L. T. Malone

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 31, 1951

94 N.L.R.B. 1016 (N.L.R.B. 1951)

1016 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
men and guards , professional employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act,
constitute a unit appropriate for the purpose of collective bargaining within the
mean ing of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
3. Lodge 325, International Association of Machinists, was, on September 12,
1949, and at all times since has been, the exclusive representative within the
meaning of Section 9 (a) of the Act, of all employees in the aforesaid unit for
the purposes of collective bargaining.
4. By refusing to bargain collectively with Lodge 325, International Associa-
tion of Machinists, as the exclusive bargaining representative of the employees
in the appropriate unit, the Respondent has engaged in and is engaging in
unfair labor practices within the meaning of Section 8 (a) (5) of the Act.
5 By such refusal to bargain and by sponsoring a petition to revoke the
Union's authority, threatening its emplo} ees with loss of benefits, refusing to
grant vacations to its employees, and proposing a wage incentive plan, thereby
interfering with, restraining, and coercing its employees in the exercise of
rights guaranteed in Section 7 of the Act, the Respondent has engaged in and
is engaging in unfair labor practices within the meaning of Section 8 (a) (1)
of the Act.
6. The aforesaid unfair labor practices are unfair labor practices affecting
commerce, within the meaning of Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act
7. The Respondent has not engaged in unfair labor practices within the
meaning of Section 8 (a) (3) of the Act by discharging Dorothy N Lee and
D. D Sutton.
[Recommended Order omitted from publication in this cotume ]
L. T. MALONE and TRUCK DRIVERS, WAREHOUSEMEN AND HELPERS
LOCAL UNION No. 898, INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS,
CHAUFFEURS, WAREHOUSEMEN AND HELPERS OF AMERICA, AFL,
PETITIONER
JOHN HOWE and TRUCK DRIVERS, WAREI-LOUSEMEN AND HELPERS LOCAL
UNION No. 898, INTERNATIONAL BROTHERROOD OF TEAMSTERS,
CHAUFFEURS, WAREHOUSEMEN AND HELPERS OF AMERICA, AFL,
PETITIONER. Cases Nos. 21-R'C-1819 and 01-RC-1820. May 31,
1951
Decision and Direction of Elections
Upon separate petitions duly filed 1 under Section 9 (c) of the Na-
tional Labor Relations Act, separate hearings were held before Ben
Grodsky, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the
hearings are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board
has delegated its powers in connection with these cases to a three-mem-
ber panel [Members Houston, Reynolds, and Styles].
' Cases Nos 21-RC-1819 and 21-RC-1820 , consolidated before heating , were later
severed for the purposes of separate hearings The cases are again consolidated for the
purposes of decision.
94 NLRB No. 144
L. T. MALONE 1017
Upon the entire records in these cases, the Board finds :
1. The Employers are severally engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the Act.
2. The labor organization involved claims to represent certain em-
ployees of the Employers.
3. Questions affecting commerce exist concerning the representa-
tion of the employees of the Employers within the meaning of Sec-
tion 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.2
4. The Petitioner in Cases Nos. 21-RC-1819 and 21-RC-1820 con-
tends that employees of L T. Malone and John Howe, respectively,
who operate equipment used in hauling produce between the fields and
the packing sheds, including truck drivers, cull haulers, and opera-
tors of mechanical loaders, field bugs, and silver kings, but excluding
packing shed employees, agricultural field employees, and supervisors,
constitute units appropriate for bargaining purposes. Malone and
Howe contend that employees who operate their mechanical loaders,
field bugs, and silver kings in the growing fields are employed as ag-
ricultural laborers within the meaning of the Act and should be ex-
cluded from the respective units.
Malone and Howe are engaged in cultivating land and growing
and shipping lettuce and other produce in the Yuina, Arizona, area.
Employees in their harvesting operations are directly concerned in
these proceedings.
Agricultural laborers in the field cut the lettuce and other produce in
the growing fields and place it on moving mechanical loaders which,
when full, dump the produce into trailers in the fields, or place it di-
rectly into the trailers in the field.3 As the trailers are thus filled,
field bugs and silver kings haul the filled trailers to the roadside and
place empty trailers in the fields for filling. Truck drivers haul the
filled trailers from the roadside to the packing sheds, where the trail-
ers are emptied, and carry the empty trailers back to the roadside in
the harvesting areas for refilling in the fields.
We have held in earlier decisions that employees such as those who
operate mechanical loaders and drivers of field bugs and silver kings in
the growing fields 4 are employed as agricultural laborers within the
meaning of the Act, and, as such, are excluded from units found appro-
priate for bargaining purposes under the Act. We shall exclude them
in the instant cases. We have also found that truck drivers who haul
2 At the hearing in Case No 21-RC-1819, L. T. Malone, the Employer therein, took
the position that no question exists concerning the representation of his employees
because the Petitioner had made no request for recognition as bargaining representative
before the hearing This position is without merit. Oklahoma Gas and E lectric Company,
86 NLRB 437
8 At the time of the hearing Malone did not operate mechanical loaders and placed its
produce directly into the trailers
4 These are commonly called "goat drivers" in the industry.
1018 DEICISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
produce from the roadside to the packing sheds or other processing
stations are not employed as agricultural laborers and may be included
in units otherwise appropriate for bargaining .-5
We find that all truck drivers of Malone and Howe, respectively,
who are engaged in hauling vegetable produce from the roadside to the
packsheds, including cull haulers,6 but excluding all operators of me-
chanical loaders, field bugs, and silver kings, all other employees
working as agricultural laborers, packing shed employees, and super-
visors, constitute units appropriate for collective bargaining within
the meaning of the Act.
Truck drivers dividing their time between agricultural and nonagri-
cultural employment are deemed to be within the unit herein found
appropriate, and the Petitioner, if successful, is authorized to bargain
for such employees with respect to that part of their activities which
is not agricultural in nature.?
6 American Fruit Growers , Incorporated, 75 NLRB 1157 ; L. Maxey, Inc ., 78 NLRB 525,
and cases cited therein.
9 Only cull haulers employed by the respective Employers are deemed included in the
respective units.
4 L. Maxey, Inc., supra.
[Text of Director of Elections omitted from publication in this
volume.]
HUDSON PULP & PAPER CORPORATION and INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION
OF MACHINISTS , DISTRICT LODGE No. 112, PETITIONER
HUDSON PULP & PAPER CORPORATION and INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD
OF PAPER MAKERS , A. F. OF L., INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF
PULP, SULPHITE AND PAPER MILL WORKERS, A. F. OF L., AND INTER-
NATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS, A. F. OF L.,
PETITIONERS . Cases Nos . 10-RC-995,10-11C-996, 10-1C-1035, and
10-RC-1031. May 31, 1951
Decision and Direction of Elections
Upon separate petitions duly filed, a consolidated hearing was held
before James W. Mackle, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings
made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby
affirmed.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section -3 (b) of the National Labor
Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with
these cases to a three-member panel [Members Houston, Reynolds,
and Styles].
Upon the entire record in these cases, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the National Labor Relations Act.
94 NLRB No. 142.