The Ontario Knife Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Nov 4, 1937

4 N.L.R.B. 29 (N.L.R.B. 1937)

In the Matter of THE ONTARIO KNIFE COMPANY and CUTLERY
WORKERS LOCAL UNION No . 20452
Case No. R-?72.Decided November 4, 1937
Cutlery Manufacturing Industry-Investigation of Representatives: contro-
versy concerning representation of employees ; refusal by employer to meet
with non-employee representative of employees, and to grant union's request
for a "100 per cent union shop" ; substantial doubt as, to majority status-
Unet Appropriate for Collective Bargaining: production and maintenance em-
ployees ; no controversy as to-Election Ordered-Certification of Representa-
tives.
Mr. Norman F. Edmonds, for the Board.
Mr. James A. Chrestensen, of Franklinville, N. Y., for the Com-
pany.
Mr. Daniel B. Shortal, of Buffalo, N. Y., for the Union.
Miss Fannie M. Boyls, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On August 7; 1937, Cutlery Workers Local Union No. 20452, herein
called the Union, filed with the Acting Regional Director for the
Third Region (Buffalo, New York) a petition alleging that a ques-
tion affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of
employees of The Ontario Knife Company, Franklinville, New York,
herein called the Company, and-requesting the National Labor Re-
lations Board, herein called the Board, to conduct an investigation
pursuant to Section 9 (c) of National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat.
449, herein called the Act. On August 8, 1937, the Board, acting
pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act and Article III, Section 3,
of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series
1, as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional
Director to conduct it and to provide for a hearing upon due notice.
On August 21, 1937, the Acting Regional Director issued a notice
of a hearing to be held on August 26, 1937, at Franklinville, New
York. Pursuant to the notice a hearing was held on August 26, 1937,
at Frankluiville, New York, before Irving G. McCann, the Trial Ex-
29
30 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
aminer duly designated by the Board. The Board and Union were
represented by counsel, and the Company by its president, and all
parties participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to
examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bear-
ing upon the issues was afforded all parties. A motion to continue
the hearing to a later date was made by the Company and refused by
the Trial Examiner. During the course of the hearing, the Trial Ex-
aminer also made-several rulings on objections to the admission of
evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Exam-
iner upon said motion and objections 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
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The Ontario Knife Company is a corporation, organized in 1902
under the laws of the State of New York. It operates a plant at
Franklinville, New York, at which it manufactures cutlery, consist-
ing of knives, spatulas, paint scrapers, and forks.
It employs approximately 175 people. Of this number about 153
are production and maintenance employees below the grade of
foreman.
The principal raw material used by the Company in the manufac-
ture of its cutlery is steel. Most of the steel is purchased in Pennsyl-
vania, although a substantial amount is purchased within the State
of New York. It is transported to the Company's plant by rail or by
truck lines.
In the manufacture of handles for the cutlery, various types of
wood, hard rubber, bone, stag horns and composition are used. Beech
wood is purchased within the State of New York, and birch in Massa-
chusetts and New Hampshire. Other woods, such as cocobola and
rosewood, and stag horns come originally from foreign countries, but
are purchased by the Company from firms in New York City, who
buy directly from abroad, and are shipped by such firms over the
Pennsylvania Railroad lines to the Company's plant. The Pennsyl-
vania Railroad passes into the State of Pennsylvania before reaching
the Company's plant in Franklinville, New York, and consequently
all shipments from New York City to the Company over those lines
are made in interstate commerce. Hard rubber and composition
handles, already molded, rivets, and washers are purchased from
states other than New York and shipped to the Company by rail.
Abrasives of various types are purchased from all over the United
States.
DECISIONS AND 011DEIIS 31
The officers of the Company act as its 'sales agents and travel
throughout the United States in distributing its products. Although
most of its products are sold directly within the State of New York,
over 50 per cent are shipped, either directly or indirectly, outside the
State of New York to various points in the country. Some of the
products are shipped to Canada, England, and other foreign coun-
tries. In any event, a substantial portion of the Company's products
is shipped directly to places outside the State of New York. It is
customary for the Company to use either the railroads or parcel post
in delivering the goods sold.'
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
Only one Union, Cutlery Workers Local Union No. 20452, has
claimed to represent any of the employees of the Company. That
-union is a labor organization chartered by the American Federation
of Labor on March 1, 1937. It admits to membership all production
and maintenance employees of the plant except foremen and other
supervisory employees.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
Shortly after the Union was chartered, a committee chosen by it
interviewed the president of the Company concerning matters in-
cluded in a petition presented to said Company.' The testimony was
conflicting as to whether the Company was then, or thereafter, re-
-quested to recognize the Union as the exclusive representative of its
employees for the purposes of collective bargaining, except in so far
as such request was joined' with. a request for a "100 per cent Union
-shop". The latter request was refused. No evidence that the Union
represented a majority of the employees was ever asked for by the
Company.
Subsequent to the first meeting, several other meetings were held
between the Company's president and the committee. At one of
these meetings he was requested to admit to the meeting a member
of the American Federation of Labor who was not an employee of
the Company but who had been chosen by the Union as a member
of the committee. The Company's -president announced that he
would not meet with said representative nor with any other out-
sider.
We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation
of employees of the Company.
' Testimony concerning the volume of the Company ' s business and a comparison of its
size with that of other cutlery manufacturers was excluded on the objection of the Com-
pany that such disclosures would be valuable to its competitors and harmful to itself.
2 Petitioner ' s Exhibit No. 5.
32 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION OF REPRESENTATION ON COMMERCE
We find that the question' concerning representation, which has
arisen 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, between the
several States and foreign countries, and between points within the
State of New York but through the State of Pennsylvania, and
tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce
and the free flow of commerce.
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union in its petition for an investigation and certification of
representatives claimed that all production and maintenance em-
ployees of the Company's plant constituted a unit appropriate for
the purposes of collective bargaining. The Company raised no ob-
jection to this classification and introduced in evidence a pay roll
list containing the names of its production and maintenance em-
ployees as of July 31, 1937, the pay day immediately preceding the
date when the petition for an investigation was filed. We exclude
foremen and other supervisory employees in accordance with our
usual practice where no evidence is introduced to indicate that they
should be included in the unit with the production and maintenance
employees.
In order to insure to the employees of The Ontario Knife Com-
pany the full benefit of their right to self-organization and to col-
lective bargaining, and otherwise to effectuate the policies of the Act,
we find that all of the production and maintenance employees of the
Company, excluding foremen and other supervisory employees, con-
stitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining
with respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other
conditions of employment.
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATION
The Union, through its president, testified at the hearing that it
had approximately 140 members in good standing, 86 of whom had
paid their dues in full. The financial book of the Union, which was
introduced in evidence in support of such testimony, however, showed
that less than a majority of the Company's 153 employees who were
eligible for membership in the Union had paid their dues in full at
the date of the hearing and at the date of the filing by the Union of
the petition for an investigation. A bare majority of said employees
were less than three months delinquent in the payment of their dues
at the time said 'petition was filed.
DECISIONS AND ORDERS 33
The financial book of the Union, containing the names of the
alleged members of the Union, was admitted in evidence for examina-
tion by the Board and its agents only. The Company, therefore, was
given no opportunity to inspect the list of members nor cross-ex-
amine the Union's president, and only witness, in respect thereto.
We therefore find that the question which has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company can best be resolved
by the holding of an election by secret ballot. Those employees in
the appropriate unit who were on the pay roll of the Company on
July 31, 1937, the pay day immediately preceding the date when the
question concerning representation arose, shall be eligible to vote.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
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 The Ontario Knife Company, 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 by the
Company in its plant at Franklinville, New York, excluding foremen
and other supervisory employees, constitute a unit appropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Section 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 Rela-
tions Act, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of
National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1,
as amended, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as a part of the investigation ordered by the Board
to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining
with The Ontario Knife Company, Franklinville, New York, an
election by secret ballot shall be conducted within fifteen (15) days
from the date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision
of the Acting Regional Director for the Third Region, acting in this
matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board and subject
to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among the
production and maintenance employees of The Ontario Knife Com-
pany on its pay roll of July 31, 1937, excluding foremen and other
supervisory employees, and those who have since quit or been dis-
34 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
charged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be
represented by Cutlery Workers Local Union No. 20452 for the
purposes of collective bargaining.
[SAME TITLE]
CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 4, 1937
On August 7, 1937, Cutlery Workers Local Union No. 20452, herein
called the Union , filed with the Acting Regional Director for the
Third Region ( Buffalo, New York ) a petition alleging that a ques-
tion affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of
employees of The Ontario Knife Company, Franklinville, New York,
herein called the Company , and requesting an investigation and cer-
tification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National
Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On August
8, 1937, 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 Rules and Regulations-Series
1, as amended , ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional
Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing
upon due notice.
Pursuant to notice duly served upon the Company and the Union,
a hearing was held at. Franklinville, New York, on August 26, 1937,
before Irving G. McCann, the Trial Examiner duly designated by
the Board . On November 4, 1937 , the Board issued a Decision and
Direction of Election . The Direction of Election provided that an
election by secret ballot should be held among the production and
maintenance employees of The Ontario Knife Company on its pay
roll of July 31, 1937 , excluding foremen and other supervisory em-
ployees and those who had since quit or been discharged for cause,
to determine whether or not they desired to be represented by Cutlery
Workers Local Union No. 20452 for the purposes of collective bar-
gaining.
Pursuant to the Direction , balloting was conducted on November
19, 1937. Full opportunity was accorded to all the parties to this
investigation to participate in the conduct of the secret ballot and to
make challenges.
Thereafter , the Regional Director , acting pursuant to Article III,
Section 9 , of the Rules and Regulations , issued and duly served upon
the parties to the proceeding his Intermediate Report upon the secret
ballot. No exceptions to the Intermediate Report have been filed by
either of the parties.
DECISIONS AND ORDERS 35
As to the balloting and -its results, the Regional Director reported
as follows:
Total number eligible to vote__________________________________ 143
Total number of ballots cast ----------------------------------- 133
Ballots cast for Cutlery Workers Local Union No. 20452 -------- 105
Ballots cast against Cutlery Workers Local Union No 20452____ 28
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, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of
National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as
amended,
IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that Cutlery Workers Local Union No. 20452
has been designated and selected by a majority of the production
and maintenance employees of The Ontario Knife Company, Frank-
linville, New York, excluding foremen and other supervisory em-
ployees, as their representative for the purposes of collective bar-
gaining, and that, pursuant to the provisions of Section 9 (a) of the
National Labor Relations Act, Cutlery Workers Local Union No.
20452 is the exclusive representative of all such employees for the
purposes of collective bargaining in respect to rates of pay, wages,
hours of employment, and other conditions of employment.
CHAIRMAN MADDEN took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision, Direction of Election, and Certification of Representatives.