Champion Blower and Forge Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Feb 8, 1940

20 N.L.R.B. 276 (N.L.R.B. 1940)

III the Matter Of CHADIPION BLOWER AND FORGE COMPANY and UNITED
ELECTRICAL, RADIO, AND 1'T_1UHI_\"F: AVOR1iI:RS OF A-,N1.1--,1,ICA, LOCAL
No. 132
Case No. R-1679.-Decided February 8, 1940
Forges, Blowers and Drills Ma,nnfacturioig h idestryIn,vestiigation, of Repre-
sentatives: controversy concerning representation of employees between petition-
ing union and unaffiliated incorporated union; refusal of Company to recognize
union because of contract with incorporated union, the members of which had
voted to dissolve at meeting, notice of which was given, but technically not in
accordance with the law of the State-Unit Appropriate for Collective Borgain-
ivy: all production employees, excluding foremen and supervisory and office
employees-Petition to Intervene: granted at commencement of hearing to one
employee on behalf of members of incorporated union-Representatives: con-
flicting ciaims of petitioning union and incorporated union to represent majority;
stipulation by all parties to resolve question by election with only petitioning
union on ballot-Election. Ordered: as stipulated.
Mr. Jack Davis, for the Board.
Mr. S. R. Zivzmerman,, of Lancaster, Pa., for the Company.
Mr. Hari,y Block and Mr. Saul C. Waldbaum., of Philadelphia, Pa.,
for the Union.
Mr. S. N. Hosterntan, of Lancaster, Pa., for the Association and
Herbert Wriglttt, Intervenor.
Mrs. Augusta Spaul(Kng, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On November 18, 1939, United Electrical, Radio, and Machine
Workers of America, Local No. 132, herein called the Union, filed with
the Regional Director for the Fourth Region (Philadelphia, Pennsyl-
vania)a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had
arisen concerning the representation of employees of Champion
Blower and Forge Company, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 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 20,
20 N. L. R. B., No. 26.
276
CHAMPION BLOWER AND FORGE COMPANY 277
1939, 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,
ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional Director to
conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice.
On January 2, 1940, the Regional Director issued a notice of hear-
ing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company , the Union,
and.upon Employees' Association of Champion Blower and Forge
Company, herein called the Association , an unaffiliated labor organiza-
tion claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investiga-
tion. Pursuant to the notice , a hearing was held on January 11, 1940,
at Lancaster , Pennsylvania , before Charles E. Persons , the Trial
Examiner duly designated by the Board. At the commencement of
of the hearing the Trial Examiner granted a petition to intervene, filed
by.Herbert Wright, an employee of the Company and member of the
Association , in. •the interests of members of the Association.. The
Board, the Company, the Association , and Herbert Wright -were
represented by counsel , the- Union by counsel and its vice president,
and all parties 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 all parties.
During the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several
rulings on notions and objections to the admission of evidence. The
Board has reviewed the rulings of the 7.'rial Examiner and finds that
no prejudicial errors were committed . The rulings are hereby
affirmed.
Upon the ent^- e record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The, Company , Champion Blower and Forge Company, is a Penn-
sylvania corporation engaged in - the manufacture , sale, and distribu-
tion - of forges , blowers, and drills. It operates a plant at Lancaster,
Pennsylvania . - During the course of a-year the v"ilue of raw materials
used in the Lancaster plant amounts to about $125,000, 10 per cent of
which is shipped to the plant from points outside Pennsylvania. Dur-
ing the same period the value of the Company's products amounts to
about $375,000 , 90 per cent of which is shipped from the plant to points
outside Pennsylvania . The Company employs approximately 140
workers in this plant. The Company admits that it is engaged in
interstate commerce within the meaning of the Act.,
283031-41-vol. 20--10
278 , DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America, Local
132, is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial
Organizations. It admits to membership all production workers at
the Company's plant, excluding foremen and supervisory and, office
employees.
Employees' Association of Champion Blower and Forge Company
is an unaffiliated labor organization incorporated under the laws of
Pennsylvania.' It admits to membership all employees of the Com-
pany's plant, excluding office employees and foremen.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
In October 1937 the Association was chartered as a corporation un-
der the laws of Pennsylvania. On March 4, 1938, the Company and
the Association entered into a contract. This contract, which was
to run for a year unless terminated by either party upon 30 days'
written notice, provided for a closed shop and the maintenance of a
list for reeemployment after seasonal lay-offs. In February 1939 cer-
tain employees objected to the renewal of this contract. It was never-
theless renewed for 1 year, expiring on March 4, 1940, unless termi-
nated sooner by written notice.
. The Union began organizing the employees of the Company in Oc-
tober 1939, and received its charter in November 1939. On December
8, 1939, a special meeting of the Association was called, at which it
was voted to dissolve the Association. The notice of this special meet-
ing was not posted 5 days in advance and did not recite its purpose, as
required by the laws of Pennsylvania for meetings of this kind. The
vice president at the special meeting and the chairman of the Associa-
tion notified the Company by letter of the action taken. On December
13, 1939, a representative of the Union, accompanied by a field repre-
sentative from the Board's Fourth Regional office, called at the Com-
pany's office and were informed by the Company's attorney that the
Company would not bargain with the Union on the ground that under
the laws of Pennsylvania the Association was still in existence and
that the Company was bound by its contract with the Association. At
that time and at the hearing the Company's position was that it is
wil]iiig to bargain with any, representative of its employees duly
certified by the Board.
We find a question has arisen concerning the representation of
employees of the Company.
4
I See Section III, infra.
CHAMPION BLOWER AND FORGE COMPANY 279
IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON
COMMERCE
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen 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 parties stipulated that all production employees of the Com-
pany. at its Lancaster plant, excluding foremen and supervisory and
office employees, constitute an appropriate bargaining unit. This:
unit is substantially the same as the unit specified in the contract
between the Company and the Association.' We see no reason for
departing from the unit agreed upon by the parties.
We find that all production employees of the Company at its
Lancaster plant, excluding foremen and supervisory and office em-
ployees, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective
bargaining and' that said unit will insure to employees of the Com-
pany the - full benefits of their right to self-organization and to
collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act.
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
The parties stipulated that the question concerning the representa-
tion of the employees of the Company should be resolved by an
election by secret ballot, conducted under the direction and super-
vision of the Regional Director, in which the employees in the appro-
priate unit shall vote whether or not they desire to be represented
by the Union for the purposes of collective bargaining. All parties,.
including the Association and Herbert Wright, agreed that the Asso-
ciation should not appear on the ballot. We shall direct the holding
of such an election.
At Christmas and in the summer the Company usually lays off a.
small number of employees. It maintains a list of the names of such
employees for, recall when production increases . The Company is of
the opinion that persons whose names appear on this list should be
eligible to vote. We will direct that the employees eligible to vote
in the election shall be those employees in the appropriate unit who
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the
date of this Direction of Election, including employees who did not
Z The contract covered all employees except office employees and foremen . The Company
classifies none of its employees as maintenance employees.
280 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation
and employees who were then or have since been temporarily laid off
and are listed on the preferential list maintained by the Company,
but excluding those who have since quit or been discharged for cause.
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 Champion Blower and Forge ' Company,
Lancaster, Pennsylvania, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and
Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act._
2. All production employees of the Company at. its Lancaster plant,
excluding foremen and supervisory and office employees, constitute
aunit 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, 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 Champion Blower and Forge Company, Lancaster,
Pennsylvania, 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 Fourth 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 production
employees of Champion Blower and Forge Company at its Lancaster,
Pennsylvania, plant, who were employed during the pay-roll period
immediately preceding the date of this Direction, including em-
ployees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they
were ill or. on vacation and employees who were then or have since
been. temporarily laid off and are listed on the preferential list main-
tained by the Company, but excluding foremen and supervisory and
office employees and employees who have since quit or been dis-
charged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be
represented by United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers ' of
America, Local No. 132, for the purposes of collective .l,aig^iining.
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