Drummond Packing Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board DecisionsAug 30, 1940

27 N.L.R.B. 8 (N.L.R.B. 1940)

In the Matter of DRUMMOND PACKING COMPANY and PACKINGHOUSE. WORKERS ORGANIZING COMMITTEE, LOCAL, 119 (C. I. 0.) Case No. R-1997.-Decided August 30, 1940, Jurisdiction : meat packing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re- fusal to accord recognition to union; contract about to expire, no bar; laid- off employees ineligible to participate in election ; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all the employees of the Company, excluding foremen, confidential clerks, timekeepers, shipping clerks, assistant shipping clerks, salesmen, executives, engineers, and office workers. Wilcox, Wilcox d Sullivan, by Mr. Francis J. Wilcox, of, Eau Claire, Wis., for the Company. Mr. W. 0. Sonnemann, of Milwaukee, Wis., for the P. W. O. C. Mr. George Bohacek and Mrs. Charles Heymanns, of Milwaukee, Wis., for the Amalgamated. Mr. Raymond J. Compton, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On July 15, 1940, Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee, Local 119 (C. I. 0.), herein called the P. W. 0. C.,1 filed with the Regional Director for the Twelfth Region (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Drummond Packing Company, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of representatives pur- suant to Section 9 (c). of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. , On July 30, 1940, the National Labor Re- lations Board, herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9- (c) of the Act and Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Rela- 1 Designated in the petition as Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee (C. I. 0.).- At the hearing the P. W. O. C. stated that on July 18, 1940, it had been chartered as Local 119 and requested that it be so designated in any election which the Board might order. 27 N. L. R. B., No. 2. .g DRUMMOND PACKING COMPANY 9 Lions 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 August 5, 1940 , the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were ' duly served upon the Company , upon the P. W. O. C., and upon Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of North America, Local 360, herein called the Amalgam- ated, a labor organization claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investigation. Pursuant to notice a hearing was held on August . 13, 1940, .at Eau Claire, Wisconsin , before Frederick P. Mett, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. The Company was represented by counsel , and the P. W. O. C. and the Amalgamated by their repre- sentatives . All parties participated in the hearing . Full oppor- tunity 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 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 Drummond . Packing Company is a Wisconsin corporation with its principal office and place of business at Eau Claire , Wisconsin. It is engaged in the purchase and slaughtering of livestock , and the processing , sale, and distribution of 'meats - and animal byproducts. In the conduct of its business the Company purchases annually ap- proximately $1,500,000 worth of livestock 'and curing , packing, and shipping materials . Approximately 5 per cent of these materials are shipped to the Company from points outside the State of Wiscon- sin. The sales of meats and byproducts annually by the Company amount to approximately $2,000,000, of which approximately 35 per cent are shipped to States other than Wisconsin . The Company employs between 125 and 135 production and maintenance employees in the operation of its plant. â€¢ II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee, Local 119, is a .labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organi- 10DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD zations. It admits to membership production and maintenance em- ployees of -the Company. Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of North America, Local 360, is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation` of Labor" admitting to its membership' production and. maintenance employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION The Amalgamated was chartered on December 26, 1936, and there- after, in 1937, 1938, and 1939, entered into exclusive, bargaining con- tracts with the Company covering all production and maintenance employees. The 1939 contract was to remain in full force and effect until October 1, 1940. The P. W. O. C. began to organize in the first part= of July 1940, and on'July 12, 1940, claiming to represent a majority of the production and maintenance employees in the plant, requested the Company to recognize it as the exclusive bargaining representative of these em- ployees. The Company refused this request, stating. that it was already under contract with the Amalgamated. At the. hearing the Amalgamated claimed to represent a large majority.of the production and maintenance. employees. of the Company. There was introduced into evidence a report of the Regional Director showing that the P. W. O. C. has authorizations from 91 employees in the alleged appropriate unit. The contract between the. Company and the Amalgamated is now about to expire. It therefore constitutes no bar to our investigation of representatives herein.2 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 com- merce and the free flow of commerce. a See Matter of A. Goodman d Son and Bakery d Confectionery Workers International Union, Local 94, Matzoth d Noodle Workers, A. F. L., 14 N. L. R. B. 1213; Matter of Oppenheimer Casing Company, a corporation and United Packinghouse Workers of America, Local No. 75, Through.Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee , Affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations , 15 N. L. R. B. 671 ; Matter of Interstate Broad- casting Company , Inc. and Local No. 913, Radio Broadcast Technicians C. Engineers Union, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, A. F. L., 18 N. L. R. B. 235. DRUMMOND PACKING COMPANY V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The P. W. 0. C. contends that all the employees of the Company, excluding foremen, confidential., clerks,, timekeepers, shipping clerks, assistant shipping clerks, salesmen, executives, engineers, and office workers, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. The Amalgamated refused to stipulate as to the appro- priateness of the foregoing unit, on the ground that at some future time it might desire to represent the office workers. It stipulated, however, that the unit contended for by the P. W. 0. C. was the same.as that covered by previous contracts between the Amalgamated and the Company. We find that all the employees of the Company, excluding fore- men, confidential clerks,' timekeepers,. shipping clerks, assistant ship ping clerks,, salesmen, 'executives;- engineers,, and office, workers; con- stitute a 'unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining and that said 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 of the Company within, the unit we have found to be appropriate can best be resolved by an election by secret ballot. . The P. W. 0. C. contends that 4 employees' who were laid off by the Company in July 1940 are eligible to participate in the election. The Amalgamated ,-challenges their eligibility. on the ground that there is no showing that they were only temporarily laid off. It appears from the testimony of Homer H. Smith, vice president of the Company, that, while the Company might possibly reemploy these men in the future, there is no likelihood at the present time of doing so. Under these circumstances, we find that they are riot eligible to participate in the election which we will order. The parties did not express their desires with regard to the selec- tion of the pay-roll period for the determination of eligibility to vote. We shall follow our usual practice and direct that the em- ployees of the Company eligible to vote -in the election shall be those within the appropriate unit during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of our Direction of Election herein, including employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or' on vacation, and employees who were then or shall have $ Ralph nuggins,. Art Wilcox, Odell Lovelein,: Bernard Boehlke. 12 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR '_ RELATIONS BOARD since been temporarily laid off, but excluding those who shall 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 Drummond Packing Company, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 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, excluding foremen, confidential clerks, timekeepers, shipping clerks, assistant shipping clerks, sales- men, executives, engineers, and office workers, constitute a unit appro- priate 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 bar- gaining with Drummond Packing Company, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 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 Twelfth 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, exclud- ing foremen, confidential clerks, timekeepers, shipping clerks, assistant shipping clerks; salesmen, executives,, engineers, and office workers, who were employed by the Company during the pay-roll period im- mediately preceding 'the date of this.Direction of Election', including employees 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, but excluding those who shall have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to' be represented for the purposes of collective bargaining by Pack- inghouse Workers Organizing Committee, Local, 119 (C. I. O.)., or by Amalgamated Meat Cutters and ' Butcher Workmen of North' America, Local 360, or by, neither. . DRUMMOND PACKING COMPANY SAME TITLE 13 CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES October 2, 1940 On August. 30, 1940, the National Labor Relations *Board, issued its Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceed- ing. Pursuant to the Direction of Election an election by secret ballot was conducted on. September 13, 1940, under the direction and.super- vision of the Regional Director for the Twelfth Region (Milwaukee, Wisconsin). On September 17, 1940, the Regional Director,, acting pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, issued and duly served upon the parties his Election Report. No objections to the conduct of the ballot or the Election Report have been filed by any of the parties. As to the balloting and its results, the Regional Director reported as follows : _ Number of Employees Eligible to Vote------------------------ 129 Total Number of Ballots Cast------------------------------- 125 Number of Votes Counted----------------------------------- 125 Number of Votes FOR PACKINGHOUSE WORKERS ORGANIZING COMMITTEE, LocAL 119, (C. I. 0.) ------------------------- 95 Number of Votes FOR AMALGAMATED MEAT CuTTERs & BUTCHER WORKMEN OF NORTH AMERICA, LOCAL 360, (A. F. L.) ------ 29 Nu nber of Votes Fox NEITHER ORGANIZATION----------------- 1 Number of Blank Ballots-------------- -------------- ------ .None Number of Void Ballots----------------------------------- None Number of Challenged Ballots------------------------------ None By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National. Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Re- lations Act, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Sections 8 and 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee, Local 119 (C. I. 0.), has been designated and selected by â€¢a majority of the employees of Drummond Packing Company, Eau' Claire, Wisconsin, excluding foremen, confidential clerks, timekeepers, shipping clerks, assistant shipping clerks, salesmen, executives, engi- neers, and office workers, as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining, and that, pursuant to the provisions of Section 9 (a) of the National Labor Relations Act, Packinghouse Workers .Organizing Committee, Local 119 (C. I. 0.), is the exclusive repre- sentative of all such employees for the purposes of collective bargain- ing in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment. 27 N. L. R. B., No. 2a.