The Singer Manufacturing Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 4, 1943

53 N.L.R.B. 1124 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

In the Matter of THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY and UNITED
ELECTRICAL, RADI9 & MACHINE WORKERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL #401,
AFFILIATED WITH THE CONGRESS OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS
Case No. 2-B-4261.-Decided December 4,1943
Winthrop, Stimson, Putman f Roberts, by Mr. Arthur E. Pettit,
of New York City, for the Company.
Mr. Samuel L. Rothbard, of Newark, N. J., for the Union.
Mr. David V. Easton, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon a petition duly filed by United Electrical, Radio & Machine
Workers of America, Local #401, affiliated with the Congress of
Industrial Organizations, herein called the Union, alleging that a
question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation
of employees of The Singer Manufacturing Company, Elizabethport,
New Jersey, herein called the Company, the National Labor Re1ations
Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before
Vincent M. Rotolo, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at
Elizabeth, New Jersey, on November 1, 1943. The Company and the
Union appeared, participated, and were afforded full opportunity
to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce
evidence bearing on the issues. The Trial Examiner's rulings made
at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
All parties were afforded an opportunity to file briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following:.
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The Singer Manufacturing Company, a New Jersey corporation,
operates and maintains factories, warehouses, and branch offices in
various States of the United States. In the course and conduct of
53 N. L. R. B., No. 207.
1124
THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY 1125
its business it maintains a factory located at Elizabethport, New
Jersey, with which we are concerned herein. The Elizabethport
plant of the Company is normally engaged in the manufacture of
sewing machines, but at the present time is engaged in war produc-
tion. During the past 12 months the Company purchased for use at
its Elizabethport plant raw materials valued in excess of $1,000,000,
all of which were obtained from points outside the State of New
Jersey. During the same period the Company manufactured finished
products valued in excess of $1,000,000, which were shipped to points
outside the State of New Jersey. The Company admits that it is
engaged in commerce within the meaning of the National Labor Re-
lations Act.
H. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, Local
#401, is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Indus-
trial Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the
Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On or about September 17, 1943, the Union requested recognition
from the Company as the exclusive bargaining representative of its
production and 'maintenance employees. The Company replied to
this request on or about September 22, 1943, refusing to grant such
recognition until the Union received certification by the Board.
A statement of the Regional Director, introduced into evidence at
the hearing, indicates that the Union represents a substantial num-
ber of employees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate.,
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company, within the mean-
ing of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union seeks to represent a unit comprised of all production
and maintenance employees of the Company, excluding foremen and
assistant foremen, head or supervisory inspectors, all clerical em-
ployees (including pay-roll, stock clerks, timekeepers, office employ-
ees, stock chasers, order fillers, and multigraph operators), guards and
watchmen, technicians (including engineers, draftsmen, experimental
technicians, laboratory technicians, and laboratory helpers, photostat
'The Regional Director reported that the Union submitted 3068 authorization cards,
of which 2027 were checked against a pay roll of the Company dated October 2, 1943,
containing the names of 5185 employees in the unit sought by the petitioner . The result of
this check indicated that all of the cards bore apparently genuine and original signatures
and contained the names of persons appearing upon the afore -mentioned pay roll
1126 ]DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
operators and assistants), head set-up men, pin boys (recreation),
working foremen, gang and group leaders, cafeteria employees (ex-
cluding cooks, waitresses, kitchenmen, bus boys, etc.), matrons, printers
and pressmen, countermen and counter girls, garage attendants, garage
helpers, mechanics, and drivers. The Company agrees generally with
the foregoing inclusions and exclusions but contends that counter em-
ployees, kitchen employees, garage employees, matrons, and printing
department employees, should be included within the unit and that
apprentices should be.excluded therefrom.
Counter employees and kitchen employees: The Company em-
ploys approximately 12 persons engaged either as lunch counter or
kitchen employees. These persons prepare and serve food for con-
sumption by the production employees. They are supervised by a
manager who has charge of all kitchen and food service employees.
Although these employees are carried on the same pay roll as the
production employees, they have no connection with production work,
and the Union has not attempted to organize them because their in-
terests are dissimilar to those of the production and maintenance em-
ployees, and because they are eligible for membership in another labor
organization. The record indicates that the Union has no represen-
tation among such employees. We are of the opinion and find that
the interests of these employees are not sufficiently aligned to those
of production and maintenance workers; Nye shall exclude them from
the unit.2
Garage employees: The Company employs approximately 12 per-
sons engaged either as passenger auto drivers, truck and trailer
drivers, or garage mechanics and helpers, whom the Union would ex-
clude from the unit. The passenger auto drivers and certain of the
mechanics are under the supervision of one of the assistant superin-
tendents; the truck and trailer drivers and the mechanics who work
upon said trucks and trailers are under the supervision of the shipping
department manager. None of these are in direct contact with pro-
duction and maintenance workers with the possible exception of the
truck and trailer drivers who take merchandise to and from the ship-
ping department. The Union contends that the interests of these em-
ployees are not similar to those of production and maintenance
employees, and that they are eligible for membership in another labor
organization. For this reason, it has'not attempted to organize any
of these workers and has no representation among them. We are of
the opinion that these employees have interests sufficiently unlike those
of the production and maintenance employees to warrant their exclu-
3 Matter of General Motors Corporation , Oldsmobile Division, 45 N. L. R. B. 11.
THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY 1127
sion from a unit of such employees. Accordingly, we shall exclude
them .3 1
Matrons: The Company employs approximately 21 persons engaged
as matrons , whose main function is to take care of the women's dress-
ing rooms located in the main production building of the Company.
