Southwestern Associated Telephone Co.

In the Matter of SOUTHWESTERN ASSOCIATED TELEPHONE COMPANY and INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS, LOCAL B-901, Case No. R-2711.-Decided August 09, 1941 Jurisdiction : telephone industry. Investigation and Certification of representatives : existence of question : Com- pany refused to accord union recognition on ground that it had failed to submit proof of majority representation.; Company also contended unit claimed by the union is inappropriate; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : partial system unit: traffic em- ployees at the exchanges located at Lamesa, Brownfield, Haskell, Tahoka, Post, Seagraves, Denver City, and Allred, all within the State of Texas, including operators, cashiers, and district stenographer-cashiers, but excluding chief operators and chief operator-cashiers. Mr. J. M. Randal and Mr. R. B. Fairly, of,Lubbock, Texas, for the Company. Mr. C. R. Carle, of Shreveport, La., and Mr. J. W. Null, of Abilene, Tex., for the 1. B. E. W. Mr. Eugene M. Purver, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On May 15, 1941, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local B-901, herein called the I.B.E.W., filed with the Regional Director for the Sixteenth Region (Fort Worth, Texas), a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Southwestern Associated Tele- phone Company, Lubbock, Texas, herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of representatives purl - suant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat 449, herein called the Act. On June 24, 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 Rela- tions 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. 35 N. L R. B, No. 15. 84 SIOUTHW'E!STE1 ASSOCIATED TE'LEPHONE' COMPANY 85 On June 30, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the I.B.E.W. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on July 9, 1941, at Lubbock, Texas, before Albert P. Wheatley, the Trial Examiner duly designated, by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company and the I.B.E.W. were represented at and participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine wit- nesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded all parties. At the hearing the Company moved that the petition be dismissed. The Trial Examiner reserved ruling thereon. The motion is hereby denied. During the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several rulings.on other motions and on objections to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. On July 14, 1941, the Company filed a brief, 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 Southwestern Associated Telephone Company, a Delaware cor- poration, with its principal office at Lubbock, Texas, is engaged in collaboration with the Bell Telephone System in the business of receiving and transmitting telephone messages and communications wholly within the State of Texas and from and to States and Ter- ritories of the United States and foreign countries.' The Com- pany principally receives, handles, and transmits communications and messages originating in the States of Texas, New Mexico, Okla- homa, Louisiana, and Kansas. In addition, in the course of its business the Company operates and maintains transmission lines between points in the State of Texas, and points in the States of Oklahoma and Kansas. During the calendar year 1940 the Com- pany's gross income was in excess of $1,000,000. H. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local B.901, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, is a labor-organi- zation admitting to membership employees of the Company. 'The Company operates 36 telephone exchanges , of which only 8 exchanges located respectively at Lamesa , Brownfield , Haskell, Tahoka , Post, Seagraves, Denver City, and Allred, all within the State of Texas , are herein involved. 86 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION About May 12, 1941, the I. B. E. W. requested. recognition as exclusive bargaining agent for the employees of the Company within the eight exchanges herein involved. The Company refused such recognition on the ground that the I. B. E. W. had failed to sub- mit proof that it represented a majority of the employees and that the unit claimed by the I. B. E. W. is inappropriate. A report prepared by a Field Examiner of the Board concerning claims of authorization for the purpose of representation, which was introduced in evidence at the hearing, shows that the I. B. E. W. represents a substantial number of the employees within the unit hereinafter found to be appropriate.2 We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company. 3V. 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 com- merce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The I. B. E. W. contends that the appropriate unit consists of the traffic employees of the Company at' the exchanges located in Lamesa, Brownfield, Haskell, Tahoka, Post, Seagraves, Denver City, and Allred,3 including chief operators, chief operator-cashiers, dis- trict stenographer-cashiers, cashiers, and operators. The Company asserts that the appropriate unit should' be limited to operators, and should exclude chief operators, chief operator-cashiers, district stenographer-cashiers, and cashiers, on the ground that these posi- tions are either supervisory or confidential. Chief operators are "chief line supervisors" over the operators in the local exchanges, and have the power to recommend hiring and discharging of operators. In some cases, chief operators supervise 2 The report of the Field Examiner shows that the I. B. E. W. submitted to him 49 authorization cards, all dated between May 16, and May 20, 1941, and all bearing apparently genuine original signatures, 46 of which are names appearing on the Company's pay roll of May 29, 1941. There are approximately 58 employees within the unit claimed to be appropriate by the I. B E W 3 The Company intended to discontinue the Allred exchange on August 1, 1941. SOUTHWESTERN ASSOCIATED TELEPHONE COMPANY 87 the collection of accounts, make reports to the district manager and to the Company, arrange operators' schedules, and generally act as Company representatives with respect to traffic matters. Since the exchanges are comparatively small, chief operators occasionally act also as operators and do active work on the switchboard. Chief Operator-Cashiers act as cashiers, collecting accounts, and also as chief operators and operators as the occasion demands. The District Stenographer-Cashiers are clerks to the district man- agers. " They handle correspondence, take dictation, and act as local exchange cashiers. Cashiers collect accounts, make reports on the collections, and also act as Company representatives in taking service orders.4 Because of the supervisory duties of the chief operators and the chief operator-cashiers, we will exclude them from the appropriate unit. We are of the opinion however, that the cashiers and district stenographer-cashiers do not occupy such confidential positions as to warrant their exclusion from the bargaining unit. We shall there- fore include them within the unit. We find that the traffic employees of the Company at the ex- changes located at Lamesa, Brownfield, Haskell, Tahoka, Post, Sea- graves, Denver City, and Allred, including operators, cashiers, and district stenographer-cashiers, but excluding chief operators and chief operator-cashiers, constitute a unit appropriate for the pur- poses 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 effec- tuate the policies of the Acs. 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 an elec- tion by secret ballot. We shall direct that those eligible to vote in the election shall be those employees within the appropriate unit who were employed by the Company during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election, subject to such limita- tions and additions as are 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: * There is only one cashier herein involied and the Company stated at the hearing that it expected to consolidate this position with that of Chief Operator. 88 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of Southwestern Associated Telephone Com- pany, Lubbock, Texas, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Sec- tion 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. The traffic employees of the Company at the exchanges located at Lamesa, Brownfield, Haskell, Tahoka, Post, Seagraves, Denver City, and Allred, all within the State of Texas, including operators, cashiers, and district stenographer-cashiers, but excluding chief operators and chief operator-cashiers, 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 Southwestern Associated Telephone Company, Lubbock, Texas, 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 of Election, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Sixteenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the Na- tional Labor Relations Board, and subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among the traffic employees of the Com- pany at its exchanges located in Lamesa, Brownfield, Haskell, Tahoka, Post, Seagraves, Denver City, and Allred, all within the State of Texas, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction, including operators, cashiers, and district stenographer-cashiers, and 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 of, but excluding chief operators and chief operator-cashiers and those who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they. desire to be represented for the purposes of col- lective bargaining ' by International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local B-901, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor.