Malden Electric Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 27, 1951

96 N.L.R.B. 517 (N.L.R.B. 1951)

MALDEN ELECTRIC COMPANY 517
originated outside, the Commonwealth. During the same period, the
Employer's sales aggregated $462,523.28, all of which were made
locally. '
Although the Employer's operations are not unrelated to commerce,
the interstate aspects of these operations are not of sufficient magni-
tude to, justify the assertion of jurisdiction under the Board's recently
announced jurisdictional policy.' Therefore, despite the desire of the
Employer and the Union that the Board assert jurisdiction, we shall
dismiss the petition.
Order
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition filed herein be, and it hereby
is, dismissed.
' Dorn's House of Miracles , Inc., 91 NLRB 632: Federal Dairy Co ., Inc., 91 NLRB 638 ;
The Rutledge Paper Products Company, 91 NLRB 625.
Among the products sold by the Employer are those manufactured by Frigidaire Division,
General Motors Corporation , which is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act.
The Employer sells these products under a nonexclusive franchise agreement which it
has signed with a wholesaler of Frigidaire products . During 1950 , the value of labor
and parts furnished by the Employer for the repair of Frigidaire products amounted to
approximately $51,000 -A share of the parts and labor furnished was on account of a
1-year manufacturer ' s guarantee The Employer receives a predetermined allowance
from Frigidaire for servicing the guarantee. But the Employer was unable to state what
part of the repair work was done for the manufacturer under the guarantee and what
part on account of appliance owners . Although the hearing officer said that he would
keep the record open for the receipt of additional information as to the breakdown of
repair services between those rendered under sales warranties and otherwise , the Employer
has not availed itself of this opportunity and has not furnished this information. Under
such circumstances , the Board has not considered possible services rendered to Frigidaire
in making its jurisdictional calculations . Cf., D. L Dineen Sales & Service, Corporation,
91 NLRB 1222 . The Frigidaire franchise agreement for the sale of household appliances
does not of itself warrant the Board in asserting jurisdiction . Cf. Lamco Electric, 92
NLRB 191 ; The D. L. Dineen Sales & Service Corporation, supra.
MALDEN ELECTRIC COMPANY AND MALDEN AND MELROSE GAS LIGHT
COMPANY and INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORK-
ERS, AFL, PETITIONER. Case No. 1-RC-?310. September 27, 1951
Decision and Direction of Election
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National Labor
Relations Act, a hearing was held before Torbert H. MacDonald, hear-
ing 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 Act, the Board
has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member
panel [Chairman Herzog and Members Houston and Reynolds].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the
Act.
96 NLRB No. 72.
974176-52-vol. 96--34
518 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
2. The labor organizations involved claim to represent certain em-
ployees 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 Petitioner seeks a single unit of office and clerical employees of
both the Electric and Gas Companies. The Intervenor contends that
only separate units of all employees of each Company are appropriate.
The Employer agrees with the Petitioner's unit contention.
Both the Electric Company and the Gas Company are subsidiaries
of the New England Electric System and are operated as a single
entity under the same management. There is a single office and cler-
ical staff servicing both Companies. It consists of 131' employees
divided into the following 5 departments : 102 in commercial, 6 in
plant accounting, 8 in maps and records, 4 in outside collection, and 11
in stores. The commercial department does the customer accounting
and billing, sending out both electric and gas bills. The exact func-
tions of the other 4 smaller departments are not set forth in the record,
but apparently they also do office and clerical work for both Com-
panies. The employees in each department have a single supervisor,
and perform office and clerical work indiscriminately for both Com-
panies. The amount of work performed for each Company depends
entirely on the daily workload for that Company, and varies from day
to day. Despite these circumstances, the Intervenor urges that only
separate company units are appropriate because the employees are
carried on separate payrolls and because the sale of the Gas Company
is in prospect. However, the mere bookkeeping separation of em-
ployees and the eventuality that the Gas Company may be sold by
the New England Electric System at some unpredictable future date,
do not warrant separation of the office and clerical personnel, who work
interchangeably for both Companies. As the office and clerical em-
ployees constitute an integrated group serving-both Companies in
common, we find that the Electric Company and the Gas Company
comprise a single employer of these employees within the meaning of
I The Intervenor, District 50, United Mine Workers of America, contends that its cur-
rent contract , made on behalf of its Local 12007 , is a bar to this proceeding. The contract
contains clearly invalid union-security provisions . However , the Intervenor urges that these
provisions have been effectively deferred by a "saving clause" and an arbitration provision.
The "saving clause" provides that the union-security provisions should be "subject to
Federal Law and to a final decision of a court of last resort ." In an earlier proceeding
involving the present labor organizations and the Electric Company ( Case No. 1-RC-2196,
etc., not reported in printed volumes of Board decisions ), we found without merit the
same contention with respect to this identical "saving clause ." See 0. F. Shearer & Sons,
93 NLRB 1228, and cases cited therein. Further, although the contract provides that a
request for discharge under the union-security provisions is subject to arbitration, the
illegality of these provisions is not litigated nor is their application effectively deferred
thereby. Accordingly, we find that the contract is not a bar.
WALTER G. BRIX, INC. 519
Section 2 (2) of the Act,2 and that these office and clerical employees,
apart from other employees, constitute an appropriate unit.3
Accordingly, we find that all office and clerical employees of Malden
Electric Company and Malden and Melrose Gas Light Company,
Malden, Massachusetts, in the commercial department, plant account-
ing department, maps and records department, outside collection de-
partment, and stores department, but excluding meter readers, produc-
tion and maintenance employees, watchmen, guards, professional
,employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act, constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the mean-
ing of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this
volume.]
2 See Florida Jafra Steel Co., et al., 94 NLRB 386 ; Sellers Manufacturing Company,
Inc., 93 NLRB 202; Proximity Manufacturing Company, 66 NLRB 1190.
'Mack Motor Truck Company , 94 NLRB 719 ; Minneapolis -Moline Company, 85 NLRB
597.
WALTER G. BRIx, INC .' and INTERNATIONAL WOODWORKERS OF AMERICA,
CIO , PETITIONER . Case No. 20-RC-1370. September 27, 1951
Decision and Direction of Election
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National
Labor Relations Act, a hearing was held before Nathan R. Berke,
hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are
free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.2
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is a corporation organized under the laws of
the State of Washington and licensed to do business in California.
,On March 24, 1950, the Employer acquired a tract of timber at Brice-
land, California, and in the early part of 1951 there began full pro-
.duction in both logging and sawmill operations. The Employer
maintains no active operations outside the State of California.3
i The name of the Employer appears as amended at the hearing.
2 The Employer moves to dismiss the petition upon the ground that it does not conform
to the Board's Rules and Regulations because it does not state that the Petitioner requested
recognition as bargaining agent of the employees involved and that the Employer refused
such recognition. As the Employer at the hearing refused to recognize the Petitioner
as bargaining agent of its employees, we find no merit in this contention. See Grocers'
Biscuit Company, Inc., 85 NLRB 602. We conclude that neither Section 9 (c) of the Act,
section 102.53, subsection 7, of the Board's Rules and Regulations, nor section 3 of the
Administrative Procedure Act requires dismissal of the petition.
8 The Employer formerly operated a logging business in the State of Washington. Since
April 1951, the Employer has not been in active operation in Washington, but has main-
tained a part-time office to expedite the dissolution of the operation in that State. At
present the activity in Washington is basically an effort to sell real estate and logging
equipment. There are no employees connected with this activity ; personnel consists of
the Employer' s president and general manager who spends 1 week of each month at this
-office.
96 NLRB No. 74.