Kennecott Copper Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Nov 12, 1959

125 N.L.R.B. 107 (N.L.R.B. 1959)

KENNECOTT COPPER CORPORATION 107
comptometer operator, and bookkeeper, and excluding purchasing
agent, gift shop buyer, food supervisors, gift shop supervisor, service
supervisors, managers of the individual restaurants, commissary man-
ager, assistant managers of restaurants 1E, 3W, 3E, 5W, 7E, 8W, and
the Michigan City, Glass House Restaurant, relief manager, and all
other supervisors as defined in the Act
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication ]
Kennecott Copper Corporation and United Steelworkers of
America, AFL-CIO and International Association of Machin-
ists, Local Lodge #1957, AFL-CIO, Petitioner. Cases Nos
21-RC-5904 and 21-RC-5920 November 12, 1959
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
Upon separate petitions duly filed under Section 9(c) of the Na-
tional Labor Relations Act, a consolidated hearing was held before
James W Cherry , hearing officer The hearing officer 's rulings made
at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and aie 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 is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the Act
2 The labor organizations named below claim to represent certain
employees of the Employer'
3 A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of certain employees of the Employer, within Section 9(c) (1)
and Section 2 (6), and (7) of the Act
4 The appropriate unit
Case No 21-RC-5920
Petitioner herein, International Association of Machinists, Local
Lodge #1957, AFL-CIO, herein called the Machinists, seeks a unit
(as amended at the hearing) composed, with the usual exceptions, of
all mechanics, welders, their apprentices and helpers, steam cleaner
operators, and laborers employed in the Employer s truck shop, small
truck shop, company garage, and cat shop in its Ray Mmes Division
at Ray, Arizona' Smelter Workers was certified in 19551 as
1In Case No 21-RC-5920, International Union of Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers,
Independent, herein called the Smelter workers, was allowed to intervene on the basis of
a contractual interest
2 There are 34-35 mechanics, 4-5 helpers, 4 apprentices, 3 welders, a steam cleaner
operator and 5 laborers employed at the truck shop There are three truck mechanics
employed at the company garage, two truck mechanics employed in the cat shop, and
125 NLRB No 12
108 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
collective-bargaining representative for a residual production and
maintenance unit of the employees of the Employer at Ray, including
those employees sought by the Machinists herein. Smelter Workers
contends that the employees sought do not qualify either for craft or
departmental severance and that, in any case, the Machinists does not
meet the "traditional union" test of American Potash." The Employer
takes no position on this issue.
The truck shop is located in a separate building, also containing a
tire repair shop which is partitioned from the truck shop, and a ware-
house. The small truck garage and the cat shop are located near the
truck shop, and the company garage is located near the Employer's
general offices. The truck shop is supervised by three truck shop
foremen. The small truck garage and the cat shop are supervised by
the tire foreman, who also supervises the tire shop. Twice a week,
in the absence of the tire foreman, the small truck garage and the
cat shop are supervised by a truck shop foreman. Both the truck
shop foremen and the tire foreman are responsible to a truck and
dozer maintenance foreman, who also has immediate supervision over
the company garage.
The employees in the truck shop are exclusively engaged in the re-
pair and maintenance of the Employer's trucks, including 60-ton
Euclid trucks, pickup trucks, water trucks, and pit equipment trucks.
While the record is not clear as to the duties of the mechanics in the
other shops, the Employer testified that all the mechanics sought are
journeyman mechanics, experienced in automobile and truck repair.
The Employer requires 3-4 years of apprenticeship training for these
mechanics and the Employer's apprentice program has been in opera-
tion for approximately 3 years. The welders in the truck shop work
in conjunction with the mechanics in the repair and maintenance of
trucks. The Employer testified that the steam cleaner operator and
the laborers become eligible for apprenticeship "over a period of
time."
In International Harvester Company,' noting the increasing skill
required to maintain the present day automotive engine, the Board
overruled an earlier line of decisions 6 and held that automotive
mechanics may be separately represented as craftsmen. In accord-
ance with that decision, and on the basis of the entire record, we find
that the mechanics sought herein are craftsmen. And, as the Ma-
chinists is an organization which traditionally represents such crafts-
one truck mechanic employed in the small truck garage. The following classifications of
mechanics are employed in the truck shop : garage mechanics, truck electric mechanics,
lead truck mechanic, diesel truck mechanic specialist , and truck mechanic.
6 Smelter workers was certified on September 29, 1955, as a result of an election directed
in Kennecott Copper Corporation, Case No . 21-RC-4037 (unpublished ). See also, Kenne-
cott Copper Corporation, Case No. 21-RC-2201 (unpublished).
4 American Potash d Chemical Corporation, 107 NLRB 1418.
6 119 NLRB 1709 . 'See also Diamond T. Utah, Inc., 124 NLRB 988.
6 E.g., Kennecott Copper Corporation , Ray Mines Division , 106 NLRB 390 , 396, in which
the Board found a unit of truck mechanics similar to that sought herein inappropriate.
KENNECOTT COPPER CORPORATION 109
men,7 we find further that the Machinists may represent them here.
As the record does not show that the helpers, truck shop welders,
steam cleaner operators, or the laborers are currently in a direct line
of progression to the job of mechanic,8 we shall exclude them.
Case No. 21-RC-5904
Petitioner in this case, United Steelworkers of America, AFI^-CIO,
herein referred to as the Steelworkers, seeks a unit composed of the
clerks employed at the Employer's two warehouses in its Ray Mines
Division at Ray, Arizona. The Employer argues that the unit sought
is inappropriate in that it does not include the Employer's warehouse
clerks in Hayden, Arizona, and certain other clerical employees.
The 15 clerks employed at the Employer's warehouse at Ray are
engaged in receiving and distributing materials, the writing of pur-
chase orders, the processing of requisitions for parts from the ware-
house, and record keeping relating to inventories. There are 13-14
clerks employed at the Employer's warehouse in Hayden, Arizona, a
distance of approximately 20 miles from Ray, whose work is identical
with that done by the Ray warehouse workers. The Ray and Hayden
warehouses are separately supervised by storekeepers, who are re-
sponsible to the Employer's assistant division comptroller and the
division comptroller. There is no interchange of employees between
the Ray and Hayden warehouses. There is no evidence of any history
of bargaining for these clerks.
On this record, particularly in view of the separate immediate
supervision of the two groups of employees, the lack of interchange
of employees between Ray and Hayden, and their geographical sepa-
ration, we find that the exclusion of these Hayden employees does not
render inappropriate the unit sought.
As it is not contended, and it does not appear, that there are any
other unrepresented production and maintenance employees at Ray,
we find that following unit is appropriate as a residual unit: 9
(a) All clerks employed in the Employer's two warehouses at Ray,
Arizona, and all other plant clerks at Ray, Arizona, but excluding
all other employees, professional employees, guards, watchmen, and
supervisors as defined in the Act.
We find also, in Case No. 21-RC-5920, that the following employees
of the Employer may constitute a unit appropriate for the purpose of
collective bargaining within Section 9(b) of the Act:
4 International Harvester Company, supra.
9 See American Potash & Chemical Corporation, supra, at p. 1423.
9 The Employer also contends that there are 10-15 unrepresented plant clerks working
in the various operations in Ray and in Hayden other than in the warehouses who should
also be included in the unit. The records show that these clerks are attached to the
various operating departments of the Employer and are engaged in the keeping of records
affecting those departments only. For reasons already stated, we find that such clerks at
Hayden may not appropriately be included in the unit. However, we include such of
these plant clerks as are employed at the Ray operations.
110 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
(b) All mechanics employed in the Employer's truck shop, small
truck shop, company garage, and cat shop at Ray, Arizona, including
their apprentices, but excluding helpers, steam cleaner operators,
laborers, welders, all other employees, office clerical employees, watch-
men, guards, professional employees, and supervisors as defined in
the Act.
If the majority in unit (b) vote for the Machinists, they will be
taken to have indicated their desire to constitute a separate appropri-
ate unit, and the Regional Director conducting the election directed
herein is instructed to issue a certification of representatives to the
Petitioner for such unit, which the Board, under such circumstances,
finds to be appropriate for purposes of collective bargaining. In the
event a majority do not vote for the Machinists, these employees
shall remain a part of the existing unit and the Regional Director will
issue a certification of results of election to such effect.
[Text of Direction of Elections omitted from publication.]
National Caterers of Virginia , Inc. and Hotel & Restaurant
Employers & Bartenders International Union , AFL-CIO, Peti-
tioner. Case No. 5-RC-2705. November 10, 1959
DECISION, ORDER, AND DIRECTION OF
SECOND ELECTION
Pursuant to a stipulation for certification upon consent election, an
election by secret ballot was conducted by the Regional Director on
April 17, 1959, among the employees in the unit described below.
After the election, the parties were furnished with a tally of ballots
which showed that of 34 eligible voters, 16 cast valid ballots for and
18 cast valid ballots against the Petitioner. The Petitioner filed
timely objections to conduct affecting the results of the election.
After investigation the Regional Director on July 24, 1959, issued
and served upon the parties his report on objections in which he
recommended that the objections relating to interviews with em-
ployees in the storeroom at the Seventh and Stockton location prior to
the election be sustained and that the election be set aside and that
a new election be ordered by the Board. He found no merit in the
other objections, but in the course of his investigation uncovered evi-
dence concerning conduct affecting the results of the election and
recommended that if the Board did not agree that the election be set
aside that a hearing be directed to resolve material and substantial
issues raised by the evidence uncovered therein. The Employer filed
timely exceptions to the Regional Director's recommendations.
125 NLRB No. 10.