Colorado River Farms

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 16, 1952

99 N.L.R.B. 160 (N.L.R.B. 1952)

160 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
COLORADO RIVER FARMS and UNITED FRESH FRUIT & VEGETABLE
WORKERS, LIU 78, CIO , PETITIONER
H. TATOSIAN & COMPANY 1 and UNITED FRESH FRUIT & VEGETABLE
WORKERS, LIU 78, CIO, PETITIONER
EATON FRUIT Co. and UNITED FRESH FRUIT & VEGETABLE W ORKERS,
LIU 78, CIO, PETITIONER
CALIFORNIA VEGETABLES AND/OR WILCO HONEY DEWS and UNITED
FRESH FRUIT & VEGETABLE WORKERS , LIU 78, CIO, PETITIONER
WILCO PRODUCE Co. and UNITED FRESH FRUIT & VEGETABLE WORKERS,
LIU 78, CIO, PETITIONER
L. M. AZHIDARIAN 2 and UNITED FRESH FRUIT & VEGETABLE WORKERS,
LIU 78, CIO, PETITIONER . Cases Nos. 201-RC-0O9, ,°L1-RC-9031,
2,1-RC-0392, 21-RC-,0033, 21-RC-°2034, and 21-RC- 4035. May
-7691952
Decision and Direction of Elections
Upon separate petitions duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the
National Labor Relations Act, a consolidated hearing was held on
August 6, 1951, November 9, 1951, and, pursuant to an Order of
the Board dated February 4,1952, reopening the record and remanding
the proceeding to the Regional Director of the Twenty-first Region for
further hearing, on March 13, 1952, before Ben Grodsky, hearing
officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearings are free
from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.3
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board has
delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member
panel [Chairman Herzog and Members Murdock and Peterson].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. Each of the Employers is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the Act .4
' The petition and other formal papers in Case 21-RC-2031 are amended to show
the correct name of the Employer.
2 The petitions and other formal papers were amended at the hearing to show the correct
names of the Employers in Cases Nos 21-RC-2032, 21-RC -2034, and 21-RC-2035.
3 The motion of Wilco Produce Company, concurred in by the Petitioner , to dismiss the
petition in Case No . 21-RC-2033, on the ground that there is no such employer as Cali-
fornia Vegetables and/or Wilco Honey Dews , is hereby granted.
4 Employer L. M. Azhidarian shipped 125 carloads of cantaloupes to points outside of
California in the fiscal year ending in July 1951 . L. M. Azhidarian conceded , and we find,
that the value of these shipments was in excess of $25,000. Although Employer H.
Tatosian shipped 227 carloads of cantaloupes out of State from the same area and on
the same railroad as L. M. Azhidarian, there is no showing in the record of the value of
these shipments . However , in view of our finding with respect to the smaller shipments
of L. M . Azhidarian , we find that H. Tatosian has shipped out of State.cantaloupes valued
in excess of $25,000 ; accordingly , we find that Employer H. Tatosian is engaged in com-
merce within the meaning of the Act. Stanislaus Implement and Hardware Company,
Limited, 91 NLRB 618.
99 NLRB No. 41.
COLORADO RIVER FARMS 161
2. The labor organization involved claims to represent certain em-
ployees of the Employers.
3. The Petitioner seeks to represent the packing shed workers of
the several Employers in this proceeding. Employers Wilco Produce
Co. and Eaton Fruit Co. contend that these workers are "agricultural
laborers" and not "employees" within the meaning of Section 2 (3)
of the Act, and that therefore the Board has no jurisdiction over
such workers.
Each Employer operates one or more sheds in the vicinity of Blythe,
California, for the packing of several of the following types of
produce : Lettuce, melons, cantaloupes, honeydews, and cauliflower.
There are two general packing seasons. Lettuce is packed in Novem-
ber, December, and January, and melons are packed in late May and
June. An example of a typical operation is found in the packing of
lettuce. Lettuce is trucked into a shed in baskets which are rolled into
the shed by receivers. The baskets are set up on a hydraulic lift.
The lettuce is trimmed and then packed into a crate. After a crate
is packed, it is placed on a moving belt and on this belt the crate
passes through a washer. Ice is put on the top layer of lettuce, paper
is laid over the ice, the crate is lidded, labeled, and checked. The
crate is then placed on a turntable outside of the shed and loaded
on cars. After the crate is loaded, ice is blown over the crate by means
of an ice blower.
The particular facts affecting the operations of individual Employ-
ers are discussed below.
Eaton Fruit Co. The shed and the packing equipment of this Em-
ployer represents an investment of $20,000. All the produce packed
is grown on leased land approximately 31/2 miles from the packing
shed, to which it is afterward hauled by truck. In the shed are em-
ployed an average of 145 employees, about 30 percent of whom also
works on the Employer's farm when not engaged in packing shed
operations. However, the bulk of the shed workers are recruited from
among migratory workers who travel with the crop. Furthermore, all
packing shed employees are paid in accordance with wage scales estab-
lished for packing operations rather than at farm labor rates. Al-
though both farm laborers and shed workers are carried on a master
payroll, this payroll is subdivided into a separate listing for each
group. Farm laborers are separately hired and fired, and have sepa-
rate supervision from shed workers.
Wilco Produce Co. This Employer has invested at least $21,000 in
packing equipment and in 2 packing sheds, one of which it owns and
one of which it leases. Produce packed in these sheds is grown on
leased farm lands which are located an average of 9 miles in distance
from the sheds. The farming and packing operations require ap-
proximately 260 farm hands and 140 packing shed employees, re-
162 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
spectively. With the exception of 3 employees who may work in
sheds and on farms the same day, there is no interchange between the
group of farm laborers and packing shed employees. About 60 per-
cent of the packing shed employees is recruited from the ranks of
migratory workers. Although farm laborers and packing shed em-
ployees are carried on a master payroll, they are separately supervised.
H. Tatosian & Company: This Employer operates two sheds, one
for melons and cantaloupes and the other for lettuce and honeydews.
Both sheds are leased. It owns machinery in the melon shed with a
replacement value of $25,000, and a press or lidding machine in the
lettuce shed valued at approximately $4,000. This Employer, who
grows melons and vegetables on leased land within a radius of 8 or 9
miles of Blythe, packs only its own products, except for a small
amount of packing for neighbors. This amount does not exceed 10
percent of the total amount of produce packed.
During the lettuce packing season, the Employer employs 45 people
in the shed. During the melon season 20 people are employed but
during a 2-week peak in this season, the number increases to 50 or 60
employees. Although some workers are recruited from persons liv=
ing in the Blythe area, the majority is drawn from among migratory
workers. Packing shed employees receive substantially the same rate
of pay as other packing shed employees in the area. There is no
appreciable interchange between packing shed employees and farm
laborers; and each group is carried on a separate payroll.
Colorado River Farms: This Employer cultivates approximately
800 acres, and its farm and shed operations are similar to those of
Employer H. Tatosian & Company. However, Employer Colorado
River Farms operates only one shed, which, together with packing
machinery, is valued at $125,000.
L. M. Azhidarian Company: - The operations of this Employer are
almost identical to those of Employer H. Tatosian & Company; ac-
cordingly, no further discussion is required for this Employer.
Thus each of the Employers herein maintain plants in which there
is a substantial investment in building and equipment, and in which
they conduct extensive packing operations. Employees in these pack-
ing sheds are separately supervised from farm laborers. The bulk
of each labor force employed in these packing sheds performs no
functions in connection with the planting, cultivating, or harvesting
of their Employer's crops, and are paid in accordance with the wage
scales paid by other packers in the area to their packing shed em-
ployees. For these and other reasons more fully set forth in Imperial
Garden Growers,5 we are of the opinion that the packing sheds of
5 91 NLRB 1034 . See also Arena Norton, Inc., at at, 93 NLRB 375; D'Arrsgo Bros. Co.
of California, 93 NLRB 827 ; Comer Produce Co., et at, 95 NLRB 542; J. J. Crosetti Co.,
98 NLRB No . 42; Interpretative Bulletin No . 14„par. 10, 1949 WIIM 35. 351.
REHRIG-PACIFIC COMPANY 163
Employers Eaton Fruit Co., Wilco Produce Co., H. Tatosian & Com-
pany, Colorado River Farms, and L.M. Azhidarian Company, respec-
tively, are operated as separate commercial enterprises and not merely
as incidents to or in conjunction with the farming operations of those
Employers. Accordingly we find that the employees in the packing
sheds of each of these Employers are "employees" within the meaning
of the Act.
We find that a question affecting commerce exists concerning the
representation of employees of each of these Employers within the
meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The appropriate unit :
We find that all packing shed employees of each of the several
Employers set forth above in packing sheds of these Employers in
the vicinity of Blythe, California, excluding clerical employees,
guards, and supervisors as defined in the Act, constitute separate units
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the mean-
ing of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
5. In accordance with our usual practice in seasonal operations of
this kind, we shall direct that separate elections be held at or about
the next approximate seasonal peak 6 on a date to be determined by
the Regional Director, among the employees in the several appropriate
units who are employed during the payroll period immediately pre-
ceding the date of issuance of the notices of election by the Regional
Director.'
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this
volume.]
° This appears to occur in the latter part of May and June, during'the melon pack.
° See footnote 5, supra.
MURIEL H. REHRIG , D/B/A REHRIG-PACIFIC COMPANY 1 and UNITED
BROTHERHOOD OF CARPENTERS AND, JOINERS,, OF 'AMERICA, WOOD-
WORKERS LOCAL 530, AFL. Case No. 21-CA-1053. May 19, 1952
Decision and Order
On October 12, 1951, Trial Examiner Howard Myers issued his
Intermediate Report in the above-entitled proceeding, finding that the
Respondent had engaged 'in and was engaging in certain unfair labor
practices in violation of Section 8 (a) (1), 8 (a) (2), and 8 (a) (5) of
1 The Respondent is designated in the complaint and other pleadings as Rehrig-Pacific
Company. The record, however, shows Muriel H. Rehrig, an individual doing business as
Rehrig-Pacific Company, to be the Respondent herein We have so amended all the'formal
papers.
99 NLRB No 34.