Goodall Worsted Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 10, 1941

35 N.L.R.B. 318 (N.L.R.B. 1941)

In the Matter of GOODALL WORSTED COMPANY and FEDERATION OF
WOOLEN AND WORSTED WORKERS OF AMERICA, AFFILIATED TO
U. T. W. A. (A. F. OF L.)
Case No. R-2789.-Decided September 10, 1941
Jurisdiction : textile manufacturing industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re-
fusal of Company to accord union recognition until certified by the Board ;
election necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production and maintenance
employees at the Sanford, Maine and Springvale, Maine, plants, excluding
supervisory, office, and administrative employees, foremen, assistant foremen,
employees having the right to hire and discharge, timekeepers, and students
temporarily hired for the summer months ; agreement as to.
Mr. Benjamin Spinoza and Mr. George Cantor, of Boston , Mass.,
for the Company.
Mr. Henry M. Katz, of New York City, for the Union.
Mr. William H. Bartley , of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND '
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On May 21, 1941, Federation of Woolen and Worsted Workers of
America, affiliated to U. T. W. A. (A. F. of L.), herein called the
Union, filed with the Regional Director for the First Region (Boston,
Massachusetts) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce
had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Goodall
Worsted Company, Sanford, Maine, 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 9, 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.
35 N. L. R. B., No. 64.
318
GOODALL WORSTED COMPANY 319
On July 15 and 16, 1941, respectively, the Regional Director issued
a notice of hearing and a notice of postponement of hearing, copies
of which were duly served upon the Company and the Union. Pur-
suant to notice, a hearing was held at Sanford, Maine, on July 24,
1941, before William S. Gordon, the Trial Examiner duly designated
by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company and the Union were
represented by counsel and 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 par-
ties. At the conclusion of the hearing the Company moved that
the petition be dismissed for failure of the Union to establish that it
represented a sufficient number of employees to warrant the holding
of an election. The Union moved that the Board direct an election.
The Trial Examiner reserved ruling for the Board on both motions.
The Company's motion is hereby denied and the Union's motion
granted for the reasons set forth in Section III below. During the
course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several rulings on
other 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. Subsequent to the hearing, the parties stipulated that cer-
tain designated corrections should be made in the transcript of the
hearing. The stipulation is hereby approved and made part of the
record in the case. On August 7, 1941, the Company filed a "Motion
to correct the Transcript," in other respects. The alleged "motion"
of the Company is in 'no sense a motion to correct 1 but is, on the
contrary, a motion to alter the transcript. The motion is hereby
denied.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Goodall Worsted Company is a Maine corporation with its prin-
cipal office and plant located in Sanford, Maine, hereinafter called
the Sanford plant. It operates a weaving department at Springvale,
Maine, hereinafter called the Springvale plant. The Company has
subsidiary corporations operating in other points in the United
States, but only the Sanford and Springvale plants are involved
herein. In connection with its business of manufacturing, selling,.
and distributing cotton worsted cloth at the Sanford and Springvale
plants the Company uses annually cotton and wool yarns valued at
I See footnote 2, infra.
320 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
more than $500,000, substantially all of which are purchased and
shipped from points outside the State of Maine. The Company an-
nually manufactures finished products valued at more than $1,000,000,
substantially all of which are sold and shipped to points outside the
State of Maine. The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce
within the meaning of the Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
Federation of Woolen and Worsted Workers of America, chartered
by United Textile Workers of America, is a labor organization affili-
ated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to member-
ship employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Union claims to represent a substantial number of employees
of the Company and alleges that the Company refuses to recognize
the Union until it has been certified by the Board.'
Statements of the Regional Director and the Trial Examiner
introduced in evidence show that the Union represents a sub-
stantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter 'found to be
appropriate.3
We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation
of employees of the Company.
9 At the hearing the Company and the Union stipulated that a question concerning
representation exists. The motion of the Company, filed August 7, 1941, requested that
the stipulation be altered in such manner as to withdraw this agreement by the Company.
