Dain Manufacturing Co.

In the Matter of DAIN MANUFACTURING COMPANY and LODGE No. 1465, INTERNATIONAL -ASSOCIATION OF 1'IACHINIST5-Al. F. OF L. Case No. R-3399.-Decided January 26, 19-1j,? Jurisdiction : agricultural implement manufacturing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question : re- fusal to accord union recognition until certified by the Board; competing unions accorded place on ballot notwithstanding objection by petitioning craft union, where in a previous election directed among the craft and remainder production and maintenance employees in which no representative was chosen for the craft, they made some showing of representation ; election necessary Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : craft union comprising tool and die makers, machinists, specialists, helpers, apprentices and tool-crib attend- ants held appropriate notwithstanding contention of competing unions that all production and maintenance employees constitute an appropriate unit, where they are highly skilled employees, where no representative was chosen among these employees in previous elections directed by the Board among these employees and the remainder production and maintenance employees, and where the industrial union which was certified for the remaining pro- duction and maintenance employees entered into exclusive contracts expressly exempting these employees Mr. R. E. White, of Ottumwa, Iowa, and Mr. H. W. Pike, of Moline, Ill., for the-Company. Mr. P. L. ,Siemiller•, of Des Moines, Iowa, for the I. A. M. Mr. Wilbur Dull, of Ottumwa, Iowa, for the Independent. Mr. E. V. Roose, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for the F. E. W. O. C. Mr. Louis Co/em , of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On October 29, 1941, Lodge No. 1465, International Association of Machinists, A. F. of L., herein called the I. A. M., filed with the Regional Director for the Eighteenth Region (Minneapolis, Minne- sota) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Dain Manu- 38 N. L. R. B., No. 111. 528 DAMN MANUFACTURING COMPANY 529 facturing Company, Ottumwa, Iowa, 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 December 5, 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 December 9, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the I. A. M., Local 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organizing Com- mittee, herein called the F. E. W. O. C., and Independent Farm Im- plement Workers, herein called the Independent, labor organizations claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on December 18, 1941, at Ottumwa, Iowa, before Robert Rissrnan, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company, the I. A. M., the F. E. W. O. C., and the Independent, were represented and participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to ex- amine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bear- ing on the issues was afforded all parties. At the close of the hearing, counsel for the Independent moved to dismiss the petition on the ground that no question concerning representation had arisen. The Trial Examiner reserved ruling thereon. The motion is hereby denied. During the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several rulings on motions and on objections to 'the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed these ruling and finds 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 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Dain Manufacturing Company is an Iowa corporation with its principal place of business at Ottumwa, Iowa, where it is engaged in the design, manufacture, sale, and distribution of sweep rakes, shock sweeps, hay loaders, hay stackers, hay presses, kafir headers, pump jacks, and concrete mixers. During the fiscal year ending October 31, 1941, the Company purchased raw materials from sources outside the State of Iowa valued at approximately $1,654,000. During the same period it sold finished products valued at approxi- mately $2,309,000, of which approximately $2,104,000 worth were 438881-42-vol. 38-35 530 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD shipped to points outside the State of Iowa. The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act. II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Lodge No. 1465, International Association of Machinists, is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. It admits to membership employees of the Company. Local 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organizing Committee, is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organ- izations. It admits to membership employees of the Company. Independent Farm Implement Workers is an unaffiliated labor organization admitting to membership employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION On October 20, 1941, the I. A. M., claiming to represent a major- ity of the employees in an alleged appropriate unit, requested the Company to bargain with it. The Company denied this request until such time as the I. A. M. was certified by the Board. A statement of the Regional Director introduced into evidence shows that the I. A. M. represents a substantial number of employees in the unit that 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 I. A. M. urges that all tool and die makers, machinists, spe- cialists, helpers, apprentices, and tool-crib attendants employed by the Company, excluding assistant foremen, constitute an appropriate unit. The F. E. W. O. C. and the Independent contend that all ' The Regional Director 's statement shows that 42 persons whose names appear on the Company's pay roll of November 24, 1941 , have signed membership cards in the I. A. M Eleven employees hose names appear on the November 24, 1941, pay roll have signed cards in the Independent . It also appears from the evidence that 6 employees In the unit urged by the I A M. have signed application cards in the F. E. W. 0. C. There are approximately 58 employees in the unit alleged by the I. A. M. to be appropriate. DAIN MANUFACTURING COMPANY 531 production and maintenance employees of the Company constitute an'appropriate unit. The Company took no position with respect to the unit. For the most part, the employees in the unit urged by the I. A. M. are skilled employees requiring a 4-year apprenticeship. They are paid on a straight hourly basis in contrast to a combination hourly and piece-rate basis on which other employees in the plant are paid and they work in departments of the plant separated from the other employees. Many of these employees are obliged to purchase their own precision instruments. Pursuant to a Decision and Direction of Electi0112 of the Board, an election was held among employees in the unit alleged to be appropriate by the I. A. M., and an election among the remainder of the production and maintenance employees on February 27, 1941. None of the organizations involved received a majority of the votes cast in the election conducted among the em- ployees claimed by the I. A. M. However, the Independent re- ceived a majority of the votes cast among the remainder of the production and maintenance employees of the Company and on July 29, 1941, was certified by the Board as the exclusive representative of such employees.3 On September 25, 1941, the Independent and the Company entered into an exclusive contract to remain in full force and effect until August 31, 1942, covering the employees for which the Independent had been certified. This contract expressly exempts from its provisions the employees claimed by the I. A. M. herein. Under these circumstances, we find that the unit urged by the I. A. M. is appropriate. We find that all tool and die makers, machinists, specialists, help- ers, apprentices, and tool-crib attendants of the Company, exclusive of assistant foremen, constitute an appropriate unit for the purposes of collective bargaining and 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 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. The I. A. M. urges that the Independent and the F. E. W. O. C. be denied a place on the ballot because of their small showing of rep- resentation among the employees in the appropriate unit. In the election among the employees in the unit found appropriate herein r. 0 Matter of Dain Manufacturing Company and Lodge No 1465, Internatsonai Association of Mach,v, is-A F. of L., 29 N L R B 526 1 33N L R B. No 159 532 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATION'S BOARD conducted on February 27, 1941, the Independent and the F. E. W. O. C. each polled 10 votes. Inasmuch as we are directing an elec- tion herein on the basis of the I. A. M.'s showing and in view of the showing made by the Independent and the F. E. W. O. C. in the February 27, 1941, election, we shall accord them a place on the ballot. We find that the employees eligible to vote in the election shall be those employees 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 Dain Manufacturing Company, Ottumwa, Iowa, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. All tool and die makers, machinists, specialists, helpers, appren- tices, and tool-crib attendants of the Company, excluding assistant foremen, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, with 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 DIBXcTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Dain Manufacturing Company, Ottumwa, Iowa, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as soon 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 Rela- tions Board, and subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among all tool and die makers, machinists, specialists, helpers, apprentices, and tool-crib attendants of the Company who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding 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 DAIN MANUFACTURING COMPANY 533 active military service or training of the the United States, or tem- porarily laid off, but excluding assistant foremen and employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by Lodge No. 1465, International Asso- ciation of Machinists, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, or by Local 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organizing Com- mittee, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by Independent Farm Implement Workers, for the purposes of col- lective bargaining, or by none of said organizations. In the Matter of DAIN MANUFACTURING COMPANY and LODGE No. 1465. INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MACHINISTS- A. F. OF L. Case No. R-3399 SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION AND AMENDMENT TO DIRECTION OF ELECTION February 9, 194H2 On January 26, 1942, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, issued a Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceeding." On February 1, 1942, International Union, United Automobile, Air- craft, Agricultural Implement Workers of America, herein called the U. A. W., filed motions with the Board requesting that its name be placed on the ballot in the election directed by the Board in the above- entitled proceeding, or that the directed election be held up pending its claims. The Board has considered the motions of the U. A. W. and finds them to be without merit. The motions are hereby denied. The Board, having been advised that Local 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organizing Committee, affiliated with the Congress of Indus- trial Organizations, does not desire its name to appear upon the ballot, hereby amends its Direction of Election by striking therefrom the words "to determine whether they desire to be represented by Lodge No. 1465, International Association of Machinists, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, or by Local 117, Farm Equipment Workers Organizing Committee, affiliated with the Congress of Indus- t rial Organizations, or by Independent Farm Implement Workers, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by none of said organiza- tions," and substituting therefor the words "to determine whether they desire to be represented by Lodge No. 1465, International Asso- ciation of Machinists, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, or by Independent Farm Implement Workers, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither." 138 N. L. R. B. 528. 38 N. L. R. B, No. 111a. 534