Gatke Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 17, 1944

56 N.L.R.B. 1525 (N.L.R.B. 1944)

In the ' Matter of GATKE CORPORATION and UNITED CONSTRUCTION
WORKERS, AFFILIATED WITH THE UNITED MINE WORKERS OF AMERICA
Case No . 13-R-.393.Decided June 17,1944
Messrs . Fyffe cf Clark , by Mr. John Harrington , of Chicago, ,Ill.,
for the Company.
Mr. Frank Barnhart , of Hammond , Ind., and Mr. Robert Moog, of
Warsaw, Ind., for the Union. -
Mrs. Platonia P. Kaldes, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon a petition duly filed by United Construction Workers, affil-
iated with the United Mine Workers of America, herein called the
Union, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen con-
cerning the representation of employees of Gatke Corporation, War-
saw, Indiana, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations
Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before
Robert T. Drake, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at Warsaw,
Indiana, on May 9, 1944. The Company and the Union appeared and
participated. All parties were afforded full opportunity to be heard,
to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence
bearing on the issues. The Trial Examiner's rulings made at the
hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby afflrined. All
parties were afforded an opportunity to file briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Gatke Corporation is,an Illinois corporation, having its principal
office at Chicago, Illinois, and a plant at Warsaw, Indiana. At its
Warsaw, Indiana, plant it is engaged in the manufacture of asbestos
friction products, brake linings, timing gears and non-metallic bear-
56 N. L . R. B., No. 275.
1525
1526 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
ings. Among the raw materials used by the Company are crude rub-
ber, crude asbestos, cotton cloth, asbestos cloth, and asbestos yarn.,
During the year 1943 the' Company purchased raw materials valued
at more than $50,000, and manufactured and sold products having a
value in excess -of $100,000. More than 50 percent of the materials
used by the Company is obtained from sources outside the State of
Indiana, and more than 50 percent of the products manufactured by
the Company is sold and shipped to purchasers outside the State of
Indiana. '
The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
United Construction Workers, affiliated with the United Mine
Workers of America, is a labor organization admitting to membership
employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company refuses to grant recognition to the Union as the exclu-
sive representative of certain of its employees 'until the Union has
been certified by the Board in'an appropriate unit.
A statement of a Board Field Examiner, introduced into evidence
at the hearing,' as supplemented by it statement of the Trial Examiner
made on the record, indicates that the Union represents, a substantial
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 Union requests a unit comprised of all production and mainte-
nance employees of the Company at 'its Warsaw,. Indiana, plant,
including a watchman, but excluding a shipping rbom clerk, all(office
and clerical employees, armed guards, foremen and supervisors. The
Company objects to the Union's request only insofar as': (1) it includes
the watchman; (2) excludes the shipping room clerk; and (3)_ fails,
"in view of the past history of this case," to state definitely which of
certain employees hereinafter named are to be considered as super
visory employees and thus excluded from the unit.
1 The Field Examiner reported that there are 207 employees in the alleged appropriate
unit ; that the 'Union submitted 123 application cards, 118 of which were dated in March
1944, and 5 in April 1944. The Trial Examiner stated that the Union had presented 7
additional cards, 5 of which were dated in April and May 1944, and 2 of which were
undated.
GATKE CORPORATION 1527
1. The watchman
The duties of the watchman here in question consist of night watch-
ing, punching the watchman's clock and doing janitor and mainte-
nance work:. He spends approximately 50 pe--rcent of his time-doing
janitor and maintenance work. He is not an armed guard. In view
of the latter fact and also the fact that he spends a considerable por-
tion of his time doing maintenance work, we perceive no reason- why
he should be excluded from the appropriate unit.
2. The shipping room clerk
The shipping room clerk here involved, a female employee, works
in the shipping room of the plant. She makes out bills of lading,
writes packing slips, fills orders, and does other related work. She
performs her duties in the midst of the production workers and is
under the general supervision of the plant manager. We are per-
suaded by the foregoing facts that her interests are more intimately
related to those of production and maintenance employees than to
those of the office and' clerical employees whom the parties would
exclude. We shall, therefore, include the shipping room clerk in' the',
appropriate, unit.
3. The supervisory status of certain employees
The alleged supervisory status of certain employees, some of whom
are involved herein, has been a subject of dispute in the past between
the Company and various labor organizations which. have sought to
represent the Company's employees in a unit almost' identical to the
one here requested. The issue has been presented to us at various
stages of *the said labor organizations' attempts to achieve representa-
tive status and to bargain collectively with 'the Company '2 and we
have ruled specifically on the inclusion or exclusion of all the employees
'whose status is placed in issue in the instant proceeding, with the 'ex-
ception of Ivan Klinger. • Those involved in the instant proceeding
whose status we have previously considered and passed upon are Earl
West, Irl Braillier, Carl Boggs, Forest Dieder,3 William Braddock,
Roger Stafford, Ted Blue, and Wayne Zolman. Of these eight we are
now asked to reconsider the status of all except Earl West.'
The Union contends that Braillier, Boggs, Dieder, Braddock,, Staf
ford, Blue, and Zolman have supervisory status and should thus be
excluded from the appropriate unit; the Company contends that
933 N.L.R B.216 ; 41 N. L. R. B. 915; 48 N . L. R. B. 962,
9 Dieder has been referred to in prior Board decisions as Forest Deeter.
* The parties agree that Earl west has supervisory status and should be excluded from
the appropriate unit.
1528 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Boggs, Braillier, Dieder, Braddock, Stafford, and Blue do not have
supervisory status and should thus be included in the unit. As to
Zolman, the Company makes no contention with respect to his in-
clusion or exclusion, although it asks ,that we redetermine his status.
Our most recent determination with' respect to 'each of those em-
ployees whose status is again placed in issue here, was that Braillier
and Boggs had supervisory- status,' and that Dieder,6 Stafford, Brad-
dock, Blue, and Zolman did not have supervisory status.'
The present record contains no evidence that the duties of any of
these seven employees have changed substantially since the time as
of which we last considered and determined their status, and, except
in the case of Zolman, the record contains no additional facts which
might persuade us to alter the position we have most recently taken
with respect to each.8
Therefore, we shall adhere to our last-determination with respect
-to each employee, except Zolman, and in accordance therewith, find
that Boggs and Braillier possess supervisory status, and that Dieder,
Braddock, Stafford, and Blue do not.
Zolman is employed as the head machinist in the Bearings Depart-
ment. He supervises the work of about 12 employees and is directly
responsible to the plant manager. Unlike the prior record before us,
the present record reveals that, Zolman has authority effectively to
recommend changes in the status of employees, in that the plant man-
ager would transfer an employee from the Bearings Department on
Zolman's recommendation. It appears that Zolman thus falls within
our customary definition of a supervisory employee.
E 48 N L R B 962 , 971-972.
48 N. L. It. B. 962, 963.
141 N. L. It. B . 915, 918.
s The present record indicates that, (1) Boggs is employed as a supervisor in the mixing
department , Department It, supervising the work of 15 or 18 employees . In connection
with his supervision of the work performance of the employees in his department, he
"keeps track " of their attendance at work Boggs apparently has authority to recom-
mend the disciplining of employees who do not perform their work properly ; ( 2) Brainier
Is employed as a lead man in the finishing room of Department B, overseeing , laying out and
directing the work of approximately 12 to 15 employees in the finishing room , and doing
some production work himself . Like Boggs , he "keeps track" of the employees ' attendance'
at work and the quality of their work performance . He is considered by the employees
in the finishing room as their "boss"; ( 3) Dseder is employed in the supply department as
a storeroom keeper and receiving clerk . His duties consist of receiving materials for the
plant and working in the supply and stockroom . I n addition to Dieder , 2 other employees
(neither of whom the parties would exclude) are engaged in the same work, performing
it independently of Dieder and on their own responsibility ; ( 4) Braddock is employed in
the shipping room in a position closely analogous to that held by Dieder in the receiving
or supply department.- He makes out bills of lading and helps with the keeping of time
records'for the other employees in his department ; ( 5) Stafford is employed as a set-up
man in Department E and ' works on clutch facings. He spends approximately one-half
of his time doing set-up work and the other half doing production work in conjunction
with - other employees in his department ; ( 6) Blue is employed as the head machinist in
the friction department , Department B, and works with 15 or 18 other machinists in the
department . He has no authority to make effective recommendations which might result
in the change of status of any employee. -
i
GATKE CORPORATION 1529
As previously stated, the status of Ivan Klinger is before us for
the first time. He is employed as the head pressman in a section of
the Bearings Department, doing set-up work on hydraulic presses
and moulds for bearings. Approximately 14 or 15 other people work
in that section of the Bearings Department under the direct super-
vision of the plant manager. Klinger has no authority to recommend
raises or the hiring or discharging of employees. From the `fore-
going, we find that Klinger does not possess supervisory status.
We find that all production and maintenance employees of the Com-
pany at its Warsaw, Indiana, plant," including the shipping room
clerk, and the watchman,, but excluding office and clerical employees,
foremen, supervisors, and all other supervisory employees with
authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise effect
changes in they status of employees, or effectively recommend such
action,10 constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective
bargaining Within the meaning 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 Relations Act,
and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations
Board,Rules and Regulations-Series 3, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Gatke Corpora-
tion, Warsaw, 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, Sec-
tions 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regulations, among the employees
in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who` were em-
n Ivan Klinger, Roger Stafford, Forest Dieder, William Braddock, and Ted Blue are, as
found supra, production and maintenance employees
1 Irl Braillier, Earl West, Wayne Zohnan, and Carl Boggs are, as found supra, super-
visory employees
11 The Company does not employ any armed guards Accordingly, we make no disposi-
tion of this category of employees
1
1530 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
ployed during the pay-roll' period immediately preceding the date of
this Direction, including employees who' did not work during the
said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or tem-
porarily laid off, and including employees in the armed forces of the
United States who present themselves in person at the polls, 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, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by
United Construction Workers, affiliated with the United Mine Workers
of America, for the purposes of collective bargaining.
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