Richfield Oil Co. of California

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jul 20, 1938

8 N.L.R.B. 428 (N.L.R.B. 1938)

In the Matter of RICHFIELD OIL CO. OF CALIFORNIA and SAILORS UNION
OF THE PACIFIC
In the Matter of RICHFIELD OIL CORPORATION and PACIFIC COAST
MARINE FIREMEN , OILERS, WATERTENDERS, & WIPERS ASSOCIATION
In the Matter Of RICHFIELD OIL CO. OF CALIFORNIA and MARINE COOKS
STEWARDS ASSOCIATION OF THE PACIFIC COAST
In the Matter of RICHFIELD OIL CO. OF CALIFORNIA and PACIFIC COAST
MARINE FIREMEN , OILERS, WATERTENDERS, & WIPERS ASSOCIATION
Cases Was. R-481, R-502, R-508, and R-514, respectively
CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 20, 1938
On March 9, 1938, and March 15, 1938, the National Labor Rela-
tions Board, herein called the Board, issued Decisions and Directions
of Elections 1 in the above-entitled cases and fourteen related cases.
In so far as they dealt with the above-entitled cases, the Directions
of Elections provided that separate elections by secret ballot be held
as soon as convenient, and beginning as promptly as practicable after
the dates of the Directions, among the unlicensed deck personnel, the
unlicensed personnel of the-engine departments, and the unlicensed
personnel of the stewards' departments on all tankers operated out of
Pacific Coast ports by Richfield Oil Corporation,2 herein called the
Company, to-determine whether or not they desired to be represented
by the Sailors Union of the Pacific, the Pacific Coast Marine Fire-
men, Oilers, Watertenders, and Wipers Association, or the Marine
Cooks and Stewards Association of the Pacific Coast, respectively,
for the purposes of collective bargaining.
Pursuant to the Directions, three separate elections by secret ballot
were conducted upon each of the Company's Pacific Coast tankers.
On May 12, 1938, Alice M. Rosseter, Regional Director for the Twen-
tieth Region (San Francisco, California), acting pursuant to Article
III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regu-
lations-Series 1, as amended, issued three Intermediate Reports
15 N L. R . B. 893, includes R-481; 5 N. L. R . B. 982, includes R-502 , R-508, and
R-514
a Designated in the titles of cases R-481 , R-508, and R-514, as Richfield Oil Co of
California.
S N. L. R. B., No. 48.
428
DECISIONS AND ORDERS 429
Upon Secret Ballots, copies of which were duly served upon all
parties to the proceedings. As to the balloting and the results thereof,
the Regional Director reported as follows :
Unlicensed Deck Personnel
Number of votes for Sailors Union of the Pacific-------------- 22
Number of votes against Sailors Union of the Pacific-- -------- 14
Total ballots counted---------------------------------------- 36
Number of challenged votes---------------------------------- 2
Number of blank or void ballots ----------------------------- 0
Number eligible to vote------------------------------------- 39
Unlicensed Personnel of the Engine Departments
Number of votes for Pacific Coast Marine Firemen, Oilers,
Watertenders, & Wipers Association------------------------ 33
Number of votes against Pacific Coast Marine Firemen, Oilers,
Watertenders, & Wipers Association----------------------- 3
Total ballots counted--------------------------------------- 36
Number of challenged, blank, or void ballots------------------ 0
Number eligible to vote-------------------------------------- 33
Unlicensed Personnel of the Stewards ' Departments
Number of votes for Marine Cooks & Stewards Association of
the Pacific Coast------------------------------------------ 16
Number of votes against Marine Cooks & Stewards Association
of the Pacific Coast--------------------------------------- 7
Total ballots counted ---------------------------------------- 23
Number of challenged, blank, or void ballots----------------- 0
Number eligible to vote-------------------------------------- 24
On June 3, 1938, the Company filed Objections to the Ballots and
Intermediate Reports with the Regional Director, alleging in sub-
stance that it had been arbitrarily and unreasonably denied the right
to have observers present during the conduct of the several ballots
and that no report of the Trial Examiner, copy of the Board's find-
ings, conclusions, or proposals, or claims or proposals of the peti-
tioners or of counsel to the Board had been served upon or made
known to it prior to the issuance of the- Board's Decisions and Direc-
tions of Elections. Numerous specific objections to the Ballots and
the Intermediate Reports were predicated upon the above allegations.
The Regional Director has reported to the Board that these allega-
tions raise no substantial or material issues. The Board finds that
the refusal of the Regional Director to permit the Company to have
observers at the elections constituted no abuse of discretion and that
the other allegations raise no substantial or material issues. The
objections are, therefore, dismissed.
The Company made further allegations upon information and be-
lief to the effect that the ballots as conducted upon the S. S. Topila
430 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
and S. S. Agwiworld were not secret in that voters were required to
mark ballots in small rooms aboard ship within the presence and view
of the union observers. Additional objections to the Ballots and the
Intermediate Reports were predicated upon such allegations. The
representative of the Board who conducted the balloting on the two
ships above mentioned has reported fully concerning such balloting
and has answered specifically the allegations with respect to the lack
of secrecy in the voting. The Board is of the opinion that such
allegations are without merit. The objections based thereon are,
therefore, dismissed. -
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National
Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela-
tions Act and pursuant to Article III, Sections 8 and 9, of National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended,
IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that the Sailors Union of the Pacific, the
Pacific Coast Marine Firemen, Oilers, Watertenders, & Wipers Asso-
ciation, and the Marine Cooks & Stewards Association of the Pacific
Coast have been designated and selected, respectively, by the major-
ity of the unlicensed deck personnel, the unlicensed personnel of the
engine departments, and the unlicensed personnel of the stewards'
departments on tankers operated out of Pacific Coast ports by Rich-
field Oil Corporation, as their representatives for the purposes of col-
lective bargaining, and that, pursuant to Section 9 (a) of the National
Labor Relations Act, Sailors Union of the Pacific is the exclusive
representative of such unlicensed deck personnel; Pacific Coast Ma-
rine Firemen, Oilers, Watertenders, & Wipers Association is the ex-
clusive representative of such unlicensed personnel of the engine de-
partments; and Marine Cooks & Stewards Association of the Pacific
Coast is the exclusive representative of such unlicensed personnel of
the stewards' departments, for the purposes of collective bargaining
in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other
conditions of employment.
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