Elastic Stop Nut Corp. of America

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 20, 1943

52 N.L.R.B. 760 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

In the Matter of ELASTIC STOP Nur CORPORATION OF AMERICA and
CORNHUSKER LODGE No. 1604, INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF
MACHINISTS
Case No. R-5884.-Decided September 20, 1943
Mr. Charles E. Whittaker, of Kansas City, Mo., for the Company.
Mr. Lee Chapman, of Lincoln, Nebr., for the Union.
Mr. Louis Cokin, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by Cornhusker Lodge No. 1604 , Inter-
national Association of Machinists , herein called the Union , alleging
that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of Elastic Stop Nut Corporation of America,
Lincoln, Nebraska , herein called the Company , the National Labor
Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice
before Eugene R. Melson , Trial Examiner . The Company and the
Union appeared at and participated in the hearing. ' All parties
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 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
Elastic Stop Nut Corporation of America is a New Jersey corpo-
ration operating a plant at Lincoln, Nebraska, where it is engaged in
the manufacture of metal self-locking screw locks and kindred
'Although Employees Benevolent Association Union and Lincoln Union workers were
served with notice of hearing, they did not appear.
52 N. L. It B., No. 132.
760
ELASTIC STOP NUT CORPORATION OF AMERICA 761
products. Approximately 90 percent of all raw materials used at
the Lincoln plant is shipped to it from points outside the State of
Nebraska. The Company manufactures products at its Lincoln
plant valued in excess of $500,000 annually, approximately 90 percent
of which is shipped to points outside the State of Nebraska. The
.Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning
of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
Cornhusker Lodge No. 1604, International Association of Ma-
chinists, is a labor organization, admitting to membership employees
of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On May 8, 1943, the Union requested the Company to recognize it
as exclusive collective bargaining representative of the employees
at the Lincoln plant. The Company refused this request until such
time as the Union is certified by the Board.
A statement of a Field Examiner of the Board, introduced into
evidence at the hearing, indicates that the Union represents a sub-
stantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found to be
appropriate 2
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 urges that all production and maintenance employees
at the Lincoln plant of the Company, excluding office employees,
cafeteria employees; watchmen, guards, supervisory and managerial
employees, and process, time-study, tool-designing, plant lay-out,
products, and drafting engineers, constitute an appropriate unit.
The only controversy with respect to the unit concerns timekeepers,
weighmen's clerks, group leaders, and set-up men. The Union would
include all such employees in the unit, while the Company would
exclude them.
The parties agree to exclude 12 timekeepers who check time cards.
The Company, in addition, has 21 timekeepers who keep records of
"machine down-time." These timekeepers are paid a weekly salary,
are carried on the accounting department pay roll, and-are under the
I The Field Examiner reported that the Union presented 585 membership application
cards bearing apparently genuine signatures of persons whose names appear on the
Company's pay roll of July 4, 1943. There are approximately 1,150 employees in the
appropriate unit.
762 DECISIONS OF NAfrTO AL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
supervision of a chief timekeeper. The record indicates that their
work is dissimilar to that.of the production and maintenance em-
ployees and that they are more closely allied to the timekeepers, who
are admittedly excluded from the unit. Under the circumstances, we
shall exclude all timekeepers from the unit.
The Company has 13 employees classified by it as weighman's clerks.
These employees are paid on an hourly rate and record the weights
of the Company's finished products as called out by the weighmen.
The weighmen are admittedly in the unit. Inasmuch as the duties
of the weighmen's clerks are closely allied with those of the weighmen
and the production and maintenance employees, we shall include them
in the unit.
The Company employs 30 group leaders, each of whom has from 5
to 15 employees under him. They receive from 5 to 20 cents per hour
more than their subordinates, and have the authority to recommend
the hire, promotion, discipline, and discharge of the employees under
them. We find that the group leaders are supervisory employees,
and as such we shall exclude them from the unit.
The Company employs approximately 113 set-up men, each of
whom is in charge of a battery of about 10 machines. The set-up
men are responsible for the machinery and tools and are charged
with the duty of reporting any deficiency in production. They
occasionally report deficiencies in the,ability of the operators. Upon
the whole record, however, we are convinced that they are not vested
with and customarily do not exercise supervisory authority. We find
that set-up men should be included in the unit.
We find that all production and maintenance employees at the
Lincoln plant of the Company, including weighmen's clerks and set-up
men, but excluding office employees, cafeteria employees, watchmen,
guards, managerial employees, process, time-study, tool designing,
plant lay-out, products,-and drafting engineers, all timekeepers, group
leaders, and any other supervisory employees with authority to hire,
promote, discipline, discharge, or otherwise effect changes in the status
of employees, or effectively 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 find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen can best be resolved by means of an election by secret ballot.
The Union requests that the pay roll as of the date of the hearing
be used to determine eligibility to vote. Inasmuch as no reason ap-
pears as to why we should depart from our usual practice, we shall
ELASTIC STOP NUT CORPORATION OF AMERICA 763
direct that the employees eligible to vote shall be those within the
appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period
immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein,
subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction.
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 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2 as amended, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Elastic Stop Nut
Corporation of America, Lincoln, Nebraska, an election by secret bal-
lot 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 Seventeenth Region, act-
ing in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board,
and subject to Article III, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regu-
lations, among the employees in the unit found appropriate in Sec-
tion IV, above, who were employed during the pay-roll period imme-
diately 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 temporarily laid off, and including employees in the armed
forces of the United States who present themselves in person at the
polls, but excluding any who have since quit or been discharged for
cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by
Cornhusker Lodge No. 1604, International Association of Machinists,
for the purposes of collective bargaining.
CHAIRMAN MuLIs took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision and Direction of Election.