Monroe Packing Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 18, 1941

32 N.L.R.B. 816 (N.L.R.B. 1941)

In the Matter Of MONROE PACKING' COMPANY and LOCAL UNION No.
138, UNITED PACKINGHOUSE WORKERS OF AMERICA OF PACKINGHOUSE
WORKERS ORGANIZING COMMITTEE, AFFILIATED WITH THE CONGRESS
OF INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS
Case No. R--2583.-Decided 'June 18,'1941
Jurisdiction : meat products manufacturing industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re-
fusal to accord recognition to either of rival labor organizations until one
or the other is certified by the Board ; election necessary. •
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em-
ployees, excluding truck drivers, demonstrators, and supervisory and clerical
employees.
Mr. C. V. Ridgely and Mr. Joseph F. Stanek, of Gary, Ind., for
the Company.
Mr. John J. Brownlee and Mr. William Mooney, of Chicago, Ill.,
for the C. I. O.
Mr. Albert M. Block, of Gary, Ind., Mr. Lewis Grant and Mr. Peter
Sasak, of Hammond, Ind., for the A. F. of L.
Mr. Norman M. Neel, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On April 26, 1941, Local Union No. 138, United Packinghouse
Workers of America of Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee,
affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, herein called
the C. I. 0., filed with the Regional Director for the Thirteenth
Region (Chicago, Illinois) a petition alleging that a question affect-
ing commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees
of Monroe Packing Company, Gary, Indiana, herein called the
Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of rep-
resentatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela-
tions Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On May 9, 1941, the
National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pur-
32 N. L. R. B., No. 140.
816
MONROE PACKING COMPANY 817
suant to Section 9 (c) of the Act and Article III, Section 3, of
National Labor Relations Board Rules and, Regulations-Series 2,
as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional
Director to conduct it' and' to provide for 'an appropriate hearing
upon due notice.
On May 13, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing,
copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the C. I. 0.,
and Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of 'North
America, Local 'No.' 350, affiliated with the American Federation of
Labor, herein called the A. F. of L., a labor organization claiming
to represent employees directly affected by the investigation. 'Pur-
suant to notice, a hearing was held on May 22, 1941, at Gary,'Indiana,
before Jack G. Evans, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the
Chief Trial Examiner . The Company, the C. I. 0., and the A. F.
of L. were represented by counsel or by representatives and partici-
pated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and
cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the
issues was afforded all parties. During the course of the hearing
the Trial Examiner made several rulings on motions and on, objec-
tions to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the
rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors
were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Monroe Packing Company is an Indiana corporation with its
offices and plant at Gary, Indiana. It is engaged in the manufacture
and processing of lunch meats and sausages. It purchases, all its
raw materials, approximating $320,000 per annum in value, from
places outside the State of, Indiana. Its sales for the last quarter
of 1940 amounted to $106,000, of which 65 per cent were made outside
the State of Indiana.
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
Local. Union No. 138, United Packinghouse Workers of America
of Packinghouse Workers Organizing Committee, is a labor organi-
zation affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations. It
admits to membership employees of the Company.
Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of North ADfer-
ica, Local No. 350, is a labor organization affiliated with the Ameri-
can Federation of Labor. It admits to membership employees of
the Company.
818 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On or about March 19, 1941, the A. F. of L. requested the Company
to recognize it as the exclusive bargaining agent for the Company's
employees. The Company granted such recognition in writing to
the A. F. of L., it being orally' agreed that the continuance of
recognition would be conditioned upon the A. F. of L.'s establishing
its majority status. On or about April 25, 1941, the C. I. O.
requested recognition of the Company, at which time the Company
withdrew recognition from the A. F. of L. and refused to recognize
either organization until one or the other was certified by the Board.
At the hearing there was introduced in evidence a statement of
the Regional Director which shows that the C. I. O. and the A. F.
of L. each represents a substantial number of employees of the
Company.,
We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation
of employees of the Company. ,
IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON
COMMERCE
We find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen, occurring in connection with the operations of the Company
described in Section I, above, has a close, intimate, and substantial
relation to trade, traffic, and commerce among the several States
and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing
commerce and the free flow of commerce.
