General Chemical Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Feb 22, 1943

47 N.L.R.B. 885 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

In the Matter of GENERAL CHEMICAL COMPANY and INTERNATIONAL
UNION OF MINE, MILL & SMELTER WORKERS, LOCAL 635
Case No. R-4867.-Decided February 22, 1943
Jurisdiction : mining and milling industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question : re-,
fusal to recognize without certification of Board ; election necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production and maintenance em-
ployees at its Jamestown, Colorado, mines, including the watchman, but
excluding the superintendent, shift bosses, and surveyor.
Mr. Ralph S. Newcomer and Mr. Wilbert J. Trepp, of Boulder,
Colo., for the Company.
Mr. Ray Lee, of--Denver, Colo.,-for the Union.
Miss Muriel J. Levor, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE- CASE
Upon an amended petition duly filed by International, Union of
Mine, Mill & Smelter Workers, Local 635, herein called the Union,
alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning
the representation of employees of General Chemical Company at its
Jamestown, Colorado, mines, herein called the Company, the Na-
,tiofral Labor `Relations 'Board- provided, for an,appropriate hearing
upon due notice before Willard Y. Morris, Trial' Examiner. Said
hearing was held at Boulder, Colorado, on February 8, 1943. The
Company and the Union appeared, participated, and were afforded
full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine wit-
nesses, 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 affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the fol-
lowing:
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The General Chemical Company, a New York corporation, oper-
ates mines at Jamestown and a mill at Valmont, and it owns mining
47 N. L. R. B., No. 112.
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886 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
properties at Colorado Springs and at Minturn, all situated in the
State of Colorado. 'We are here alone concerned with. the Com-
pany's Jamestown fluorspar mines, from which about 75 tons of ore
are taken daily to. the., Company-s, Valmont mill, where it is
reduced to concentrate. All the, concentrates thus extracted are
shipped to points outside the State of Colorado for the production of
hydrofluoric acid.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
International Union of Mine, Mill & Smelter Workers, Local 635,
is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial
Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the Company.
III: THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On or about December -21, 1942;-the Union requested the Company
to recognize it as exclusive bargaining agent of the Company's em-
ployees at Jamestown, Colorado. The Company in a letter dated
December 30, 1942, refused recognition unless and until the Union
is duly certified as such by the Board.
A statement of the Trial Examiner made at the hearing 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 National Labor.
Relations Act.
IV. THE , APPROPRIATE UNIT,
The parties are agreed 'that 'the 'appropriate unit should consist' of
the Company's production and maintenance Workers, excluding the
superintendent, employed at the Company's three Jamestown mines .2
The mines are about one-fourth of a mile apart and the employees
work in all the mines from time to time. No clerical workers are
employed at the mines.' There are, however, diverse contentions as
to whether several categories of employees, hereinafter described, are
or are not production and maintenance employees. The Company
claims that all employees of the mine, excepting -the superintendent,
i The Trial Examiner reported that the Union had submitted 36 designations of which
21, dated December 1942 and January 1943, all bearing apparently genuine signatures,
correspond with names on the Company's pay roll of February 6, 1943, containing a total
of 30 names within the appropriate unit
2 In its petition the-Union claimed representation for the Company's employees. at both
the Valmont mill and the Jamestown mines However, at the hearing the Union moved
to-amend the,petition to include only the,•mine employees The motion was 'granted. The
Company at all times contended that the mine alone constituted an appropriate unit
GENERAL CHEMICAL COMPANY 887
should _be .included as production workers on the ground that -they
are all employed on an hourly basis and work under substantially,
the same conditions.. The Union urges that the contested employees
should be excluded, as being supervisory personnel. The categories
in dispute are as follows.
Shift bosses. There are two shift bosses with equal authority in
charge of the day and night shifts, respectively.. Fifty percent of
their time is spent in` the actual workof mining.- The rest of their
time is devoted to seeing that the orders of the mine superintendent
are,properly executed. It appears.that although they do not have the
power to hire and discharge they can recommend such action. Since
they. clearly are supervisory employees Ave shall, in accordance with
our usual policy, exclude these shift bosses.
The surveyor. There is one surveyor who works with a transit and
sloes the actual, surveying.and mapping. We find that the surveyor
performs duties, requiring technical skill,,which are functionally
different from the duties of production,and maintenance employees.
We shall accordingly exclude him .from the unit. - • I
'The watehmcan. There is only one watchman who is neither depu-
tized nor armed. He comes on the property when there are no oper-
ations in progress and makes routine inspections.' We find no ade-
quate reason for this exclusion and shall, therefore, place him within
the unit. ,
We find that all production and maintenance employees of the
Company at its Jamestown, Colorado, mines, including the watch-
man, but excluding the superintendent, shift bosses, and the surveyor,
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
employees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-
roll period immediately preceding the date of our Direction of Elec-
tion, 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
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888 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATI
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ONS BOARID
DIRECTED that , as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives 'for the purposes • of-collective • bargainingawith,General Chemical
Company, Jamestown , Colorado, 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 of Election , under the direction and
supervision of the Regional Director for the Twenty-second 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 all employees of the Company 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 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 or not they desire to be represented
by International Union of Mine, Mill & Smelter Workers , Local 635,
affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, for the
purposes of collective bargaining.