Royal Blue Granite Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board DecisionsSep 23, 1941

35 N.L.R.B. 685 (N.L.R.B. 1941)

In the Matter of C. COMOLLI AND T. A: MCGAHEY, A PARTNERSHIP D/B/A ROYAL BLUE GRANITE COMPANY and UNITED STONE AND ALLIED PRODUCTS WORKERS OF AMERICA Case No. R-09.30.-Decided September 23, 1941 Jurisdiction : granite quarrying industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question : re- fusal of Company to accord union recognition until it is certified by the Board ; election necessary. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em- ployees employed in and about the Company's quarries, classified as plug drillers, derrick men, blacksmith helpers, channel-bar operators, jack-hammer drill operators, blasters, gang-saw helpers, blacksmiths, pneumatic-drill oper- ators, head ledge men, water boys, and common laborers, but excluding super- visory and clerical employees ; stipulation as to Mr. Raymonde Stapleton, of Elberton, Ga., for the Company. Mr. Homer L. Pike, of Atlanta, Ga., for the Union. Mr. Armin Uhler, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On July, 18, 23, and 30, 1941, respectively, United Stone and Allied Products Workers of America,-herein called the Union, filed a peti- tion- aild amended petitions with the Regional Director for the Tenth Region (Atlanta, Georgia), alleging that a question affect- ing commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of C. Comolli and T. A. McGahey, a partnership doing business as Royal Blue Granite Company,' of Elbert County, Georgia, 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 4, 'On the original petition the Company was erroneously designated as Comolli Granite Company ; on the first amended petition the name of the Company was again erroneously designated as Royal Blue Gianite Quarries; on the second amended petition the Company as properly designated as a paitnership, but the name of one of the partners was given as T. C. McGahey, whose correct name is T A McGahey. A motion to make a corre- sponding correction on all papers peitaining to the proceeding was made at the hearing and is hereby granted. 35 N. L. R. B., No. 149. 685 686 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD 1941, 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 Relations Board Rule-, 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. On August 19, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hear- ing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the Union. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on August 27, 1941, at Elberton, Georgia, before Alexander E. Wilson, Jr., the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company was represented by counsel and the Union by an official representative; both participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine, witnesses, and to intro- duce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded all parties. No objections to the rulings of the Trial Examiner were made by any of the parties. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT I. THE BUSINESS OF rHE COMPANY Royal Blue Granite Company is a partnership doing business in Elbert County, Georgia, and is composed of C. Comolli, of Elberton, Georgia, and T. A. McGahey, of Columbus, Mississippi. The Com- pany is engaged in the business of quarrying granite. It sells the granite, under contract, to C. Comolli Granite Company, a Georgia corporation, which in turn ships the granite to customers in various States of the United States. The Company quarries annually ap- proximately 24,000 cubic feet of granite, valued at approximately $15,000. In the conduct of its business the Company purchases coal, steel, shot, powder, dynamite, oil, and other supplies outside the State of Georgia, which are shipped to it by rail and truck carriers. The materials so purchased annually amount in value to approximately $4,000. The Company employs approximately 15 employees in its business. II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED United Stone and Allied Products Workers of America is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the Company. C. COMOLLI & T. A. McGAHEY ET AL. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION 687 Sometime prior to July 18, 1941, the Union addressed a letter to the Company requesting a conference for the purpose of entering upon bargaining negotiations. The Coml.any did not reply to this letter, and on July 18, 1941, a representative of the Union called upon the Company and was then informed that the Company would not recognize the Union's representation claims unless and until the Union should be designated by the Board as the statutory representa- tive of the Company's employees. According to a statement of the Trial Examiner made at the hearing, the Union represents a sub- stantial number of the employees in the snit hereinafter found to be appropriate.2 We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company. IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON COMMERCE We find that the question concerning representation which has arisen, occurring in connection with the operations of the Company described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial relation to trade, traffic; and commerce among the several States and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The parties stipulated, and we find, that all production and main- tenance employees employed in and about the Company 's quarries, classified as plug drillers, derrick men, blacksmith helpers, channel- bar operators, jack-hammer drill operators, blasters, gang-saw help- ers, blacksmiths, pneumatic-drill operators, head ledge men, water boys, and common laborers, but excluding supervisory and clerical employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. We find further that said unit will insure to employees of the Company the full benefit of their right to self-organization and to collective bargaining and will otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES We find that the question which has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of the Company can best be resolved by an 2 The Trial Examiner 's statement is based upon certain evidence consisting of 17 mem- bership cards submitted to him by the Union . Of these cards , 10 bear apparently genuine original signatures of employees of the Company whose names appear on the Company's pay roll for August 22 , 1941 , showing a total of 13 employees. 688 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD election by secret ballot. We shall direct that those eligible to vote in the election shall be the employees within the appropriate unit who were employed by the Company during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of our Direction of Election, subject to such limi- tations and additions as are set forth in the Direction. Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of C. Comolli and T. A. McGahey, a partner- ship doing business as Royal Blue Granite Company, Elbert County, Georgia, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. All production and maintenance employees employed in and about the Company's quarries, classified as plug drillers, derrick men, blacksmith helpers, channel-bar operators, jack-hammer drill oper- ators, blasters, gang-saw helpers, blacksmiths, pneumatic-drill oper- ators, head ledge men, water boys, and common laborers, but exclud- ing supervisory and clerical employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Sec- tion 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act. DIRECTION OF ELECTION By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with C. Comolli and T. A. McGahey, a partnership doing business as Royal Blue Granite Company, Elbert County, Georgia, an election by 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 Tenth Region, act- ing in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board and subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among all production and maintenance employees employed in and about the quarries of the Company, classified as plug drillers, der- rick men, blacksmith helpers, channel-bar operators, jack-hammer drill operators, blasters, gang-saw helpers, blacksmiths, pneumatic- drill operators, head ledge men, water boys, and common laborers, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the C. COMOLLI & T. A. McGAHEY ET AL. 689 date of this Direction, including employees who did not work during said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military service or training of the United States, or tempo- rarily laid off, but excluding supervisory and clerical employees, and employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to deter- mine whether or not they desire to be represented by United Stone and Allied Products Workers of America, affiliated with the Con- gress of Industrial Organizations, for the purposes of collective bargaining.