The Western Union Telegraph Co.

In the Matter of THE WESTERN UNioN TELEGRAPH COMPANY and COMMERCIAL TELEGRAPHERS' UNION LOCAL No. 9. Case No. R-3426.-Decided January 16, 1942 Jurisdiction : telegraph industry. Investigation' and Certification of Representatives : existence of question, re- fusal to accord union recognition until certified by the Board, election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all employees of the Company working in • or from St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota, under the jurisdiction of the superintendent at St Paul, excluding employees having the exclusive right to hire and discharge, part-time mes- senger boys engaged exclusively in the handling of errand service and/or distribution service, chief bookkeeper, and late night traffic manager Mr. E. C. Ziesel, of Chicago, Ill., for the Company. Mr.--Franle B. Powers, of Chicago, Ill., and Mr. Harvey Thor and Mr. F. 7'. Starkey, of St. Paul, Minn., for the Union. Mr. Louis Ci od%in, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On September 11, 1941, Commercial Telegraphers' Union, Local No. 9, herein called the Union, filed with the Regional Director for the Eighteenth Region (Minneapolis, Minnesota) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of The Western Union Telegraph Company, St. Paul, Minnesota, 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 November 14, 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. 38 N. L. R. B., No. 68. 325 326 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD On November 14, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the Union, and upon American Communications Association, herein called the A. C. A. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on De- cember 29, 1941, at Minneapolis, Minnesota, before Henry W. Lehmann, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company and the Union were represented and par- ticipated in the hearing. The A. C. A. did not appear at 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. The Trial Examiner granted motions of the Union during the hearing to amend the petition as to formal matters. 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 these rulings and find that no prejudicial 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 The Western Union Telegraph Company is a New York corpora- tion with its principal office at New York City . It is engaged throughout the United States and in various foreign countries in the receiving and transmission by telegraph and cable of intrastate, interstate, and international communications . In the operation of its national and international communications system, the Company operates 211,530 miles of pole lines, 4,070 miles of land line cable, 1,776,876 miles of wire, 30 ,324 nautical miles of ocean cable, and 19,543 telegraph offices. At the close of 1940, the Company employed approximately 43,500 persons . The Company maintains offices at St. Paul, Minnesota , with which we are here concerned . It admits that it is engaged in comnierce within the meaning of the Act. IT. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED Commercial Telegraphers' Union, Local No. 9, is a labor organ- ization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to membership employees at the St. Paul, Minnesota, offices of the Company. III. THE QUESTION -,CONCERNING REPRESENTATION The Company refuses to recognize the Union as the exclusive rep- resentative of its employees at the St. Paul office until such time as it is certified by the Board. A statement of the Regional Director, THE WESTERN UNION TELEGRAPH COMPANY 327 introduced in evidence at the hearing, shows that the Union repre- sents a substantial number of employees in the unit which it alleges is, 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 Union and the Company agree that all employees of the Com- pany working in or from St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota, under the jurisdiction of the superiIitendent of St. Paul, excluding employees having the exclusive right to hire and discharge and part-time messenger boys engaged exclusively in the handling of errand service and/or distribution service, constitute an appropriate unit. The only controversy with respect to the unit concerns the chief bookkeeper and late night traffic manager. The chief bookkeeper has four employees working under him. The Company contends that he should be excluded from the unit because he is a supervisory employee and the Union urges his inclu- sion. He has the authority to suspend employees working under hint and interviews applicants for positions in his department. We shall exclude the chief bookkeeper from the unit. The late night traffic manager is in charge of the traffic depart- ment from midnight to 8 a. m. The Company urges that he be exluded from the unit and the Union that he, be included. This employee normally has one person working under him but on fre- quent occasions his staff is increased to as many as nine employees. It appears that he has the authority to discipline persons in his de- partment and may discharge them for cause. We shall exclude the late night traffic manager from the unit. - We find that all employees of the Company working in or from St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota, ' The Regional Director reported that the Union presented membership cards signed by 80 persons who appear on the Co'mpany's'pay i oil for the St. Paul office There are approxi- mately 120 employees at•the St. Paul office. 328 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD under the jurisdiction of the superintendent at St. Paul , excluding employees having the exclusive right-to hire and discharge , part-time messenger boys engaged exclusively in the handling of errand service and/or distribution service, chief bookkeeper, and late night traffic manager, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of 'collective bargaining and that such unit will insure to employees of the Com- pany the full benefit of their right to self-organization and to-col- lective bargaining and otherwise will 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 the holding of an election by secret ballot. 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 the limitations and additions 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 The Western Union Telegraph Company, St. Paul,' Minnesota , within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. All employees of the Company working in or from St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota , under the jurisdiction of the superintendent at St. Paul, excluding employees having the exclusive right to hire and discharge , part-time messenger boys engaged exclusively in the handling of errand service and/or distribution service, chief bookkeeper , and late night traffic manager, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargain- ing, 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 the 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 THE WESTERN UNION- TELEGRAPH COMPANY 329 with The Western Union Telegraph Company, St. Paul, Minnesota, 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 Eighteenth 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 work- ing in or from St. Paul, South St. Paul, and the suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota, under the jurisdiction of the superintendent at -St. Paul who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preced- ing the date of this Direction, 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 employees having the exclusive right to hire and discharge, part-time messenger boys engaged ex- clusively in the handling of errand service and/or distribution serv- ice, chief bookkeepers, late night traffic manager, and employees ,who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by Commercial T'elegra- phers' Union, Local No. 9, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining.