Carrier Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jan 23, 1943

46 N.L.R.B. 1319 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

In the Matter of CARRIER CORPORATION and UNITED ELECTRICAL, RADIO
MACHINE WORKERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL #313 and CARRIER EM=
PLOYEES ASSOCIATION
Case No. R-4721.-Decided January 03, 1943
Jurisdiction : air-conditioning and refrigerating equipment manufacturing
industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence' of question :
refusal to bargain because of existing contract ; contract which had run a
year and was terminable upon 30 days' notice held no bar although no notice
of termination was given ; election necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production and maintenance
employees, including group leaders but excluding supervisory employees,
-timekeepers, time-study men, guards, nurses, salaried engineers, draftsmen,
research workers, and cafeteria, clerical, and confidential employees.
Messrs. Hancock, Dorr, Ryan ce-Shove, by Mr. Carl E. Dorr and Mr.
Stewart F. Hancock, all of Syracuse, N. Y., and Messrs. Putney,
Twombly and Hall, by Mr. Frederic S. Sanborn, all of New York City,
for the Company.
Mr. Donald P. Gorman, of Syracuse, N. Y., for C. E. A.
Messrs. Sidney H. Greenberg, Jack Davis; and Willard Bliss, all of
S_ yracuse, N. Y., for the C. I. O.
Mr. Glenn L. Moller, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by Local #313, United Electrical, Radio
& Machine Workers of America, C. I. 0., herein called the C: I. 0.,
alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning
the representation of employees of Carrier Corporation, Syracuse,
New York, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations
Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before
Francis V. Cole, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at Syra-'
cuse, New York, on December 23 and 29, 1942. The Company, the
C. I. 0., and Carrier Employees Association, herein called the C. E.
A., appeared, participated, and were afforded full opportunity to be
46 N. L. R. B., ,No. 161. -
1319
1320 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evi-
dence bearing on the issues. The American Federation of Labor was.
duly served with notice of said hearing and,appeared, but then with-
drew, disclaiming any interest in the matter. The Trial Examiner's
rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are
hereby affirmed.
'Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Carrier Corporation is a Delaware corporation, authorized 'to do
business in the State of New York, engaged in the manufacture of
air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment in Syracuse, New York.
From January 1, 1942, to November 30, 1942, the Company used raw,
materials of the approximate value of $12,000,000, of which approxi-
mately 65 percent came from points outside the State of New York;
during the same period its finished products were valued at approxi-
mately $11,000;000, of which approximately 80 percent .was shipped
.to points outside the.State of New York.
,The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
11
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
Local- 313, United Electrical, -Radio & Machine Workers of Amer-
ica, affiliated with the Congress` of Industrial Organizations, is a
labor organization admitting to membership 'employees of the
Company.
Carrier Employees Association is an unaffiliated labor organization
admitting to membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
In June-,1942; the C.' I. O. requested recognition of the Company,
but the Company refused to extend; recognition upon the .ground that
it had a, contract with the C. E. A.• covering the employees in ques-
tion. This contract is dated December 13, 1941' and provides that,it
shall be automatically renewed annually, subject to, termination after
December 13, 19,42,.upon 30 days' written notice of'either party. No
'notice of termination has been given. Since the contract is, now
terminable upon 30 days' notice, it is not a, bar to a present determi-
nation. of representatives.
A statement of the Regional, Director, introduced into evidence,
indicates that the C. I. O. and the C. E. A. each represents; a sub-
A
'CARRIER ''CORPORATION 1321
stantial ' number, of employees in, the unit "hereinafter found
appropriate.'
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV.' THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The only dispute as to the appropriate unit relates to cafeteria
employees and group leaders , both of which groups the C. I. 0.
would exclude , and the Company and the C. E. A. would include.
The evidence indicates that there are about 13 cafeteria employees,
,none of whom belongs to either union, although the C . K A. has
always assumed that . theY were included in the baigaining unit cov-
ered by its : contract . The C. E. A.'s contract with the, Company
purports to cover all production and maintenance employees in the
plant and sets out ,.job classifications and wage scales in detail, but
makes no mention of cafeteria employees. A few cafeteria employees
have, at their own request , been transferred to ,production work, 'but
there has been no transfer' from production to cafeteria work. Since
neither union has . organized them and since they appear not to have
been covered by the. contract , we shall exclude the cafeteria employees
from the unit.
Group leaders , of whom there are about :100, are so • designated .by
their foremen ,or by. the superintendent: They, receive a 10-percent
increase in pay after they have been group . leaders for more than 2
weeks. Each - goup . works on , a group piece -wofk : plan- and. the
group leader shares in 'the bonus of his group . " The group leaders
are responsible for insuringahat their groups produce to'the'best of
their" 'ability. There I is no evidence that '.they" have- disciplinary
authority or authority to hire. The groups vary in size from 5 to
more than , 20. The leaders determine for themselves what propor-
tion of their time they shall spend in supervision of their groups
and what proportion in manual labor ..- The Company does not' con-
sider group leaders to be supervisory employees or ' part of manage-
ment. They are included in the contract between C. 'E. A. ' and .the
Company. It appears that group leaders belong to both organiza-
tions. Under these circumstances, we find that ' the group leaders
are not "supervisory employees" and, we shall , therefore , include them
in the unit. -
The Regional Director reported that the'C I. 0 submitted 620 membership cards, 420
s f which bore the apparently genuine signatures of employees listed on the Company's
November 21, 1942, pay roll. The C E A submitted 734 membership cards, 630 of which
bore apparently genuine signatures of employees on the same pay roll. There are approxi-
mately 1,200 employees in the appropriate unit.
1322 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
We find that all production and maintenance employee's of the
Company at its plant in Syracuse, New York, including group lead-
ers but excluding supervisory employees, timekeepers, time-study men,
guards, nurses, salaried engineers, draftsmen, research workers, and
cafeteria, clerical, and confidential employees, constitute a unit ap-
propriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the mean-
ing of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We shall direct that the question concerning representation which
has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em-
ployees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-,
roll period immediately preceding.the date of the Direction of Elec-
tion herein, 'subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the
Direction.
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 Rela-
tions Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National. Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is
hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to. ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Carrier Corpora-
tion, Syracuse, New York, 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 Third Region, acting in this matter
as agent for the' National Labor Relations Board, and subject to
Article III, Section 10, of said Rules and Regulations, among the
employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding
the date of this Direction ,•'including any such employees who did not
work during said pay-roll period because they were ill,or on vacation
or temporarily laid off, and including employees in the armed forces
of the United States who present themselves in person at the polls,
but excluding any who have since quit or been discharged for cause,
to determine whether they desire, to be represented by Local #313,
United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, affiliated
with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by the Carrier
Employees Association, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or
by.neither.