Inland Steel Products Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board DecisionsJul 21, 1959

124 N.L.R.B. 198 (N.L.R.B. 1959)

198 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD supervisors as defined in the Act, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9(b) of the Act. [Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.] Inland Steel Products Company and Technical Engineers As- sociation (Independent), Petitioner . Case No. 13-RC-6398. July 21, 1959 DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, a hearing was held before Kenneth L. Keith, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. 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 [Members Rodgers, Jenkins, and Fanning]. Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds: 1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act. 2. The labor organization involved claims to represent certain em- ployees of the Employer. 3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa- tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section 9(c) (1) and Section 2(6) and (7) of the Act. 4. The Petitioner and the Employer stipulated that the following unit is appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining: All technical employees at the Employer's Milwaukee, Wisconsin, plant, including checkers A and B, draftsmen detailer B, draftsmen detailer jr., estimator sr., product application draftsmen A, B, C, D, and E, product analyst, time-study man jr., time-study man sr., plant layout technician, product development draftsmen jr., group leader estimator, and product development draftsmen sr., but excluding office clerical employees, production and maintenance employees, guards, professional employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act. The Employer contends, however, that certain additional employees alleged to be technical should be included in the unit. The Petitioner opposes the inclusion of these employees on various grounds, as dis- cussed below. The tabulating machine operators sr., comprising seven employees, spend approximately 50 percent of their time wiring IBM panel boards for standard assignments and special projects. These assign- 124 NLRB No. 23. INLAND STEEL PRODUCTS COMPANY 199 ments and special projects deal with statistical computations concern- ing, inter alia, market research, sales analysis, general accounting, personnel records, perpetual inventory, and payroll. In this function, they are required to possess knowledge of complex formulas in higher mathematics. In the course of their work they also operate various types of IBM machines. We find that the work of these employees requires a sufficiently high degree of technical skill to permit their inclusion in the unit.' The Petitioner's further contention that they are confidential employees is without merit.2 Accordingly, we shall include them.3 The production schedulers schedule the production and shipment of orders on hand, expedite orders, and maintain adequate levels of fin- ished inventories. They are assigned to particular manufacturing areas of the plant and to a particular foreman. About 60 percent of their time is spent on the floor of the factory and the balance is per- formed in the office. The order scheduler sr. operates as a liaison be- tween the sales department and plant operating units to coordinate customers' orders with production and shipping schedules. He oper- ates and maintains schedules of contracts and orders, and makes de- cisions necessary for the adjustments of priority shipments of cus- tomers' orders. He must have knowledge of the products involved in the order, and occasionally, must be able to check blueprints of these products. The rate clerk (traffic) sr. makes arrangements and negoti- ates contracts for cartage operations. He computes freight rates and audits and reaudits freight bills for accuracy. The rate clerk (traffic) jr. performs essentially the same duties, but of a less complicated na- ture and involving a lesser degree of responsibility. We find that the employees in these four categories perform essentially plant clerical functions rather than technical skills, and we shall therefore exclude them.4 The industrial engineer technician, for about 20 percent of his time, designs material handling equipment and makes layout plans for pro- duction equipment and warehouse storage. About 60 percent of his time is spent computing cost estimates and cost analysis, and about 10 percent in the study of a job-evaluation program involving the pro- duction and maintenance employees. In the latter connection, he is occasionally consulted when there is a dispute with the union over cer- tain job classifications. An engineering degree is not essential to qualify for this position, but an educational background is required in time study, factory management, and industrial engineering, plus ' See Kearney & Trecker Corporation, 121 NLRB 817. 2 See Lilliston Implement Company, 121 NLRB 868. a It is not clear whether Petitioner also contended that these employees are profes- sional . In any case, we find the record does not support such a conclusion. 4 See Fairbanks, Morse & Company, 117 NLRB 1.449; Jones-Dabney Company, 116 NLRB 1556. 200 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD 4 to 5 years' experience. The evidence, we find, does not support the Petitioner's contention that this employee is confidential,-' or profes- sional. On this record, we find the industrial engineer technician is a technical employee, and shall include him in the unit." Group leaders A and B are responsible for the training and per- formance of production application draftsmen. They have inter- viewed job applicants and made recommendations regarding the hire, promotion, reclassification, and discharge of employees, which recom- mendations, the record shows, have been followed in most instances. Accordingly, we find they are supervisors and shall exclude them. We therefore find that the following employees constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the mean- ing of Section 9(b) of the Act : All technical employees at the Employer's Milwaukee, Wisconsin, plant, including checkers A and B, draftsmen detailer B, draftsmen detailer jr., estimator sr., product application draftsmen A, B, C, D, and E, product analyst, time-study man jr., time-study man sr., plant layout technician, product development draftsmen jr., tabulating ma- chine operator sr., industrial engineer technician, group leader esti- mator, and product development draftsmen sr., but excluding office clerical employees, production and maintenance employees, produc- tion schedulers, order scheduler sr., rate clerk (traffic) sr., rate clerk (traffic) jr., group leader-A, group leader-B, guards, professional employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act. [Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication.] 5 See Lilliston Implement Company, supra. Westinghouse Air Brake Company, 119 NLRB 1 . 391, 1394. ACF-Wrigley Stores, Inc . and Retail Clerks International Asso- ciation, AFL-CIO, Petitioner. Case No. 16-RC-2505. July 21, 1959 DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, a hearing was held before John C. Crawford, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. 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 Leedom and Members Bean and Fanning]. Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds : 1. The Employer 1 is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act. 1 The name of the Employer appears as amended pursuant to the motion filed with the Board. 124 NLRB No. 26.