Cuba. Approximately 87 per cent of the refined sugars regularly produced at the Reserve plant are shipped from the plant to customers in States other than Louisiana. An even greater percentage of the byproducts at the plant fire sold and shipped to points outside Louisiana . The average monthly sale of refined sugar produced at the Reserve plant during past years has amounted to 45 million pounds.' On May 26, 1940 , the Company employed approximately 975 em- ployees in the Reserve plant , excluding agricultural employees. The Company stipulated that it is engaged in commerce within the mean- ing of Section 2 (6) and (7) of the° Act. II. THE LABOR ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Sugar Workers' Local No. 21934 is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. It admits to membership employees of the Company. . Godchaux Sugars Employees Labor Council is an unaffiliated labor organization admitting to membership employees of the Company. III THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On October 26, 1937, a consent election was conducted under the auspices of the Board among "all employees [of the Company] at the Reserve, Louisiana, plant paid by the hour or the piece except those in clerical or supervisory capacities, and those whose normal employ- ment is in agriculture or field work," for the purpose of determining whether the employees desired to be represented by the Council-or by certain affiliates of the American Federalton of Labor, which are predecessors to the Sugar Workers' Union.' Although the Council obtained a majority of votes cast in this election, the respondent has 2 Pursuant to the terms of a stipulation entered into at the hearing between counsel for the Board and foi the respondent, these findings are based upon facts found in Section 1 of the Board's Decision and Order in Matter of Godchaua Sugars, Inc and Sugar Mitt Wor %ers' Union, Locals No 21177 and No 2188 affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, 12 N L R B 568 3 See Matter of Godchaux Sugars, Inc , and Sugzr'Alill Workers' Union, Locals No 21177and No. 2188 affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, 12 N L R B 568 36 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD at all times since refused to recognize and bargain with it as a statutory representative. At the hearing the Council and the Sugar Workers' Union advanced conflicting claims concerning the scope of the appropriate unit and each organization claimed to represent a majority of the employees within the unit asserted by it to be appropriate. 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 with foreign countries , and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The Sugar Workers' Union contends that all production and maintenance employees of the Company at its Reserve refinery, ex- cluding clerical and supervisory employees, chemists and laboratory personnel, sugar boilers, outside truckmen and garagemen, ground and yard employees, lodging house attendants, commissary (stores) employees, Community Club employees, narrow gauge railroad em- ployees, deputized guards, and employees of the Servall plant I constitute an appropriate unit, and that longshoremen employed by the Company may properly be included in that unit or be established as a separate unit. At the hearing the Sugar Workers' Union intro- duced in evidence a list of 175 employees whom it would exclude, but stated that such list was not intended to prevent the exclusion of other individuals whose work fell within the classifications sought by it to be excluded. The Council requests a unit of all the Company's employees at the Reserve plant, excluding agricultural employees and supervisory employees having the power to hire and discharge. The Company's contentions regarding the appropriate unit are substantially identical with those of the Council, except that the Company would also exclude "purely clerical" employees, supervisory employees above the rank of working foremen, and employees whose work requires a highly technical and educational background. 4 The Servall plant or department is an annex of the Company 's refinery where the Company manufac tures byproducts of cane sugar. GODCHAUX SUGARS, INC. 37 At the hearing the parties agreed that lodging house attendants, Community Club employees, and the 55 employees listed in Appendix A, below, should be excluded from the unit. We shall exclude them. Agricultural employees of the Company are similarly excluded. We proceed to the consideration of individuals and groups of employees whose inclusion in the unit is disputed. A. Clerical and miscellaneous employees The Sugar Workers' Union contends that all employees of the Company whose principal duties are clerical in nature should be excluded as clerical employees. We shall exclude all such employees from the unit.' This category embraces office employees, whose ex- clusion has been substantially accomplished by the agreement covering the employees listed in Appendix A, and the following