Chrysler Corp.

In the Matter of CHRYSLER CORPORATION and INTERNATIONAL UNION, UNITED AUTOMOBILE WORKERS OF AMERICA, AFFILIATED WITH THE CONGRESS OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS Case No. R-2431.-Decided April 26, 19411 Jurisdiction : automobile manufacturing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question. re- fusal to accord union recognition until certified by the Board ; pay roll agreed to by the unions and not objected to by the Company to determine eligibility; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production, non-production, and maintenance employees at one of the Company's plants excluding foremen, assistant foremen, timekeepers, plant protection employees, office employees, confidential salaried employees, clerical employees, and salaried engineers. Larkin, Rathbone & Perry, by Mr. John D. Leary, of Ne* York City, for the Company. Mr. Richard H. Oberreich, of Indianapolis, Incl., for the UAW- CIO. Mr. Earl Heaton, of Anderson, Ind., for the UAW-AFL. Mr. Louis Cokivn, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On February 27 and March 6, 1941, respectively, International Union, United Automobile Workers of America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, herein called the UAW-CIO, filed -with the Regional Director for the Eleventh Region (Indian- apolis, Indiana) a petition and an amended petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Chrysler -Corporation, Kokomo, Indiana, 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 15, 1941, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act and Article III, Section 31 N. L. It. B., No. 61. 400 CHRYSLER CORPORATION 401 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 March 18, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hear- ing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the UAW- CIO, and International Union, United Automobile Workers of Amer- ica, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the UAW-AFL, a labor organization claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on March 28, 1941, at Kokomo, Indiana, before Colonel C. Sawyer, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. At the commencement of the hearing; the' Trial Exam- iner granted a motion to intervene filed by the UAW-AFL. The Company-and the UAW-CIO were represented by counsel, the UAW- AFL by its representative; all participated 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 coarse of the hearing'the Trial Examiner made several rulings on motions and on 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. On April 11, 1941, the Company and the UAW-CIO filed briefs which the Board has considered. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT , I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Chrysler Corporation, a Delaware corporation, is engaged in the manufacture of automobiles, parts, and accessories. Its principal office is in Detroit, Michigan, and it has plants in the States of Michigan, Indiana, and California. Approximately 45 per cent by value of the raw materials used by the Company at its plants, valued at more than $240,000,000 annually, and approximately 75 per cent by value of the finished and partly finished products of the Company, valued at approximately $625,000,000 annually, are transported in interstate commerce. This proceeding is concerned solely with the Kokomo, Indiana, plant of the Company. H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED International Union, • United Automobile Workers of America, is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organi- 402 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD zations. It admits to membership employees at the Kokomo plant of the Company. International Union, United Automobile Workers of America, is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. It admits to membership employees at the Kokomo plant of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION The UAW-CIO has requested the Company to recognize it as the exclusive representative of the employees at the Kokomo plant of the Company. The Company stated that it will not recognize any labor organization until such time as the Board certifies a bargaining rep- resentative. A statement of the Regional Director, introduced in evidence, shows that the UAW-CIO represents a substantial number of employees in the unit alleged 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 tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The UAW-CIO and the UAW-'AFL agreed 'at` the hearing that the appropriate unit should consist,of all production, non-production, and maintenance employees at the Kokomo plant of the Company, excluding foremen, assistant foremen, timekeepers, plant protection employees, office employees, confidential salaried employees, clerical employees, and salaried engineers. The Company stated that it has no objection to this unit. In a previous case 2 we certified the UAW-CIO as the exclusive representative of the employees in an appropriate bargaining unit i The Regional Director's statement shows that 291 employees whose names appear on the Company's pay roll of December 27, -1940, have signed authorization or application,- cards in the .UAW-CIO The Regional Director further reported'that 83 employees whose- names appear on the Company's pay roll of December 27, 1940, have signed membership application cards in the UAW-AFL There are approximately 500 employees in the alleged appropriate unit. 2 Matter of Chrysler Corporation and United Automobile Workers of America, Local 371, affiliated with C. I. 0., et al., 17 NA. R B. 737. CHRYSLER CORPORATION 403 consisting of 12 plants of the Company. In the same proceeding we dismissed the petition in so far as it referred to the Kokomo plant of the Company, the plant involved in this proceeding, because a majority of the employees at that plant voted to be represented by no union. The UAW-CIO states that in the event that it is selected as exclusive bargaining representative of the employees at the Kokomo plant of the Company, it desires that the Kokomo plant be included in the unit composed of all the other plants of the Company where the UAW-CIO has been selected as exclusive bargaining agent- by the employees. - Since no representative has yet been certified by the Board as the result of this proceeding, and no request made upon the Company to bargain on behalf of the employees in the Kokomo plant along with the employees in its other plants, we will adhere to the procedure followed in the case involving the Evansville plant of the Company 3 and deny the request of the UAW-CIO at this time, and, in the event the UAW-CIO wins the election to be directed hereinafter, certify it as the exclusive representative of the employees at the Kokomo plant. If after such certification the Company ob- jects to bargaining upon a 14 plant unit basis we will entertain for consideration at that time a motion to consolidate the certifications previously issued 4 and to include all plants of the Company in a single appropriate unit. We find that all production, non-production, and maintenance employees at the Kokomo plant of the Company, excluding foremen, assistant foremen, timekeepers, plant protection employees, office employees, confidential salaried employees, clerical employees, and salaried engineers, 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 We find that the question which has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of the Company can best be resolved by means of an election by secret ballot. The UAW-CIO and the UAW-AFL agreed that in the event that the Board directed an election, eligibil- ity of employees to vote should be determined by the Company's pay roll of April 5, 1941. The Company stated that it takes no position 'Matter of Chrysler Corporation and International Union, United Automobile Workeis of America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, 28 N L R B 1038 s Matter of Chrysler Corporation and United Automobile Workers of Amei ica, Local 371, affiliated with C. I. 0., at al., 17 N. L R. B 737 Matter of Chrysler Corporation-and International Union, United Automobile Workers, of America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial 0rgani_at2ons, 29 N L R B 1164 441843-42-vol 31 27 404 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD with respect to the, eligibility date. We find that those employees of the Company within the appropriate unit whose names appear on the Company's,pay roll of April 5, 1941, shall be. eligible to vote, sub- ject•to such limitations and additions,as are set forth in the Direction hereinafter. 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 at the Kokomo plant of Chrysler Corporation, Kokomo, Indiana, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. All production, non-production, and maintenance employees at the Kokomo plant of the Company, excluding foremen, assistant fore- men, timekeepers, plant protection employees, office employees, con- fidential salaried employees, clerical employees, and salaried engi- neers, 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, 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 authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives'for the purpose of collective bargaining with Chrysler Corporation, Kokomo, Indiana, 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 Eleventh Region, acting in this matter as agent of the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among all production, non-production, and maintenance employees at the Kokomo plant of the Company whose names appear on the April 5, 1941, pay roll of the Company, including employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military service or training of the United States, or temporarily laid off, but excluding foremen, assistant fore- men, timekeepers, plant protection employees, confidential salaried 1 CHRYSLER CORPORATION 405 employees, clerical employees, salaried engineers, and employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether ,they desire to be represented by International Union, United Auto- mobile Workers of America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by International Union, United Automobile Work- ers of America, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither.