Aetna Iron & Steel Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 3, 1941

35 N.L.R.B. 136 (N.L.R.B. 1941)

In the Matter of AETNA IRON & STEEL Co. and INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIA-
TION OF BRIDGE, STRUCTURAL AND ORNAMENTAL IRONWORKERS LOCAL
No. 644, AFFILIATED WITH AMERICAN FEDERATION OF LABOR
Case No. R-?817.-Decided September 3) 1941
Jurisdiction : steel products fabricating industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: Com-
pany concedes that it has refused to bargain because of doubt that the union
represented a majority; election necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : regular employees of the Company's
fabricating plant, including common laborers, truck drivers, and the working
foreman, but excluding supervisory, clerical, and office employees, and
draftsmen.
Absent a showing of sufficient differentiation in functions, employees will
not be excluded from a unit upon racial considerations ; Company's objection
to the inclusion of unskilled common laborers and truck drivers, most of
whom are colored, with skilled white employees is without merit, where
there is no such differentiation in function between these and the remaining
employees in the unit consisting of all regular employees, and where all
such employees are eligible to membership in sole union involved.
Mr. Chester Bedell and Mr. George C. Bedell, of Jacksonville. Fla.,
for the Company.
Mr. Carlton C. Arnow and Mr. Clyde Smith, of Jacksonville, Fla.,
and Mr. C. F. Strickland, of St. Louis, Mo., for the Union.
Mr. Milton E. Harris, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On June 30, 1941, International Association of Bridge, Structural
and Ornamental Ironworkers Local No. 644, affiliated with American
Federation of Labor, herein called the Union, filed with the Regional
Director for the Fifteenth Region (New Orleans, Louisiana) a peti-
tion alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning
the representation of employees of Aetna Iron & Steel Co., Jackson-
ville, Florida, herein called the Company, and requesting an investi-
35 N. L. R. B, No. 26.
136
AETNA IRON & STEEL CO. 137
gation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c)
of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the
Act. On July 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.
On July 21, 1941, the Acting Regional Director issued a notice of
hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the
Union. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on July 29, 1941, at
Jacksonville, Florida, before Charles A. Kyle, the Trial Examiner
duly designated by the Acting Chief Trial Examiner. The Company
and the Union were represented by counsel and participated in the
hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine
witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded
both parties. During 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 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
The Company operates a plant in Jacksonville, Florida, where it
is engaged chiefly in the fabrication and sale of structural steel
products. During the year 1940, the Company purchased about
$955,000 worth of structural steel shapes, approximately 90 per cent
of which were shipped to the Company's plant from points outside
the State of Florida. During the same period, the Company sold
about $463,000 worth of finished products; approximately 41/2 per cent
of which were shipped to points outside the State of Florida.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
International Association of Bridge, Structural and Ornamental
Ironworkers Local' No. 644 is a labor organization affiliated with the
American Federation of Labor, admitting to membership employees
of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company concedes that it has refused to bargain with the
Union because of doubt as to the Union's majority status.
138 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
A statement of the Acting Regional Director, received in evidence
at the hearing, shows that the Union represents a substantial number
of employees in the collective bargaining unit hereinafter found to
be 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
In its petition, as amended at the hearing, the Union claimed that
the appropriate unit consists of all regular employees of the Com-
pany's fabricating plant, including common laborers and truck drivers
(who customarily spend part of their time as common laborers), but
excluding supervisory, clerical, and office employees, and draftsmen.
The Company objected to this unit only in so far as it included com-
mon laborers and truck drivers, most of whom the Company stated
were colored employees. The Company contended that these unskilled
colored laborers should not be included in a unit with skilled white
workers, and, furthermore, that the common laborers and truck drivers
are not eligible for membership in the Union.
We have consistently held that absent a showing of differentiation
in functions which would warrant their exclusion, we will not elude
employees from a unit upon racial considerations.2 No such differen-
tiation was established in the instant case. Furthermore, it appears
that the colored employees are eligible to membership in the Union.
Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution of the International, of
which the Union is a local, provides that membership shall be limited
1 The statement of the Acting Regional Director shows that the Union submitted 71
signed application cards dated between June 12 and 17, 1941 ; that the signatures of all
appear to be genuine ; and that 40 of the signatures correspond to names of employees
within the appropriate unit on the Company' s pay roll for the week ending June 23, 1941.
There were 45 persons employed within the appropriate unit on June 23, 1941.
2 Matter of American Tobacco Co , Inc. and Committee for Industrial Organization,
Local No. 472, 9 N. L R. B. 579; Matter of Union Envelope Co. and Envelope Workers
Union No. 393, 10 N. L. R. B. 1147; Matter of Floyd A Fradell and Grani te Cutters'
International Association of America , 11 N. L. R. B 249; Matter of Interstate Granite
Corporation and Granite Cutters' International Association of America, Charlotte Branch,
11 N. L . R. B. 1046; Matter of Brashear Freight Lines, Inc. and International Association
of Machinists, District No. 9, 13 N. L. R. B. 191.
AETNA IRON & STEEL CO. 139
to workmen "versed in the duties of some branch of the trade." How-
ever, a vice president of the International 'testified that since 1936
common laborers and truck drivers have been admitted to membership
in and been represented by the International.
The Union contends that E. M. Cox should be included within the
appropriate unit. Although Cox is in charge of about six laborers
he has no authority to hire or discharge, though he makes recom-
mendations in such matters to Anderson, the head foreman. Unlike
the Company's other foremen, Cox is paid on an hourly basis, and at
times performs manual labor. We find that Cox is a working fore-
man and as such mould be included within the appropriate unit.
We find that all the regular employees of the Company's fabricating
plant, including common laborers, truck drivers, and the working
foreman, but excluding supervisory, office, and clerical employees, and
draftsmen,3 constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collec-
tive 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 effectuate the policies of the Act.
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question which has arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees can best be resolved by an election by secret
ballot.
The Union states that it prefers to have eligibility to vote deter-
mined by the pay roll of July 24, 1941, because'it believes that there
has been and will continue to be a substantial turn-over in employ-
ment. However, the Company's treasurer testified that the pay roll
had not fluctuated substantially for several years, and that there was
no, reason to anticipate that it would do so in the future. Accord-
ingly, we shall adhere to our customary practice and direct that
the employees eligible to vote will be those who were employed
during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this
Direction of Election, 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 Aetna Iron & Steel Co., Jacksonville, Flor-
8In the list of employees as of July 24, 1941, furnished by the Company , the 53 em-
ployees bearing numbers from 3 to 55, inclusive , were agreed to hold positions bringing
them within this definition.
140 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
ida, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7)
of the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All the regular employees of the Company's fabricating plant,
including common laborers, truck drivers, and the working foreman,
but excluding supervisory, clerical, and office employees, and drafts-
men, 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 Rela-
tions 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 Aetna Iron & Steel Co., Jacksonville, Florida, 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 Fif-
teenth 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 the regular employees of the Company's
fabricating plant, whose names appear on the pay roll for the
period immediately preceding the date of this Direction of Election,
including common laborers, truck drivers, and the working foreman,
and 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 exclud-
ing supervisory, clerical, and office employees, and draftsmen, and
those persons who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to
determine whether or not they desire to be represented by Interna-
tional Association of Bridge, Structural and Ornamental Iron-
workers Local No. 644, A. F. L., for the purposes of collective
bargaining.