While we have denied the motion, we do not rest our finding that a question concerning
representation exists upon this stipulation.
a The statement of the Regional Director shows that 312 application cards were sub-
mitted to him,-113 of which were dated between August 1 and December 30, 1940, and the
remainder of which were dated in 1941, except for 36 cards which were undated. All the
cards appear to bear genuine signatures . Of the cards, 226 bore the names of persons
on the pay roll of July 12, 1941, and 63 bore the names of persons who the Company and
the Union agreed were employees although such persons were not listed on the July 12
pay roll . In addition , the Trial Examiner stated at the hearing that 22 additional cards,
dated in May and June 1941, had been submitted to him, 21 of which were signed by
persons on the July 12 pay roll. None of these cards bore duplicate signatures of those
examined by the Regional Director. There are approximately 950 employees in the unit
hereinafter found appropriate. The Union also introduced testimony at the hearing to
the effect that 167 additional cards, none of which were duplicates of cards submitted
to the Regional Director, had been lost by an executive of the Union. The Trial Examiner
admitted the evidence over objection by counsel for the Company. While it is clear that
the testimony was admissable it is unnecessary to determine the tiseight to be given it
sinceI the number of cards submitted to the Regional Director and to the Trial Examiner
indicates that the Union represents a substantial number of employees within the appro-
priate unit. See: Matter of Italian Food Products Company, Inc and Newport Beach
Cannery Workers, Local 9, International Fishermen and Allied lVorkemi of Amei ica affiliated
with the C 1 O., 29 N L R. B 284
GOODALL WORSTED COMPANY 321
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, acid commerce among the several States
and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing com-
merce and the free flow of commerce.
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Company and the Union agree, and we find, that all produc-
tion and maintenance employees at the Sanford and Springvale
plants, excluding supervisory, office, and administrative employees,
foremen, assistant foremen, employees having the.right to hire and
discharge, timekeepers, and students temporarily employed for the
summer months, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of
collective bargaining. We further find 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
The Company and the Union requested that the pay roll for the
week ending August 16, 1941, be used to determine eligibility to
vote in the election. The Company's business is seasonal in char-
acter, and the parties agreed that the August 16 pay roll would
contain a greater, number of employees than a pay roll for any
other period. The parties also stipulated that any employee who
had worked 25 or more days during 1941 should be eligible to vote
even though his name does not appear on the pay roll of August 16.
Under the circumstances, we shall direct that those eligible to vote
in the election shall be the employees in the appropriate unit who
were employed by the Company during the week ending August 16,
1941, and any other employees who were employed 25 or more days
during 1941, subject to such limitations and additions as are set
forth in the Direction of Election herein.
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 Goodall Worsted Company, Sanford,
322 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Maine, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and
(7) of, the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All production and maintenance employees at the Sanford,
Maine, and Springvale, Maine, plants of the Company, excluding
supervisory, office, and administrative employees, foremen, assistant
foremen, employees having the right to hire and discharge, time-
keepers, and students temporarily employed for the summer
months, 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
Relations Act and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended,
it is hereby
DIEECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the
Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective
bargaining with Goodall Worsted Company , Sanford, Maine, 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 First 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 and maintenance em-
ployees at the Sanford and Springvale plants of the Company whose
names appear on the pay roll for the week ending August 16, 1941,
or who have worked 25 or more days during 1941 , including em-
ployees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they
were ill or on vacation , or in the active military service or training
of the United States , or temporarily laid off, but excluding super-
visory, office , and administrative employees , foremen, assistant fore-
men, employees having the right to hire and discharge , timekeepers,
and students temporarily employed for the summer months , and em-
ployees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to de-
termine whether or not they desire to be represented by Federation
of Woolen and Worsted Workers of America , affiliated to U. T. W. A.
(A. F. of L.), for the purposes of collective bargaining.