V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The parties agreed that all production and maintenance employees,
including Evelyn Struignitz , but excluding the truck drivers and
supervisory and clerical employees , should comprise the appropriate
unit . The A. F. of L . contends , however, that demonstrators should
1 The statement of the Regional Director indicates that there were 37 persons on the
Company's April 18, 1941 , pay roll within the alleged appropriate unit. The C. I O.
submitted 32 authorization and acceptance of membership cards, 31 of which were dated
April 21, 1941 , and 1 being undated . Thirty of the cards bore apparently genuine, original
signatures , of which 25 were the names of persons on the Company 's April 18, 1941, pay roll.
Two cards bore the printed names of persons whose names appeared on said pay roll.
The A. F of L . submitted petitions dated April 22, 1941, purporting to authorize that
organization to represent the signatories thereto. The petitions contained 15 apparently
genuine, original signatures , 10 of which were the names of persons on the Company's
April 18, 1941, pay roll. In addition , the A. F. of L. submitted one application for mem-
bership card dated April 22 and three such cards dated April 28, 1941, the signatures to
which were apparently genuine and original , and three of which were the names of persons
on the Company's April 18, 1941, pay roll. The A. F. of L also submitted two authorization
for representation cards, both bearing apparently genuine, original signatures , one of which
bore a name appearing on the Company 's April 18, 1941, pay roll . In the claims of
authorization of the two organizations there was a duplication of the names of 10 persons.
MONROE PACKING COMPANY 819
also be included within the unit. The C. I. 0. desires the exclusion
of demonstrators. The record discloses that production workers
engaged in processing lunch meats and sausages perform the opera-
tions of smoking, cooking, chopping, stuffing, linking, tying, inspect-
ing, and packing. The products are then warehoused within the
plant itself until delivery to local meat dealers or elsewhere by the
truck drivers.
There are presently about five demonstrators (although the num-
ber varies between 2 and 15) engaged in acquainting retail dealers
and the public with the Company's products by displaying and
demonstrating them behind meat counters.. They are paid by the
day, do not work in the Company's plant, and have no seniority in
the plant. Their employment is apparently intermittent, and their
work is in no way similar to that of production and maintenance
employees. Under the circumstances, we are of the opinion that
demonstrators should be excluded from the appropriate. unit.
. We find that all production and maintenance employees of the
Company, including Evelyn Struignitz, but excluding truck drivers,
demonstrators, and supervisory and clerical employees, constitute
a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining and
that said unit will insure to the 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.
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question concerning representation can best be
resolved by an election by secret ballot . We shall direct that all
employees in the appropriate unit whose names appear on the Com-
pany's pay roll for the period immediately preceding our Direction
of Election , subject to such limitations and additions as are set forth
in the Direction , shall be eligible to vote.
Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire
record in the case , the Board makes the following:
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre-
sentation of employees of Monroe Packing Company, Gary, Indiana,
within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of
the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All production and maintenance employees of the Company,
including Evelyn Struignitz, but excluding truck drivers, demon-
strators, and supervisory and clerical employees, constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the
meaning of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act.
448692-42-vol. 32-53
820 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
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 8, of National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended,
it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation ordered by the Board
to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining
with Monroe Packing Company, Gary, Indiana, an election by secret
ballot 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 Thirteenth Region,
acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations
Board, and subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regu-
lations, among all production and maintenance employees of the
Company, including Evelyn Struignitz, who were employed by the
Company during the pay-roll period next 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 in the
active military service or training of the United States, or tempo-
rarily laid off, but excluding truck drivers, demonstrators, and
supervisory and clerical employees, and all persons who have since
quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire
to be represented by Local Union No. 138, United Packinghouse
Workers of America of Packinghouse Workers Organizing Commit-
tee, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by
Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of North Amer-
ica, Local No. 350, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor,
for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither.