United States Gypsum Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jul 5, 1949

85 N.L.R.B. 9 (N.L.R.B. 1949)

In the Matter of UNITED STATES Gypsum COMPANY,' EMPLOYER and'
CEMENT, LIME AND GYPSUM WORKERS INTERNATIONAL UNION, AFL,.
PETITIONER
Case No. 4-RC-407.-Decided July 5, 1949
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing in this case was held, before•
John H. Wood, Jr., 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.
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 [Members Houston, Reynolds,.
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 is a, labor organization claiming to represent 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) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The appropriate unit :
The Petitioner seeks a unit consisting of all production and mainte-
nance.workers excluding office and clerical employees, watchmen, pro-
fessional employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act. The
Employer contends that the machine man, kiln man, head take-off
man, take-off inspector, and car checkers, all of whom are employed
in the board plant, the block maker, the packing department car-
checker, and testers should be excluded from the unit.
1 The names of the Employer and the Petitioner appear as amended at the hearing..
85 N. L. R. B., No. 4.
9,
10 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
JiIachvne men, kiln men, head take-off men: A board machine, sev-
eral stories high and 600 feet long, is used in the Employer's operations
for the manufacture of gypsum board. The machine men, kiln men,
and head take-off men are each in charge of a section of this machine
under the general supervision of the shift foreman. Each has a crew
of men. working with him which he directs and coordinates. The
machine men are stationed at the mixer end of the machine and are
responsible for maintaining the proper proportions in the materials
used. The kiln man lights, handles, and controls the three large fur-
naces that cover the three zones of kiln and is responsible for proper
drying of the board. The head take-off man is stationed at the end
of the machine where the dried'board is taken from the kiln. All
of these employees, while admittedly not foremen, exercise their own
discretion and judgment and are individually responsible for the
product. The record shows that in each case they have the power to
make effective recommendations as to changes in status of employees
under their supervision and that they responsibly direct the work
of subordinates. Accordingly, we shall exclude these employees from
the unit hereinafter found appropriate 2
Take-off inspectors: The Employer has two employees in the clas-
sification of take-off inspectors. Their duties are to see that the quality
of the board'that goes into boxcars for shipment is according to posted
specifications and quality. Their decisions are subject to change by
the shift foreman and the superintendent. While the take-off inspec-
tor can reject defective products and remove them from shipment we
have held previously that this authority to reject work does not,
alone, constitute supervisory managerial authority. We find the take-
off inspectors are not supervisory employees and we shall include them
in the unit .3
Tester: There are 9 testers at the Employer's plant classified in
4 different grades. They spend 75 percent of their time in the labo-
ratory and are under the separate supervision of the quality super-
visor. Although we do not agree with the Employer's contention that
these employees are confidential employees, in view of the technical
nature of their work, their separate supervision and working quarters
and our previous decisions regarding testers in other plants of the
Employer, we shall exclude these employees from the unit .4
Block maker: The Employer has two employees in the classifica-
tion of block maker, a position comparable to that of. machine man.
2 See Matter of United States Gypsum Company, 79 N. L. R. B. 194. •
8 See -Matter of United States Gypsum Company , 78 N. L. It. B. 849 ; Matter of Luminous
Processes , Inc., 71 N . L. It. B. 405.
4 Matter of United States Gypsum Company, 80 N. L. It. B. 779 ; 79 N. L. It. B. 1059 ;
79 N. L . It. B. 530.
UNITED STATES GYPSUM COMPANY 11
The block maker directs the manufacture of plaster block and is
responsible for its quality. He is in immediate charge of a crew of'
men and spends the greater part of his time in direct supervision. The
record shows that he can make effective recommendations as to changes
in status of subordinate employees and that he has authority to settle
minor grievances. In view of his authority and responsible direction
of work done by other employees, we find that the block maker is a
supervisor within the meaning of the Act and we shall exclude him
from the unit.
Car checkers: There are three. car checkers, all responsible to the
board loading foreman, who are in charge of crane men and loaders.
The car checker directs the loading and unloading of railroad cars
and trucks, doing no manual work, but seeing that the cars are pre-
pared to receive the shipments and that the loading orders issued by
the loading foremen are carried out. In the absence of loading fore-
man, during one shift, the car checker has authority to discipline em-
ployees under his supervision and also, on certain occasions, make
recommendations for discharge. The car checkers are on a higher
pay rate than the loaders. Upon the entire record we find that these
employees possess supervisory authority and we shall exclude the car
checkers from the unit.'
Packing department car checker: One car checker is assigned to
the packing department where he spends half of his time in clerical
work and the remainder in manual labor, receiving materials and
inventory. He is under the supervision of the packing superintend-
ent. The Employer contends that this employee should be excluded
as a clerical employee. Although he is regarded as being in line for
a foreman's position, he admittedly has no supervisory authority in
his present position. In accord with our customary policy regarding
factory clerical positions and as we find that the interests, working
conditions, and economic benefits of the packing department car
checker are substantially the same as those of the production and
maintenance employees, we shall include him in the unit.'
We find that all production and maintenance. employees of the
Employer at its Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, gypsum plant, including
the take-off inspectors and the packing department car checker but
excluding office and clerical employees, watchmen, professional em-
ployees, testers, machine men, kiln men, head take-off men, car check-
Matter of United States Gypsum Company, 79 N. L. R. B. 869.
See Matter of General Plywood Corporation, 79 N. L. R. B. 1458, and cases cited therein.
12 DECISIONS. OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
,ers, block makers, and all supervisors? as defined in the Act consti-
tute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining
within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION 8
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with the Employer, an election by
.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 deter-
mine whether or not they desire to be represented for purposes of
collective bargaining, by Cement, Lime and Gypsum Workers Inter-
national Union, AFL.
' The parties , at the hearing agreed that the office manager, chief clerk, cost and pay-roll
clerk , cost clerk, switchboard operator , stenographer , order billing service supervisors , billing
clerk, board plant clerk , order clerk , storeroom clerk, and first aid employees should be
excluded as office and clerical employees . It was also agreed that the plant engineer , general
:maintenance foreman, and chief electrician , in the maintenance department ; the superin-
tendent, general foreman , shift foreman, board maintenance foreman, board loading foreman-
.and grain board foreman in the board department ; the superintendent , general foreman, mill
shift foreman , mill maintenance foreman , chief mill man, general block foreman , block shift
:foreman, rock unloading foreman, in the mill and block plant ; the quality supervisor , labora-
tory foreman , in the quality laboratory ; the superintendent and shift foreman in the packing
department ; and the personnel manager should all be excluded from the unit as supervisors.
The watchman in the personnel department was also excluded by the parties.
I In accordance with the request of the Petitioner, the name of the International Union
.alone will be placed on the ballot . The Employer ' s contention that the petition should be
dismissed because a chartered local of the Petitioner is in existence is denied inasmuch as the
.local is now in compliance with Section 9 (f), (g), and (h) of the amended Act. See Matter
'of Lane Wells Company, 79 N. L. R. B. 252. .