Armstrong Rubber Co.

In the Matter of ARMSTRONG RUBBER COMPANY and UNITED RUBBER WORKERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL No. 93, AFFILIATED WITH THE CON- GRESS OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS Case No. R-2894 .-Decided September 1-, 1941 Jurisdiction : rubber products manufacturing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re- fusal to accord union recognition ; contract with union, members of which transferred their affiliation to the petitioning union and which did not appear at hearing or assert any claim, to membership or any interest in contract, no bar to; organization which did not participate in proceedings accorded place on ballot with permission to withdraw its name upon request because of its alleged contract with the Company ; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all employees excluding execu- tives, superintendents, foremen, supervisors, inspectors, office and clerical workers, and regular factory watchmen ; stipulation as to. Mr. Walter N. ?Maguire, Mr. James Walsh, and Mr. Keith Middle- ton, of Stamford, Conn., for the Company. Mr. Samuel L. Rothbard, of Newark, N. J., Mr. John Marchiando, of Naugatuck, Conn., Mr. Francis J. Quinn, and Mr. Robert Baird, for the United. Miss Fannie M. Boyls, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION' OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On June 11, 1941, United Rubber Workers of America, Local No. 90, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, herein called the United,' filed with the Regional Director for the Second Region (New York City) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Armstrong Rubber Company, West Haven, Connecticut, 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 August 11, 1 The petition was amended at the hearing correctly to designate the United as above stated. 35 N. L R. B., No. 76. 368 ARMSTRONG RUBBER COMPANY 369 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 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 August 13, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing; copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the United, and the American Federation of Labor, herein called the A. F. of L., a labor organization directly affected by the investiga- tion. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on August 18, 1941, at New Haven, Connecticut, before Daniel Baker, the Trial Exam- iner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company and the United were represented by counsel and participated in the hearing. The A. F. of L. did not appear. 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 the Trial Examiner ruled on several 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 FAOT I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Armstrong Rubber Company, a Connecticut corporation located at West Haven, Connecticut, is engaged in the manufacture and sale of automobile tires, tubes, and accessories. The principal raw ma- terials used by the Company are rubber fabric and compound. It purchases annually ra'v materials valued in excess of $2,500,000, ap- proximately 95 per cent of which are shipped to the Company's plant from points outside the State of Connecticut. The Company sells and distributes annually finished products valued in excess of $4,000,000, more than 75 per cent of which are sold and distributed to points outside the State of Connecticut. The Company has six trade-marks which are registered for use in interstate commerce. II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED United Rubber Workers of America, Local No. 93, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, is a labor organization admitting to membership employees of the Company. The Rubber Workers Local Union 22343, affiliated with the Ameri- can Federation of Labor, herein called The Rubber Workers Local, 0 370 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD is a labor organization admitting to membership employees of the Company.2 III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On May 28, 1941, the United requested the Company to recognize it as the exclusive bargaining representative of the Company's em- ployees. The Company refused such recognition for the asserted reason that it had a contract with The Rubber Workers Local. The Company contends that an existing exclusive bargaining contract between itself and The Rubber Workers Local, dated March 21, 1941, is a bar. to this proceeding. On May 26 members of The Rubber Workers Local voted to sever their affiliation with the A. F. of L. and join the United. They sur- rendered their A. F. of L. charter and on June 1, 1941, received a charter from United Rubber Workers of America, affiliated with .the Congress of Industrial Organizations. The contract between the Company and The Rubber Workers Local by its terms continues in force until September 21, 1941, and from year to year thereafter unless one of the parties, within not less than 'thirty (30) days prior to the expiration date, gives written notice to the other party of its desire to change the contract. The United on August 9- gave written notice to the Company that it de- sired to terminate the contract on September 21. Neither The Rub- ber Workers Local nor the A. F. of L. appeared at the hearing and there is no evidence that either of them, subsequent to May 26, when i he employees voted to surrender their A. F. of L. charter, has as- serted any claim to membership at the plant or any interest in the existing contract.3 Under the circumstances of this case, we find that the contract does not constitute a bar to this proceeding.' There was introduced in evidence a report prepared by the Regional Director showing that the United represents a substantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found to be appropriate. 2 As hereinafter appears, the Company urges as a bar to this proceeding a contract with The Rubber Workers Local. The United contends that The Rubber Workers Local is no longer in existence since, among other things, it has surrendered its charter to the A. F. of L. However, in the absence of further proof, we shall consider it as an existing labor organization. 3 Notice of the hearing herein was served upon the A. F. of L. by sending the notice to James J. Clerkin, State Federation President of the A. F. of L., to whom the charter of The Rubber Workers Local was surrendered. 4 See Matter of United Stove Company and International Union, United Automobile Workers of America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organnzations , 30 N. L. R. B. 305, and Matter of Sound Timber Company and International Woodworkers of America, Local 67 and 75, 8 N. L. R. B. 844. G The Regional Director reported that the United had submitted to him 346 applica- tions for membership signed by employees alleged to be in the appropriate unit and that all the signatures appeared to be genuine original signatures . There are approximately 550 employees in the unit hereinafter found to be appropriate. ARMSTRONG RUBBER COMPANY 371 IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON COMMERCE We find that the question concerning tepresentation 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 United and the Company stipulated at the hearing that all em- ployees of the Company, excluding executives, superintendents, fore- men, supervisors, inspectors, office and clerical workers, and regular factory watchmen, constitute an appropriate unit. This is the unit alleged in the petition to be appropriate and is substantially the unit recognized as appropriate in the alleged existing contract and a prior contract between the Company and The Rubber Workers Local. We find that all employees of the Company, excluding executives, superintendents, foremen, supervisors, inspectors, office and clerical workers, and regular factory watchmen, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. We further find that such 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 the representation of employees of the Company can best be resolved by an election by secret ballot. Although The Rubber Workers Local has not presented any evidence of membership among the employees of the Company, because- of its alleged contract with the Company we shall direct that The Rubber Workers Local as well as the United be designated on the ballot. We shall, however, permit The Rubber Workers Local,to withdraw from the ballot upon filing a request therefor with the Regional Director within five (5) days after the date of this Decision and Direction of Election s - We shall direct that all employees of the Company within the ap- propriate unit whose names appear on the Company's pay roll for the period immediately preceding the date of this Direction of Election shall be eligible to vote, subject to such limitations and additions as are set forth in the Direction hereinafter. a See Matter of Reliance Regulator Corporation and Metal Trades Council of Los Angeles and Viei,uty, 32 N. L. R. B 157 451270-42-vol. 35-25 372 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD 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 Armstrong Rubber Company, West Haven, Connecticut, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. 2. All employees of the Company, excluding executives, superintend- ents, foremen, supervisors, inspectors, office and clerical workers, and regular factory watchmen, constitute a unit appropriate for the pur- poses 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 Relations 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 purposes of collective bargaining with Armstrong Rubber Company, West Haven, Connecticut, an elec- tion 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 direc- tion and supervision of the Regional Director for the Second 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 employees of the Company who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction, in- cluding employees who did not work during such pay-roll period be- cause they were ill or on vacation or in the active military service or training of the United States or temporarily laid off, but excluding executives, superintendents, foremen, supervisors, inspectors, office and clerical workers, and regular factory watchmen, and those em- ployees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by United Rubber Workers of America, Local No. 93, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Or- ganizations, or by The Rubber Workers Local Union 22343, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither.