Monark Battery Co., Inc.

In the Matter of MONARK BATTERY COMPANY, INC. and NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF DIE CASTING WORKERS (C. I. 0.) Case No. B-27,70.-Decided August 08, 1941 Jurisdiction : battery manufacturing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : controversy concerning rep- resentation of employees : Company's refusal to grant recognition to union on ground of subsisting contract with rival union; contract to continue in effect from year to year no bar to investigation and certification where it had been in effect two years and where there is evidence that contracting union was no longer active in plant ; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em- ployees of the Company, including working foremen, watchmen, and the porter, but excluding the timekeeper, traffic manager, plant manager, superin- tendent, and office clerical employees; stipulation as to. Mr. Otto A. Jaburek, of Chicago, Ill., for the Company. Meyers & Meyers, by Mr. Irving Meyers, of Chicago, Ill., for the Association. Mr. Frederic B. Parkes, 2nd, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On June 10, 1941, National Association of Die Casting Workers (C. I. 0.), herein called the Association, filed with the Regional Director for the Thirteenth Region (Chicago, Illinois) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Monark Battery Company, Inc.,' Chi- cago, Illinois, herein called the Company, and requesting an in- vestigation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On July 10, 1941, 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 1 Incorrectly designated as Monarch Battery Company, Inc., in the pleadings, and amended by motion at the hearing. 35 N. L. R. B., No. 7. 24 MONARK BATTERY COMPANY, INC. 25 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 July 14, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the Association, and Local Union No. B-713, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the I. B. E. W., a labor organization claiming to represent em- ployees of the Company directly affected by the investigation. Pur- suant to notice, a hearing was held on July 21, 1941, at Chicago, Illi- nois, before Charles F. McErlean, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company and the Association were represented by counsel and participated in the hearing.2 Full oppor- tunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded all parties. Dur- ing the course of the hearing, the Trial Examiner made various rulings on motions and on objections to the admission of evidence: The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no preju- dicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Monark Battery Company, Inc., a Delaware corporation licensed to do business in the State of Illinois, is engaged in the manufacture, sale, and distribution of automobile and radio storage batteries at its plant in Chicago, Illinois. The principal materials used by the Company are lead oxide, hard lead, rubber containers, wood, rubber separators, and sulphuric acid. During 1940, the Company purchased approximately $500,000 worth of such materials, more than 75 per cent of which were shipped to it from points outside the State of Illinois. During the same period the Company sold finished products valued at more than $700,000, of which approximately 75 per cent were shipped to points outside the State of Illinois. The Company employs approximately 74 employees. H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED National Association of Die Casting Workers'is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting em- ployees of the Company to membership. Local Union No. B-713, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federa- tion of Labor, admitting employees of the Company to membership. The I. B. E. W. did not appear at the hearing. 26 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION The Association by letter dated June 6, 1941, notified the Company that a majority of its employees were members of the Association and requested the Company to enter into collective bargaining negotiations with the Association. The Company refused to negotiate with the Association for the alleged reason that it has a subsisting contract with the I. B. E. W. On August 23, 1939, the Company and the I. B. E. W. entered into a closed-shop contract effective until June 1, 1940, and to con- tinue in effect from year to year thereafter unless written notice of intent to amend or cancel be given 60 days prior to the expiration date. The contract replaced an earlier similar contract. In a letter dated March 31, 1941, the I. B. E. W. notified the Com- pany that it desired to open its agreement with the Company for amendment. However, no negotiations have been conducted and no changes made. The president of the Company testified that there have been no amendments to the 1939 contract, although a 3 per cent increase in wages may have been granted since the contract was executed. The Company contends that the 1939 contract with the I. B. E. W. is a bar to a present investigation and certification of representatives. The Association contends that it does not constitute a bar because all the employees have changed their affiliation to the Association and Local B-713, I. B. E. W., is no longer functioning. A former shop steward of the I. B. E. W. testified that the I. B. E. W. had its last meeting of the Company's employees in October or November 1940, and that it has since been inactive. He collected a few membership dues in January 1941, but has received none since then. He also testified that in April 1941, the business representative of the I. B. E. W. told him that no meetings had been held because "we are out out there. We are through with the Monark Battery ... None of the guys will pay their dues." Local B-713, I. B. E. W., did not appear at the hearing. The Trial Examiner stated, however, that a representative of Local 134, I. B. E. W., informed him, after telephoning the business agent of Local B-713, that the latter local had no interest in this proceeding. The Association introduced into evidence at the hearing several petitions signed by 62 employees on the day shift. Each petition states, "We, the undersigned are employees of the Monark Battery Co. . . . We are members of the National Association of Die Cast- ing Workers, affiliated with the C. I. O. We are not members of any A. F. of L. organization and have not paid dues to any A. F. of L. union for a long period of time. By this petition, we want MONARK BATTERY COMPANY, INC. 27 to make it clear to the National Labor Relations Board, that the National Association of Die Casting Workers, C. I. 0., is the only union that represents us and that we will not take part in any A. F. of L. organization. We specifically deny that we are members of any A. F. of L. union." In view of the foregoing, we find that the contract between the Company and the I. B. E. W. does not constitute a bar to a present investigation and certification of representatives. A statement of the Regional Director introduced into evidence at the hearing shows that the Association represents a substantial num- ber of the employees in the unit found below to be appropriate.$ We find that a question has arisen concerning representation of employees of the Company. 1V. 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 At the hearing the Company and the Association stipulated, and we find, that all production and maintenance employees of the Com- pany, including working foremen, watchmen, and the porter, but excluding the timekeeper, traffic manager, plant manager, superin- tendent, and office clerical employees, constitute a unit- appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. We further find 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 concerning representation which has arisen can best be resolved by means of an election by secret ballot. We shall accord a place to the I. B. E. W. on the ballot inasmuch as a The Association submitted to the Regional Director 47 authorization cards. The Re- gional Director reported that 1 was dated May 1941, 40 were dated June 1941, and 6 were undated, that the signatures were genuine, and that 45 of the 47 signatures were names of persons on the Company's pay roll of June 11, 1941 , which listed 54 employees. There are between 54 and 71 employees within the unit found below to be appropriate. 28 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD it is a party to a closed-shop contract with the Company, but we shall permit the I . B. E. W. to withdraw from the ballot upon filing a Iequest with the Regional Director within five (5 ) days after the date of this Decision and Direction of Election . We shall direct that the employees of the Company eligible to vote in the election shall be those in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein, subject to such limitations and additions as are hereinafter set forth in the Direction. 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 Monark Battery Company, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. 2. All production and maintenance employees of the Company, including working foremen, watchmen, and the porter, but excluding the timekeeper, traffic manager, plant manager, superintendent, and office clerical employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the 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 Re- lations 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 authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Monark Battery Company, Inc., 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 subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board and subject to Article III, Secetion 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among all production and maintenance employees of the Company who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preced- ing the date of this Direction, including working foremen, watchmen, the porter, and employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military MONARK 'BATrERY COMPANY, INC. 29 service or training of the United States, or temporarily laid off, but excluding the timekeeper, traffic manager, plant manager, superin. tendent, office clerical employees, and employees who !ave since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by National Association of Die Casting Workers, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by Local Union No. B-713, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither.