American Steamship Co.

In the Matter of AMERICAN STEAMSHIP COMPANY and NATIONAL MARI- TIME UNION OF AMERICA, AFFILIATED WITH THE C. I. O. In the Matter of BISON STEAMSHIP COMPANY and NATIONAL MARI- TIME UNION OF AMERICA, AFFILIATED WITH THE C. I. O. In the Matter of JOHN J. BOLAND AND JOHN J. BOLAND, JR., and NA- TIONAL MARITIME UNION OF AMERICA, AFFILIATED WITH TFIE C. I. O. Cases Nos. R-2020 to R-20292, inchssive.Decided September 30, 19.40 Jurisdiction : water transportation industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re- fusal of representative to prove authority ; pay roll as of date of hearing to govern eligibility ; election necessary ; regional director granted discretion to determine the time, place and procedure for giving notice of elections and for balloting on each ship, provided, however, that each vessel must be posted with a notice of election. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : unlicensed seamen employed on all vessels of each of the respective Companies. Brown, Ely d Richards, by Mr. David S. Jackson, of Buffalo, N. Y., for the Companies. _ Mr. William L. Standard, by Mr. Max Lustig, of New York City, for the Union. Mr. Robert D. Allen, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS STATEMENT OF THE CASE On August 8, 1940, National Maritime Union of America, affiliated with the C. I. 0., herein called the Union; filed With the Regional Director for the Third Region_ (Buffalo, New York), three separate petitions alleging that questions affecting commerce had arisen con- cerning the representation of employees of American Steamship Com- pany, herein called American, Bison Steamship Company,' herein called Bison, and John J. Boland and John J. Boland, Jr., herein 1 Incorrectly designated in the formal papers herein as Bison Steamship Corp. 27 N. L R B, No. 110. 584 AMERICAN STE'AMSHI 'P COMPANY 585 called Boland, respectively, all of Buffalo, New York, and requesting investigations and certifications of representatives pursuant to Sec- tion 9 ( c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat . 449, herein called the Act. On August 14, 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 investigations and authorized the Regional Director to conduct them and to ,provide for appropriate hearings upon due notice. On August 16, 1940, the Regional Director issued notices of hear- ing, respective copies of which were duly served upon American, Bison, and Boland, herein sometimes collectively called the Com- panies, and upon the Union . Pursuant to the notices, separate hear- ings were held on August 28, 1940, at Buffalo, New York, before Edward D. Flaherty , the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. The Companies and the Union were represented by counsel and participated in the respective hearings . 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 in the proceeding involving American, the Trial Examiner iiade a ruling on an objection to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed this ruling of the Trial Ex- aminer and finds that no prejudicial error was committed . The rul- ing is hereby affirmed . At the hearing in each case the respective Companies made oral and written motions to dismiss the proceeding on the ground that there is a defect in parties in that the employees of the respective Companies were not served with notice of the hear- ing, or, in the alternative, to suspend the hearing until such time as said employees were made parties and given due notice of hearing. The Trial Examiner reserved ruling on said motions for the Board. The motions are hereby denied. Pursuant to leave granted by the Board to all parties, American filed a' brief with the Board and Bison and Boland requested that said brief be considered in the decision of their respective cases. Since the hearings were conducted on the same day and the issues presented are substantially similar, we are disposing of all three cases in one decision. Upon the entire records in the cases , the Board, makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESSES OF THE COMPANIES American Steamship Company is a New York corporation having its principal office and place of business at Buffalo, New York. 'It 586 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD is engaged in the transportation of freight by steamship on the Great Lakes. It owns 14 vessels, 12 of which it has operated during the 1940 shipping season.2 The remaining two vessels are chartered to other operators for the 1940 season. Their crews are not em- ployed by American and are not involved in these proceedings. During the 1940 season and prior to August 19, the 12 vessels operated by American carried a total of 4,403,922.24 net tons of 'freight consisting of such materials as coal, stone, sand, gypsum rock, ore, coke, corn, wheat, and flue dust. Typical of the trips made by such vessels is the following : from various ports in the - State of Ohio, to Duluth, Minnesota, thence to Superior, Wisconsin, Ash- land, Wisconsin, Two Harbors, Wisconsin, Erie, Pennsylvania, and Buffalo, New York. Considerably more than 50 per cent of the freight carried by American's vessels during the 1940 season, as above stated, was carried in interstate or foreign commerce. Bison Steamship Company is a New York corporation engaged in the transportation of freight by steamship on the Great Lakes. It owns and operates two vessels which during the 1940 season and prior to August 13 carried-a total of 117,653.09 net tons of freight con- sisting of such materials as scrap, steel, coal; flax, pig iron, dunnage, corn, phosphate rock, sulphur, coke, and soda, ash. Typical of the trips made by Bison's vessels is the following : Buffalo, New York, to Detroit, Michigan, thence to East Chicago, Indiana, and Cleve- land, Ohio. More than 50 per cent of the freight carried by Bison's vessels during the 1940 shipping season, as above stated, was carried in interstate and foreign commerce. John J. Boland and John J. Boland, Jr:, are 'individuals who together own and operate the steamship Lake Chelan as a freight carrier on the Great Lakes. During the 1940 season and prior to August 16, -the Lake Chelan carried a total of 64,532.23 net tons of freight consisting of such materials as scrap, pig iron, dunnage, steel; flax, and coal. Typical of the trips made by the Lake Chelan is the following : Buffalo, New York, to Detroit, Michigan, thence to Mil- waukee, Wisconsin, East Chicago, Indiana, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Cleveland, Ohio. More than 50 per cent of the freight carried by the Lake Chelan during the 1940 shipping season, as above stated, was carried in interstate and foreign commerce. We find that the Companies are engaged in traffic, transportation, and commerce among the several States and with foreign countries and that the unlicensed seamen employed on their respective vessels are directly engaged in such traffic, transportation, and commerce. . 2 The shipping season on the Great Lakes starts approximately Apul 15 and ends approxi- mately December 1 ' AMERICAN . STEAMSHIP COMPANY 587 II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED National Maritime Union of America, affiliated with the C. I. O.; is a labor organization admitting to its membership all unlicensed seamen employed by the Companies. III. ' THE QUESTIONS CONCERNING REPRESENTATION At a conference between the Union and representatives of the Companies held prior to the filing of the petitions herein, the Union requested the respective Companies to recognize it as the exclusive collective bargaining representative of their respective unlicensed seamen. The Union declined the Companies' request that it submit membership or authorization cards in proof of its claim of majority representation but expressed a willingness to have its membership and authorization cards checked against the Companies' respective pay rolls by an, official of the Board. However, no such check was made. At the hearing in each of the cases there was introduced into evidence a report prepared by the Regional Director showing that the Union represents a substantial number of employees of the respective Companies in the unit which we hereinafter find to be appropriate.3 We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation of employees of each of the Companies and that such question tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce and the free flow of commerce. IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The Union claims, in each of the three cases, that the unit appro-' priate for the purposes of collective bargaining consists of all un- licensed seamen employed on all vessels of each of the respective Companies. The Companies do not contest the Union's claim as to this. We find that the unlicensed seamen employed by American on all vessels which it owns and operates constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, and that said unit will insure to the employees of American the full benefit of their right to self- organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate 8 The Regional Director 's reports, dated August 14, 1940, show that on the basis of cards submitted to him by the Union, by which the signers designated the Union as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining and the signatures on which ap- peared to be genuine original signatures , the Union represents the following number of employees of each of the Companies 'American-191 Bison-20. Boland-19 588 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL. LABOR RELATIONS BOARD the policies of the Act. We further find that the unlicensed seamen employed by Bison on all its vessels constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, and that said unit will insure to the employees of Bison the full benefit of their right to self-or- ganization and to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. And we further find that the unlicensed seamen employed by Boland on the steamship Lake Chelan constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, and that said unit will insure to the employees of Boland the full benefit of their right to self-organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES We find that the questions which have arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of the Companies can best be resolved- by elections by secret ballot. We shall direct such elections to be held as soon as possible under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director who shall determine in his discretion the exact time, place, and procedure for giving notices of elections and for balloting on each ship, provided, however, that each vessel shall be posted with a notice of election. At the hearing in each of the cases the Union requested that those eligible to vote in the respective elections should be the employees in the respective appropriate units during the respective pay-roll periods current as of August 28, 1940, the date of the hearings, for the reason that suchi date was at the height of the shipping season and that the' Companies would employ fewer seamen during the re- mainder of the shipping season.. The Companies expressed no pref- erence in this connection. We shall direct that those eligible :to-vote in the respective elections shall be all unlicensed seamen within the respective appropriate units during the respective pay-roll periods current as of August 28, 1940, including those who did not work during such pay-roll periods because they were ill, on vacation, or temporarily laid off, but excluding those who have since quit or been discharged for cause; Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire record in the cases, the Board makes the following : CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. Questions affecting commerce have arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of American Steamship Company, Bison Steamship Company, and John J. Boland and John J. Boland, Jr., all of Buffalo, New York, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and- Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. - AMERICAN STEAMSHIP COMPANY 589 2. The unlicensed seamen employed by American Steamship Com- pany on all vessels which it owns and operates constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act. 3. The unlicensed seamen employed by Bison Steamship Company on all its vessels constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act. 4. The unlicensed seamen employed by John J. Boland and John J. Boland, Jr., on their vessel, the steamship Lake Chelan, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act. DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS 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 DIRECTED that, as part.of the investigation ordered by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with American Steamship Company, Buffalo, New York, an election by, secret ballot shall be conducted as soon as possible and in con- formity with the rules set forth in Section IT, above, for the conduct of such election, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Third 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 unlicensed seamen on all vessels owned and operated by American Steamship Company em- ployed by it during the pay-roll period current as of August 28, 1940, including those who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill, on vacation, or temporarily laid off, but excluding those who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by National Maritime Union of America, affiliated with the C. I. 0., for the purposes of collective bargaining; and it is further DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation ordered by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Bison Steamship Company, Buffalo, New York, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as soon as possible and in conformity with the rules set forth in Section IT, above, for the conduct of such election, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Third 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 unlicensed seamen on all vessels of 590 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR- RELATIONS BOARD Bison Steamship Company employed by it during the pay-roll period current as of August 28, 1940, including those who did not work dur- ing such pay `roll period because they were ill, on vacation, or tempo- rarily laid off, but excluding those who have since quit or been dis- charged' for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by National Maritime Union of America, affiliated with the'C. I.0., for the purposes of collective bargaining; and it'is further . DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation ordered by the' Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with John J. Boland and John J. Boland, Jr., Buffalo, New York, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as- soon as possible and in conformity with the rules set forth in Section V;, above, for the conduct of such election, under the, direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Third 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 unlicensed seamen employed by John J. Boland and John J. Boland, Jr., on the steamship Lake Chelan during the pay-roll period current as of Au- gust 28, 1940, including those who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill, on vacation, or temporarily laid off, but excluding those ,who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by National Maritime Union of America, affiliated with the C. I. 0., for the pur- poses of collective bargaining.