Willys Overland Motors, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 3, 1938

10 N.L.R.B. 160 (N.L.R.B. 1938)

In the Matter of WILLYS OVERLAND MOTORS, INC. and INTERNATIONAL
UNION, UNITED AUTOMOBILE WORKERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL No. 12
Case No. R-809
SECOND AMENDMENT TO DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
December 3, 1938
On November 17, 1938, the National Labor Relations Board, herein
called the Board, issued a Decision, Certification of Representatives,
and Direction of Elections 1 in the above-entitled proceeding. The
Direction provided that elections should be conducted "within fifteen
(15) days from the date of this Direction." On November 30, 1938,
the Board issued an Amendment to Direction of Elections,2 provid-
ing that the election be held "at such time as the Board may here-
after direct."
The Board hereby amends the Direction of Elections, as amended,
by striking therefrom the words "at such time as the Board may
hereafter direct," wherever they appear, and substituting therefor the
words "within fifteen (15) days from December 2, 1938."
10 N. L. R. B., No. 12.
[ SAME TITLE]
AMENDMENT TO DECISION
SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION
AND
CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 18, 1939
On November 17, 1938, the National Labor Relations Board, herein
called the Board, issued a Decision, Certification of Representatives,
and Direction of Elections in the above-entitled proceeding. On
November 30, 1938, the Board issued an Amendment to Direction of
Elections, and on December 3, 1938, a second Amendment to Direction
of Elections. In its Decision the Board certified the International
Association of Machinists, Local No. 105, as the exclusive representa-
19 N L. R B. 924.
2 9 N. L. R. B. 937.
160
DECISIONS AND ORDERS ` - 161
tive for the purposes of collective bargaining of the die sinkers of
Willys Overland Motors, Inc., Toledo, Ohio, herein called the
Company.
In its Decision the Board found that all employees of the Company
at Toledo, Ohio, including foremen, assistant foremen, foreladies,
factory clerical employees, plant protection employees, timekeepers,
time checkers, pay-roll clerks, draftsmen, designers, engineers, and
employees in the experimental and research building, but excluding
department heads, division superintendents, general foremen, time-
study employees, paymasters, assistant paymasters, safety engineers,
the private secretary of the personnel manager, and the die sinkers
in department 109, may properly constitute a unit appropriate for
the purposes of collective bargaining which would insure to employees'
of the Company the full benefit of their right to self-organization and
to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the
Act. The Board also indicated that maintenance mechanics and
maintenance machinists and clerical employees in the Administration
Building might either be included or excluded from this unit, depend-
ing upon the results of the elections, to be discussed below, that the
Board directed.
On November 25, 1938, the Company filed with the Board an ap-
plication to modify the Decision, Certification of Representatives,
and Direction of Elections, and requested that either a further hear-
ing be held or that it be permitted to submit written arguments in
support of the application. Thereafter the Board granted the parties
permission to file briefs dealing with the issues raised by the applica-
tion, and the Company and International Union, United Automobile
Workers of America, Local No. 12, herein called the U. A._ W., sub-
mitted briefs which have been duly considered.
Issues Raised by the Application of the Company -
The Company in its application contends that certain other em-
ployees should be excluded from the industrial unit claimed by the
U. A. W., in addition to the categories of employees excluded there-
from in our Decision. The U. A. W. opposes the contentions of the
Company. _
1. Budget clerks. The budget clerks of the Company, two in num-
ber, do essentially the same type of work-as the time-study employees
whom we have excluded from the unit. It is their duty to determine
factory costs and to. allocate to each department the amount which
can be spent in the various phases of production. They are profes-
sional employees and are required to have technical training. We
agree with the contentions of the Company as to these employees, and
they will, therefore, be excluded from the unit.
162 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
2. Private secretaries of the works manager, head of labor rela-
tions commzittee, and head of time-study department. The Com-
pany contends that the various private secretaries in the plant should
be excluded from the unit. With this contention we agree. In our
Decision we excluded the private secretary of the personnel manager.
There are three other confidential private secretaries in the plant
whom we will likewise exclude. These are the private secretaries
of the works manager, the head of the labor relations committee, and
the head of the time-study department.
3. Foremen, assistant foremen, and foreladies. We are not per-
suaded by the arguments of the Company that it is inappropriate to
include these employees within the unit claimed by the U. A. W. The
foremen, assistant foremen, and foreladies are eligible to the U. A. W.,
and the record discloses that most of them are members. Despite the
fact that these employees exercise minor supervisory powers, under
the circumstances of this case we believe that they may properly be
included within the bargaining unit, particularly since the only labor
organization involved with the question desires their inclusion.4
4. Timekeepers, time checkers, and pay-roll clerks. These em-
ployees, as we stated in our Decision, "are engaged in the mechanical
task of computing the hours worked, the wages earned, and the draw-
ing of pay checks for most of the Company's employees." The
U. A. W. has in the past bargained for them. We do not believe
that the nature of the work performed by these employees is suf-
ficiently different from that of the other factory clerks, whom we
have included, to warrant splitting off these employees from the
industrial unit. We shall, therefore, include them.
- 5. Engineers, draftsmen, designers, and employees in the experi-
mental and research building. The Company employs a number of
engineers, draftsmen, and designers, some of whom are located in the
experimental and research building and some in the tool design de-
partment. These professional employees are all eligible for mem-
bership in the Society of Designing Engineers, herein called the
S. D. E., a labor organization affiliated with the Federation of Archi-
tects, Engineers, Chemists, and Technicians; through this latter or-
ganization, the S. D. E. is affiliated with the Congress of Industrial
Organizations. While the record does not show the number of mem-
bers the S. D. E. has at the Company's plant, a representative of the
S. D. E. testified that the S. D. E. members desire to bargain through
the U. A. W. Although it is true that the professional employees
might be certified as a separate unit if a majority so desired, in the
absence of such a showing we are not convinced that it would be il-
's Matter of Shell Petroleum Corporation and Oil Workers International Union, Local
No. 567, 9 N. L. R. B. 831. _
DECISIONS AND ORDERS 163
logical under the circumstances of this case to include these employees
in the industrial unit.
There are a number of other employees, skilled and unskilled, in the
experimental and research building whom the U. A. W. desires to
include within the unit. We believe that these employees have a
sufficient community of interest with the other employees within
the industrial unit to warrant their inclusion.
We accordingly amend our Decision with respect to the unit
claimed by the U. A. W. and we find that all employees of the
Company at Toledo, Ohio, including foremen, assistant foremen, f ore-
ladies, factory clerical employees, plant protection employees, time-
keepers, time checkers, pay-roll clerks, draftsmen, designers, engi-
neers, and employees in the experimental and research building, but
excluding department heads, division superintendents, general fore-
men, time-study employees, budget clerks, paymasters, assistant pay-
masters, safety engineers, the private secretaries of the personnel
manager, the works manager, the head of the labor relations com-
mittee, and the head of the time-study department, and the die
sinkers in department 109, may properly constitute a unit appropriate
for the purposes of collective bargaining which would insure to em-
ployees of the Company the full benefit of their right to self-organ-
ization and collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies
of the Act. As indicated below, maintenance mechanics and main-
tenance machinists, and clerical employees in the Administration
Building will also be excluded from the unit.
The Conduct of the Elections
In its Decision the Board made no final determination as to the
appropriate units for the purposes of collective bargaining with the'
Company, except with respect to the die sinkers in department 109.
The U. A. W. had contended that all employees of the Company,
including clerical employees, but with certain exceptions, constituted
a single appropriate unit. Mechanics Educational Society of Amer-
ica, Local No. 4, herein called the M. E. S. A., contended that certain
maintenance mechanics and maintenance machinists in six depart-
ments constituted a separate appropriate unit. Although not up-
holding the contentions of the M. E. S. A. that a departmental unit
would be proper, the Board directed that an election be held among
all the maintenance mechanics and maintenance machinists, includ-
ing all such employees in departments 110, 364, 365, 367, 368, and
370,- but excluding production and experimental mechanics and ma-
chinists, plumbers, and electricians to determine whether they wish
to be, represented by the M. E. S. A. or the U. A. W. The Board
stated: "If'these employees choose the M. E. S. A., they will be a sep-
164 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
arate and distinct appropriate unit. If they choose the U. A. W.,
they will be merged into the Company-wide industrial unit." Simi-
larly, an election was directed among the clerical employees in the
Administration Building, these employees to be included within the
industrial unit if a majority chose the U. A. W. Otherwise they
were to be excluded from this unit.
Pursuant to the Direction of Elections, as amended, described
above, elections by secret ballot were conducted on December 7, 1938,
under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the
Eighth Region (Cleveland, Ohio). On December 8, 1938, the -Re-
gional Director, acting pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended,
issued and duly served upon the parties an Intermediate Report on
the elections. No objections or exceptions to the Intermediate Re-
port have been filed by any of the parties.
As to the, balloting among the maintenance mechanics and main-
tenance machinists, including 'all such employees in departments 110,
364, 365, 367, 368, and 370, but excluding production and experimental
mechanics and machinists, plumbers, and electricians, the Regional
Director reported'as follows:
Total number of employees eligible_______________________________ 103
Total number of ballots cast____________________________________ 100
Total number of votes for the Mechanics Educational Society of
America, Local No. 4------------------------------------------ 96
Total number of votes for the International Union, United Auto-
mobile Workers of America, Local No. 12---------------------- 4
Total number of blank ballots___________________________________ 0
Total number of void ballots ____________________________________ 0
Total number of challenged votes________________________________ 0
As to the balloting among the clerical employees in the Adminis-
tration Building, excluding supervisory officials, the Regional Di-
rector reported as follows :
Total number of employees eligible_____________________________ 104
Total number of ballots cast____________________________________ 99
Total number of votes for the International Union, United Auto-
mobile Workers of America, Local No. 12______________________ 3
Total number of votes against the International Union, United
Automobile Workers of America, Local No. 12__________________ 96
Total number of blank ballots___________________________________ 0
Total number of void ballots____________________________________ 0
Total number of challenged votes________________________________ 0
It therefore appears that the maintenance mechanics and main-
tenance machinists, including all such employees in departments 110,
364, 365, 367, 368, and 370, but excluding production and experi-
mental mechanics and machinists, plumbers, and electricians, coI'isti-
tute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining,
DECISIONS AND ORDERS 165
and that the M. E. S. A. has been designated and selected by a
majority of said unit as their representative for the purposes of
collective bargaining, and we will so find.
In our Decision, the parties stipulated, and we found, that the
U. A. W. had as members a substantial majority of all the employees
of the Company eligible to its membership, but we withheld certi-
fication from the U. A. W. pending the elections and the final deter-
mination of the units. The elections reveal that, in addition to the
maintenance mechanics and maintenance machinists, the clerical em-
ployees in the Administration Building should be excluded from the
industrial unit for which the U. A. W. has been designated and
selected as bargaining representative. We will certify the U. A. W.
as the exclusive representative of the industrial unit which we find
appropriate.
Upon the basis of the entire record, the Board makes the following
SUPPLEMENTAL FINDINGS OF FACT
We find that all employees of the Company at Toledo, Ohio, in-
eluding foremen, assistant foremen, foreladies, factory clerical
employees, plant protection employees, timekeepers, time checkers,
pay-roll clerks, draftsmen, designers, engineers, and employees in
the experimental and research building, but excluding department
heads, division superintendents, general foremen, time-study em-
ployees, budget clerks, paymasters, assistant paymasters, safety engi-
neers, the private secretaries of the personnel manager, the works
manager, the head of the labor relations committee,- and the head of
the time-study department, the die sinkers, the maintenance me-
chanics and maintenance machinists, and the clerical employees in
the Administration Building, constitute a unit appropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining and that said unit will insure to
employees of the Company the full benefit of their right to self-
organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the
policies of the Act.
We find that the U. A. W. has been designated and selected by a
majority of the above-described unit as their representative for the
purposes of collective bargaining. It is, therefore, the exclusive rep-
resentative of all employees in such unit for the purposes of collective
bargaining, and we will so certify.
We find that the maintenance mechanics and maintenance machin-
ists of the Company at Toledo, Ohio, including all such employees
in departments 110, 364, 365, 367, 368, and 370, but excluding pro-
duction and experimental mechanics and machinists, plumbers, and
electricians constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collec-
tive bargaining and that said unit will insure to employees of` the
147841-39-vol. 10-12
166 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Company the full benefit of their right to self-organization and to
collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act.
Upon the basis of the above findings of fact, the Amendment to
Decision, and upon the entire record in the proceeding, the Board
makes the following :
SUPPLEMENTAL CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. All employees of the Company at Toledo, Ohio, including fore-
men, assistant foremen, foreladies, factory clerical employees, plant
protection employees, timekeepers, time checkers, pay-roll clerks,
draftsmen, designers, engineers, and employees in the experimental
and research building, but excluding department heads, division super-
intendents, general foremen, time-study employees, budget clerks,
paymasters, assistant paymasters, safety engineers, the private secre-
taries of the personnel manager, the works manager, the head of the
labor relations conunittee, and the head of the time-study department,
the die sinkers, the maintenance mechanics and maintenance ma-
chinists, and the clerical employees in the Administration Building
constitute a unit for collective bargaining, within the meaning of
Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act.
2. International Union, United Automobile Workers of America,
Local No. 12, is the exclusive representative of all the employees in
such unit for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning
of Section 9 (a) of the National Labor Relations Act.
3. The maintenance mechanics and maintenance machinists of the
Company at Toledo, Ohio, including all such employees in depart-
ments 110, 364, 365, 367, 368, and 370, but excluding production and
experimental mechanics and machinists, plumbers, and electricians
constitute a unit for collective bargaining within the meaning of Sec-
tion 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act.
CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
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, Sections 8 and 9,
of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1,,
as amended,
IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that International Union, United Automo-
bile Workers of America, Local No. 12, has been designated and
selected by a majority of all employees of Willys Overland Motors,
Inc., Toledo, Ohio, including foremen, assistant foremen, foreladies,
factory clerical employees, plant protection employees, timekeepers,
time checkers, pay-roll clerks, draftsmen, designers, engineers, and
DECISIONS AND ORDERS 167
employees in the experimental and research building, but excluding
department heads, division superintendents, general foremen, time-
study employees, budget clerks, paymasters, assistant paymasters,
safety engineers, the private secretaries of the personnel manager,
the works manager, the head of the labor relations committee, and
the head of the time-study department, the die sinkers, the main-
tenance mechanics and maintenance machinists, and the clerical em-
ployees in the Administration Building, as their representative for
the purposes of collective bargaining and that, pursuant to the provi-
sions of Section 9 (a) of the Act, International Union, United Auto-
mobile Workers of America, Local No. 12, is the exclusive representa-
tive 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.
IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that Mechanics Educational Society of
America, Local No. 4, has been designated and selected by a majority
of the maintenance mechanics and maintenance machinists of Willys
Overland Motors, Inc., Toledo, Ohio, including all such employees in
departments 110, 364, 365, 367, 368, and 370, but excluding production
and experimental mechanics and machinists, plumbers, and electri-
cians , as their representative for the purposes of collective bargain-
ing and that, pursuant to the provisions of Section 9 (a) of the Act,
Mechanics Educational Society of America, Local No. 4, is the exclu-
sive representative of all such employees for the purposes of collec-
tive bargaining in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employ-
ment, and other conditions of employment.
10 N. L. R. B., No. 12a.