employees of the refinery: checkers, weighers,' laboratory clerks, Alex Webe, a bag- room attendant, who keeps an inventory of the Company's sugar-bag stock, and Dewey Webe, who counts sugar bags after they have been sown in bundles. The Sugar Workers' Union seeks the exclusion also, of Alex Klibert, Louis Roussell, J. L. Vicknoir, and Emile Webe, classed as "car knockers," who clean railroad cars preparatory to the loading of sugar, Willie Dent; a common laborer, J. S. Blunt and Clifford F. Landy, maintenance repair employees, and three employees in the toolroom, who check out tools and keep them in good repair, but the greater part of whose time is consumed in repair work. We find that all these employees are properly a part of a production and maintenance em- ployees' unit, and shall accordingly include them. B. Supervisory employees The parties agreed to the exclusion from the unit of certain foremen and officials of the Company whose names appear in Appendix A. The Sugar Workers' Union requests the further exclusion of all work- ing foremen. It appears that the Company employs 30 persons each of whom works with other employees whom he supervises and directs. At the request of the Sugar Workers' Union we shall exclude all such employees as working foremen. Appendix B, below, contains the names of employees whose duties, we find, require their classification as working foremen.7 6 Matter of TVestinghouse Electric and Manufacturtnq Company-Porcelian Division at Derry, Pennsylvania and United Electrical; Radio and Machine Workers of America, et al , 12 N L R. B 1360. i We exclude , as weighers , Rita Delaneuville , Edna Englade, and Mrs Yolande Thibedeaux, who, although they occasionally work as production employees , spend the greater part of their working time at weighing sugar 7 John Fleitas and Francis Cambe who repair sewing machines are included in Appendix B because they also serve as extra foremen in the small -pack department 323429-42-vol 26--4 38 DECISIONS OP NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD C. Chemists and laboratory employees The Company employs a chief chemist, an assistant chemist, and bench chemists. We shall exclude them from the unit as technical and professional employees. Samplers and entrainment men are also employed in the laboratory. Samplers obtain specimens of the sugar during its processing for analysis by the chemists, and clean the laboratory during their spare time. The entrainment men obtain samples of condensation from the pans and evaporators to determine whether sugar is being lost through leakage. We do not believe that the skill needed in these operations so differentiates the samplers and entrainment men from the production and maintenance employees as to require their exclusion. We shall, therefore, include them in the unit. D. Sugar boilers The Sugar Workers' Union contends that the sugar boilers employed by the Company should be excluded from the unit for the reason that they comprise a "special social class," earn more than other refinery workers, and work directly under the superintendents. The record shows that although sugar boilers must undergo a period of training to become proficient, their duties are principally mechanical, requiring the exercise of a certain amount of judgment. No sufficient ,reason appears to exclude them from the production and maintenance unit. Accordingly, we shall include them. E. Truck drivers and garagemen The Company employs six truck drivers and garagemen. They haul sugar in the Company's trucks from its warehouses to the river barges, do other general hauling for the Company, and keep the trucks in proper repair. The Sugar Workers' Union seeks the exclusion of these men on ground that their work is not confined to hauling sugar and that they are subject to the jurisdiction of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, another labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. These employees occupy a status differing somewhat - from that of the production and maintenance employees of the Company. At the request of one of the labor organizations involved, we shall exclude the truck drivers and garage- men from the unit.8 All parties agree that the operators of electric trucks in the refinery proper should be included in the unit. We shall, therefore, include them. 8 See Platter of Seymour Packing Company and Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butchers Workmen of North America, Local No 176, affi liated with the A P of L ,12 N L R B 1098, Matter of Armour & Compan I/ and Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of North America, Local No 235, 10 N L R B 912. GODCHAUX SUGARS, INC. 39 F. Ground and yard - employees The Company employs nine ground and yard employees Their, principal duties consist of maintaining the-plant grounds and cleaning the Company 's water filtering plant. They are also used as a utility repair crew around the plant. These employees perform maintenance work at the plant and will , therefore , be included in the unit. G. Narrow gauge railroad employees The Company operates a narrow gauge railroad over which, during the harvest season , from October to December, it transports sugar cane from its sugar cane fields to the refinery. Twelve employees ar c classified by the Company under its maintenance division as railroad repair men ... They supervise the movement of cane over the Company's narrow gauge railroad, repair and maintain the equipment, and also do repair and construction work in the refinery. The Sugar Workers' Union would exclude these employees on the ground that they are not within the jurisdiction of the American Federation of Labor. There is, however , no history of collective bargaining or organization among these employees as a separate unit and their duties include a substantial amount of maintenance work in and about the refinery . We shall include the narrow gauge railroad employees in the unit. H. Welfare department employees and watchmen The Company employs a Welfare Department comprising first-aid attendants, a safety director, a personnel manager, an editor of a house organ, and a watchman. The Sugar Workers' Union requests the exclusion of all these persons. The Council agreed to exclude the deputized guards, but urged that all watchmen employed by the Company in the fire-prevention department be similarly excluded. We shall exclude from the unit all employees of the Welfare Depart- ment and all other watchmen. At the hearing a question arose as to the classification of Ernest Duhe whose duties consist of inspecting and repairing the fire-sprinkler system and the chemical extinguishers. We shall include Ernest Duhe in the unit as a maintenance employee. I. Servall department After the sugar cane is ground in the refinery and the juice extracted, there remains a residue called bagasse. The Company uses between 70 and 80 per cent of this bagasse in its -Servall department in the manufacture of stock feed, poultry bedding, and materials for explo- sives. The first operation in the process, that of screening the bagasse, is carried on in the refinery. From there the screened 40 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD bagasse is sent by a conveyor belt to the Servall department where processing is completed. Although the Servall department is housed in a separate adjacent building, a common power plant, water system, and gas main supply the utilities to all departments including the Servall. Electrical and mechanical repairs are made in all departments by the same main- tenance employees. One group insurance policy embraces all em- ployees. The Company's warehouses are used interchangeably for sugar and byproducts. The employees of the refinery and of the Servall department receive approximately the same pay, work under similar conditions, and are paid by checks out of the same general office. The Sugar Workers' Union urges that employees of the Servall plant should be excluded from the unit for the reason that their duties are in no way related to the production of sugar, and contends that a separate unit should be established for them. Although the Servall employees do not engage in the production of sugar, the Servall and refinery workers by virtue of the similarity of wages, hours, and other working conditions have a definite community of interest. Moreover, the Servall department is completely dependent upon the refinery for bagasse. The Company treats the Servall department as an integral part of its operations. Under these circumstances, and in the absence of any history of collective bargaining by the Servall employees as a separate unit, we see no reason for excluding such employees from the industrial unit. We shall accordingly include Servall department employees in the unit. J. Longshoremen The names of about 60 men appear on a special pay roll of the Company, under the classification "Longshoremen Dorsey Contract Labor." These men remove the sugar from the Company's truck at the river and with the aid of a conveyor load it on barges for water shipment. A large proportion of the Company's sugar is so shipped on barges. At times these men also stock sugar in the refinery. The Council would include these men in the unit, and the Sugar Workers' Union asserts that properly the longshoremen may be included or established as a separate unit. The Company asserts that the -longshoremen are hired through Henry Dorsey, an independent contractor, and that the propriety of including then in the unit is "debatable." These men are hired through Dorsey, who works with them and receives a bonus of 50 cents a day for calling them together when needed. It is clear, however, that the longshoremen are treated by the Company the same as other employees. They are paid directly by the Company which keeps all work and pay-roll records and pays unemployment insurance on their wages. They use the Company's first-aid and medical facilities without charge. Moreover, GODCHAUX SIUG'ARSI, Iic'C 41 Dorsey testified that he considered himself an employee of the Company. Under the circumstances we shall include the longshoremen in the unit. However, since it appears that Henry Dorsey directs and supervises these employees we have listed him in Appendix B for exclu- sion as a working foreman. We find that all production and maintenance employees of the Company at its Reserve, Louisiana, plant, including sugar boilers, ground and yard employees, narrow gauge railroad employees, Servall department employees, electric truck operators, longshoremen, samplers, entrainment men, car knockers, toolroom employees, Willie Dent, J. S. Blunt, Clifford F. Landy, and Ernest Duhe, but excluding supervisory, agricultural, and clerical employees, chemists and bench chemists, truck drivers and garagemen, welfare-department employ- ees, watchmen, Alex Webe, Dewey Webe, and employees listed in Appendices A and B, 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 At the hearing the Sugar Workers' Union and the Council each made a substantial showing of membership within the unit alleged by it to be appropriate. We find that the question concerning representa- tion which has arisen can best be resolved by an election by secret ballot. The Sugar Workers' Union requested that May 26, 1940, be used to determine eligibility. However, we see no reason for departing from our usual practice of using the pay-roll period last preceding the date of this Direction to determine eligibility. On 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 representation of employees - of Godchaux Sugars, Inc., Reserve? Louisiana, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. All production and maintenance employees of the Company at its Reserve, Louisiana, plant, including sugar boilers, ground and yard employees, narrow gauge railroad employees, Servall department employees, electric truck operators, longshoremen, samplers, entrain- ment men, car knockers, toolroom employees, Willie Dent, J. S. Blunt, Clifford F. Landy, t nd Ernest Duhe, but excluding supervisory, 42 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD agricultural, and clerical employees, chemists and bench chemists, truck drivers and garagemen, welfare-department employees, watch- men, Alex Webe, Dewey Webe, and employees listed in Appendices A and B, 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 Rela- tions Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with the Godchaux Sugars, Inc., Reserve, Louisiana, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible but not later than thirty (30) clays from the date of this Direction of Election snider the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Fifteenth 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 production and maintenance employees of the Company whose names appear on the pay-roll period last preceding the date of this Direction of Election, including sugar boilers, ground and yard employees, harrow gauge railroad employees, Scrvall department employees, electric truck operators, longshoremen, samplers, entrain- ment men, car knockers, toolroom employees, Willie Dent, J. S. Blunt, Clifford F. Landy, Ernest Duke, 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, agricultural, and clerical employees, chemists and bench chemists, truck drivers and garagemen, welfare-department employees, watchmen, Alex Webe, Dewey Webe, employees listed in Appendices A and B, and any employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be repre- sented by Sugar Workers' Local No 21934, affiliated with the Ameri- can Federation of Labor, or by Godchaux Sugars Employees Council, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither. APPENDIX A Rene Englade Abe Gueret Gerald Templet Charles Averil Faustin J Abadie Bessie Acosta H. F. Adolph W. J. Bergeron _ L. P. Barrios Noland Berthelot Ory Boudreaux F. B. Beadle GODCHAUX SUGARS, INC. 43 Alonzo Bodin Walter Bondurant D. Z. Burson Mary Camello 0. J Champagne Paul Courreage Vicanzo Cambice Amedee Duhc Alcide Duhe Fred Fabre F. L. Gayle Sally Gray C. F. Hooper L. A. Hotfelter Murphy J. Jacob Sidney R Johnston Dantes Keller A. G. Kreis H. A. LeBlanc Vernon LeBlanc Gustave Louque A. A. Lasseigne Emile Battard, Sr. F. B. Beadle Alonzo Bodin Arthur Borne Eugene Borne Leon Borne Alex Brady Francis Cambe Lucien Cambre Henry Dorsey Eddie Duhon Eddie Englade Arthur Hyrnel Ernest Jacob Wilson Jacob Sophie LeDoux Rosema LeDoux W. E. McFarland Alexis Millet Marcel Montegut W. J. Oubre Oliver Oubre, Jr. Oliver Oubre, Sr. A. J. Ordeync Thomas A. Rome Rosa Lee Marie Robert Gustave A. Sigur Andrew M. Smith Charles Triche M. D. Theard A. J. Torbert Emile Villeret W. O. Wilton George B. Williamson C F Williamson Wilbur May Williamson APPENDIX B Theogene Klibert Lionel Klibert Henry Klibert Elmore Klibert Robert LeBlanc Anatole Millet Paul McLaurm Oliver Oubre, Sr. Henry Ruiz Sylvester Simon Oliver Sutton Allen Smith Theo Scioneaux Edgar Vicknair John Fleitas MR. WILLIAM M. LEISERSON took no part in the consideration of the above Decision and Direction of Election.