Franklin Dekleine Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 30, 1949

84 N.L.R.B. 948 (N.L.R.B. 1949)

In the Matter of FRANKLIN DEKLEINE COMPANY, EMPLOYER and
AMALGAMATED LITHOGRAPHERS OF AMERICA, C. I. 0.1
Case No. 7-RC-295.Decided June 30, 1949
DECISION
- AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before Francis E.
Burger, hearing officer of the National Labor Relations Board. The
hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial
error and are hereby affirmed 2
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the National Labor
Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with
this case to a three-member panel [Chairman Herzog and Members
Houston and Murdock].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the National Labor Relations Act.
2. The Petitioner and the Intervenor, International Printing Press-
men and Assistants Union of North America, A. F. I,., are labor organ-
izations claiming to represent employees of the Employer.
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employer, within the meaning of Section
9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The appropriate unit :
The Employer's printing plant consists of four principal depart-
ments: The Bindery Department,-the Letter Press Department, the
Letter Press Composition Department, and the Lithographic Pro-
duction Department. The Employer and the Petitioner stipulated at
the hearing that the unit sought by the Petitioner, composed of all
Lithographic Production employees, excluding working foremen and
all other employees of the Employer, was appropriate for the purposes
of collective bargaining. The Intervenor objected to the appropriate-
I The name of the Petitioner appears as amended at the hearing.
R The Intervenor , International Printing Pressmen and Assistants Union of North
America, A. F. L., moved at the hearing to dismiss the petition herein on the ground that
the unit sought is inappropriate . For the reasons set forth below, this motion is denied.
84 N. L. R. B , No. 103.
948
FRANKLIN DEKLEINE COMPANY 949
ness of the stipulated unit, contending that a unit consisting-of Letter.
Press and Lithographic Production employees was appropriate.
Each of the Employer's departments operates under separate super-
vision. No employees are transferred between the Lithographic Pro-,
duction Department and the other departments of the plant. There
is little relationship or coordination between the work of the various
departments. With the exception of the Lithographic Production
Department, all departments are currently covered by contracts with
different labor organizations, and separate grievance procedures have
been established under the contracts for each of these departments.
We have previously held that employees of the lithographic depart-
ments of plants similar to that of the Employer may constitute an
appropriate units Accordingly, we find that all the Lithographic
Production Department employees at the Employer's Lansing, Mich-;
igan, plant, excluding working foremen and all other employees of,
the Employer, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collec-
tive bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
The same division of functions, supervision, and employee repre-
sentation exists between employees of the Lithographic Production
and Letter Press Departments as exists between employees of the
Lithographic and other departments. The employees in the Litho-
graphic Production Department were represented from 1943 to 1947
by Local 479 of the Intervenor. Although the contract between the
Employer and Local 479 expired on October 1, 1947, the parties are at
present operating in accordance with the provisions thereof. Local
12 of the Intervenor represents the employees of the Letter Press
Department, and has done so by separate contract since 1943.4 It
appears that the Intervenor wishes to add the employees of the Litho-
graphic Production Department of the unit of Letter Press employees,
already represented by Local 12. The facts set forth above, however,
provide no basis for establishing a unit consisting of these two of the
Employer's four departments. Accordingly, we find that the unit
sought by the Intervenor is inappropriate.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION 5
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with the Employer, an election by
8 Matter of Albert Love Enterprises , 66 N. L. R. B. 416 ; See Matter of Beurmann- Marshall,
Inc., 84 N . L. R. B. 951.
4 Until 1943 , Local 12 had represented both the Letter Press and the Lithographic Depart-
ments. Local 479 was formed at the time because the Lithographers were dissatisfied with
the joint representation.
8 Any participant in the election directed herein may , upon its prompt request to, and
approval thereof by , the Regional Director have its name removed from the ballot.
950 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later than
30 days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and super-
vision of the Regional Director for the Region in which this case was
heard, and subject to Sections 203.61 and 203.62 of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 5, as amended, among
the employees in the unit found appropriate in paragraph numbered
4, above, who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately
preceding the date of this Direction of Election, including employees
who did not work during said pay-roll period because they were ill
or on vacation or temporarily laid off, but excluding 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, and also exclud-
ing employees on strike who are not entitled to reinstatement, to de-
termine whether or not they desire to be represented, for purposes of
collective bargaining, by Amalgamated Lithographers of America,-
C. I. 0., or by International Printing Pressmen and Assistant Union
of North America, A. F. L., or by neither.
i