Pillsbury Flour Mills Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Oct 17, 1930

27 N.L.R.B. 938 (N.L.R.B. 1930)

In the Matter of PILLSBURY FLOUR MILLS COMPANY and FLOUR, CEREAL,
FEED MILL, AND GRAIN ELEVATOR WORKERS, FEDERAL LABOR UNION
19252, AFFILIATED WITH THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF LABOR
Case No. R-2032.-Decided October 17, 1930
Jurisdiction : flour milling industry.
Practice and Procedure : petition dismissed where no appropriate unit within
scope of petition.
Mr'. Bradshaw Mintener, of Minneapolis, Minn., for the Company.
Clark d Krings, by Mr. Harry C. Clark and Mr. L. W. Krings, of
Kansas City, Mo., and Mr. Herbert S. Thatcher, of Washington, D. C.,
for the Union.
Mrs. Augusta Spaulding, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
ORDER
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On May 1, 1940, Flour, Cereal, Feed Mill, and Grain Elevator Work-
ers, Federal Labor Union 19252,1 herein called the Union, filed with
the Regional Director for the Seventeenth Region (Kansas City,
Missouri), a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had
arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Pillsbury
Flour Mills Company, Atchison, Kansas, herein called the Company,
and requesting an investigation and certification of representatives
pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat.
449, herein called the Act. On August 2, 1940, 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 Rela-
tions 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.
The petition was filed under the name of Flour, Feed and Cereal Workers Federal
Labor Union # 19252, of hated with the American Federation of Labor.
27 N. L R. B., No. 155.
938
PILLSBURY 'FLOUR MILLS 'COMPANY 939
On August 14,1940, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing,
copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the Union.2
Pursuant to notice a hearing was held on August 26, 27, 28, 29, and 30
and September 3, 4, and 5, 1940, at Atchison, Kansas. before Joseph
A. Hoskins, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. The
Company and the Union were represented by counsel and participated
in the hearing. Full-opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-
examine witnesses and to introduce evidence bearing upon 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.
On October 8, 1940, a hearing was held before the Board at Wash-
ington, D. C., for the purpose of oral argument. The Company and
the Union appeared and presented argument. Each filed a brief which
the Board has considered.
Upon the entire record in the case the Board makes the following.'
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY. r
The Company, a Delaware corporation, is engaged in the manufac-
ture of flour, feed, and other cereal products. It maintains its prin-
cipal office at Minneapolis, Minnesota, and operates mills at Buffalo,'
New York, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Springfield, Illinois, Enid, Okla-
homa, and Astoria, Oregon. In July 1940 its acquired the assets and
property of Globe Grain and Milling' Company with mills located in
California and Utah and other plants in western States. The Pills-
bury mills are controlled by the central management ,at Minneapolis;
Minnesota. Grain is shipped from one mill to another to meet
emergency, conditions.
The Atchison, Kansas, mill, which is the only plant involved in this
proceeding, is composed of a flour mill, feed mill, elevators, and ware-
houses connected by doors and bridges. Grails milled in the plant
come from Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Oklahoma, and Texas. For the
crop year ending May 31, 1940, more than 50 per cent of the manu-
factured products were shipped out of Kansas. -
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
Flour, Cereal, Feed Mill and Grain Elevator Workers, Federal Labor
Union 19252 is a labor organization affiliated with the National Council'
2 Service of notice of the hearing was also made upon W. A. Younker , district vice presi-
dent, National Council of Grain Processors . He did not appear at the hearing.
940 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
of Grain Processors and the American Federation of Labor. It admits
to membership all regular production and maintenance employees of
the Company, including elevator employees, but excluding supervisory
and office personnel, laboratory employees, buyers, and salesmen.
III. THE ALLEGED QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On December 8, 1939, the Company and the Union executed an
agreement for a consent election among all regular production and
maintenance employees, excluding supervisory and office personnel,
laboratory employees, buyers, and salesmen. The parties understood
that elevator men were included in this unit and that they would, be
eligible to participate in the election. On December 13, 1939, the con-
sent election was held among the employees in the unit hereinabove
mentioned including the elevator employees. The Union, the only
labor organization on the ballot, lost the election.
OA April 27, 1940, the' Union asked the Company to recognize it
as the exclusive representative of the employees in the unit contained
in the consent election agreement except that the proposed unit ex-
cluded elevator men. The Company informed the Union that a pro-
duction and maintenance employees' unit which excluded elevator men
was inappropriate. On May 1, 1940, the Union filed its petition for
investigation and certification alleging as the appropriate unit that
which it offered to the Company on April 27. The Company contends
that this unit is inappropriate. The Union does not claim to represent
a majority of the employees' in the broader unit desired by the Com-
pany, and it does not want an election if the Board should find
inappropriate its proposed unit.
Elevator men are eligible to membership in the Union. The Union
agreed for the consent election that the appropriate unit included
elevator men. The Union has sought and obtained plant-wide units
including elevator men at other flour mills of the Company and of
other companies. The Union solicited the membership of the elevator
men at the plant under consideration. It claimed at one time to repre-
sent a number of the elevator men. Most of the elevator men testified
that they desire to'be included in the plant unit.
The operations of the plant constitute an integrated enterprise. A
number of the elevator men work in direct contact with employees
whom the Union wishes to include in the unit. There is no greater
separation between the elevator men and other production and main-
tenance employees than there is between different categories of pro-
duction and maintenance employees to be included in the unit. Eleva-
tor men and other production and maintenance employees start at the
same minimum wage rate. The elevator men punch the same time
J
PILLSBURY FLOUR MILLS COMPANY 941
clocks as do the other production and maintenance employees. They
share the same showers and similar facilities and they use adjoining
locker rooms. Elevator men and other production and maintenance
employees work under similar conditions. The elevator men are negro
and the other production employees are white.
Upon the entire record, including the scope of the unit in the consent
election agreement, the brief lapse of time between its execution and
the filing of the Union's petition, the practice of the Union as set forth
above with respect to elevator men, the desire of most of the elevator
men as expressed-in their testimony, and the interrelationship between
the elevator men and the other production and maintenance employees,
we find that the unit requested by the Union is inappropriate. Since
the Union does not desire an election among the employees in a broad
unit which includes the elevator men, we find that no question has been
raised concerning the representation of employees of the Company.
On the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire record
in the case the Board makes the following:
CONCLUSION OF LAW
No question concerning the representation of employees of Pillsbury
Flour Mills Company in a unit appropriate for the purposes of collec-
tive bargaining has arisen, Within the meaning of Section 9 (c) of the
National Labor Relations Act.
ORDER
Upon the basis of the foregoing findings of fact and conclusion of
law the National Labor Relations Board hereby orders that, the
petition for investigation filed by Flour, Cereal, Feed Mill and Grain
Elevator Workers, Federal Labor' Union 19252, be. and it hereby is,
dismissed.