Kentucky Central Life and Accident Insurance Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Feb 12, 1947

72 N.L.R.B. 548 (N.L.R.B. 1947)

In the Matter of KENTUCKY CENTRAL LIFE AND ACCIDENT INSURANCE
COMPANY, EMPLOYER and INDUSTRIAL AND ORDINARY INSURANCE
AGENTS UNION LOCAL No. 23390 (AFL) AND INDUSTRIAL AND ORDI-
NARY INSURANCE AGENTS COUNCIL (AFL), PETITIONER
Case No. 8-R-24154.-Decided February 12, 1947
Messrs. Frost c6 Jacobs , by Mr . Cornelius J. Petzhold, of Cincinnati,
Ohio, and Mr . W. H. Bridwell , of Bexley , Ohio, for the Employer.
Mr. George L. Russ , of Washington , D. C., for the Petitioner.
Mr. Abraham Frank, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, hearing in this case was held at Cleve-
land, Ohio, on December 27, 1946, before John A. Hull, Jr., hearing
officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the National Labor Relations
Board makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE EMPLOYER
Kentucky Central Life and Accident Insurance Company is a,
Kentucky corporation, maintaining a home office and principal place
of business at Anchorage, Kentucky. It is engaged in the business
of issuing ordinary and industrial life insurance and accident insur-
ance policies. Its activities extend to six States,' but all applications
for insurance and all insurance policies written for and on behalf
of the Employer are acted upon at the home office. On December
31, 1944, the Employer had 281,478 policies in force in the various
States amounting to $47,902,586. Operations of the Employer in
1946 have been substantially the same as during 1944.
We find that the Employer is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
' Kentucky, Ohio , Pennsylvania , west Virginia, Indiana , Delaware
72 N. L. R. B, No. 104
548
KENTUCKY CENTRAL LIFE AND ACCIDENT INSURANCE COMPANY 549
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
The Petitioner is a labor organization affiliated with the American
Federation of Labor, claiming to represent employees of the Employer.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Employer refuses to recognize the Petitioner as the exclusive
bargaining representative of employees of the Employer until the
Petitioner has been certified by the Board in an appropriate. unit.
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Employer, within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
We find, in accord with the agreement of the parties, that all in-
dustrial and ordinary insurance agents working under the supervision
of district offices located within the State of Ohio, but excluding
cashiers, and all other office and clerical employees, executives, super-
visors of agents, district managers, field superintendents, and all or
any other supervisory employees with authority to hire, promote, dis-
charge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of em-
ployees, or effectively recommend such action, constitute a unit appro-
priate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning
of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We shall direct that the question concerning representation which
has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot, subject to the
limitations and additions set forth in the Direction.
The Employer requests that the election be conducted by mail. The
Petitioner prefers a manual ballot at the district offices where agents
report daily. Inasmuch as the Regional Director is authorized to con-
duct elections in such manner as he deems advisable and expedient
under the circumstances presented, we shall leave the determination
of the method to be employed in the conduct of the instant election to
the Regional Director's discretion 2
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with Kentucky Central Life and
Accident Insurance Company, Anchorage, Kentucky, an election by
2 See Matter of Young Patrol Service, 69 N L. R. B 1376
550 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
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 Eighth Region,
acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board,
and subject to Sections 203.55 and 203.56, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 4, among the employees in the
unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who were employed dur-
ing the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direc-
tion, including employees who did not work during said pay-roll period
because they were ill or on vacation or temporarily laid off, and in-
eluding employees in the armed forces of the United States who
present themselves in person at the polls, but excluding those em-
ployees who have since quit or been discharged for cause and have not
been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the election, to deter-
mine whether or not they desire to be represented by Industrial and
Ordinary Insurance Agents Union Local No. 23390 (AFL), and
Industrial and Ordinary Insurance Agents Council (AFL), for the
purposes of collective bargaining.