Two of these employees are paid upon a weekly basis; the balance
are paid by the hour. Each of them is carried on the pay roll of
the department in which the dressing room is located, ,and is under
the supervision of the manager of that department. The Union
seeks to exclude these employees on the ground that they inform
the department manager of various infractions of the rules taking
place in the dressing room. However, the Union admits porters to
membership who perform similar functions and who also might be
required to report rule infractions taking place in the men's wash
rooms. In the absence of any specific prohibition against the admis-
sion of these employees to membership, we are of the opinion that
the matrons should be treated in the same manner as the porters and,
like them, should be included within the industrial unit. We shall,
therefore, include them.4
Printing department: The Company employs approximately 17
persons in its printing department who are classified as pressmen,
proofreaders, compositors, monotype operators, printing pressfeeders,
or offset platemakers. Several of these employees are apparently
members of a craft labor organization which accepts for membership
only those persons engaged in the printing trades. For this reason
the Union has not attempted to organize these employees, and desires
their exclusion from the industrial unit. We are of the opinion that
the interests of such employees are dissimilar from those of the pro-
duction and maintenance workers, and we shall, therefore, exclude
them from the industrial unit .5
Apprentices: The Company would exclude from the unit approxi-
mately 29 apprentices, whereas the Union would include them. These
employees work in the factory, are hourly paid, and are under the
supervision and direction of the department heads of the respective
departments in which they are apprenticed. These employees are
required to devote 8000 hours to machine tool and bench work in the
3 Matter of Central Maine Power Company, 45 N L. R B 328 ( garage employees ex-
cluded ) ; Matter of Hillside Fluorspar Mines, 45 N L R. B 295 ( truck drivers excluded)
Matter of Tampa Florida Brewery, Inc., 42 N L. R . B. 642 (garage mechanics excluded)
Matter of DeLaval Separator Company, 42 N. L R. B 1267 ( chauffeurs excluded).
*Matter of International Shoe Company , 14 N. L R. B. 1140; Matter of Selby Shoe Com-
pany, 15 N L R B 489.
5Matter of DeLaval Separator Company, supra ; Matter of The Yale d Towne Manufac-
turing Company, 44 N. L R B 1259.
1128 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
factory and must attend the Singer Evening School where they receive
special instruction as tool makers, die makers, pattern makers, or
machinists. Upon completion of the required hours of work in the
factory and the course given at the Company's school, they become
journeymen and are given positions in, the tool making, die making,
pattern making, and machine shop departments of the Company.
During their apprenticeship they receive varying rates of pay in ac-
cordance with the length of service and experience acquired. Since
these employees perform regular jobs in the production departments
of the Company at the end of their apprenticeship period, and since
they are continuously under the supervision and discipline of regular
production and maintenance supervisors during their training period,
we are of the opinion that their interests are closely aligned to those
of -the regular production and maintenance workers. Under these
circumstances we shall include them within the unite
In accordance with the foregoing, we find that all production and
maintenance employees of the Company, including apprentices and
matrons, but excluding foremen and assistant foremen, head and
supervisory inspectors, clerical employees (including pay-roll clerks,
stock clerks, timekeepers, office employees, stock chasers, order fillers,
multigraph operators), guards and watchmen, technicians (including
engineers, draftsmen, experimental technicians, laboratory techni-
cians, and laboratory helpers, photostat operators and assistants),
head set-up men, pin boys (recreation), working foremen, gang and
group leaders, kitchen and counter employees (including cooks, wait-
resses, kitchenmen, bus boys, countermen and counter girls, printing
department employees (including printing pressmen, proofreaders,
compositors, monotype operators, printing pressfeeders, and offset
platemakers), garage employees (including passenger car drivers,
truck and trailer drivers, mechanics and helpers), and all super-
visory employees with authority to hire, promote, discharge, disci-
pline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, or effec-
tively recommend such action, constitute a unit appropriate 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 among the em-
ployees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-
roll period immediately preceding the date of the, Direction of Elec-
tion herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the
Direction.
I Matter of Bell d Howell Company, 49 N 1, It. B: 42.
THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY 1129
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, and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain represen-
tatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with The Singer
Manufacturing Company, an election by secret ballot shall be con-
ducted 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 Second Region, acting in this matter as
agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to Article
III, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regulations, among the
employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the
date of this Direction, including employees who did not work during
said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or tempo-
rarily laid off, and including employees in the armed forces of the
United States who present themselves in person at the polls, but ex-
cluding those employees who have since quit or been discharged for
cause, and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of
the election, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented
by United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, Local
#401, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, for
the purposes of collective bargaining.