Grinnell Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 29, 1944

56 N.L.R.B. 1766 (N.L.R.B. 1944)

In the Matter of GRINNELL CORPORATION and UNITED STEELWORKERS
OF-AMERICA (C. I. 0.)
Case No. 1-R-1861.-Decided June`0919444
Hinckley, Allen, Tillinghast d Wheeler, by Mr. Isadore Paisner,
of Providence, R. I., and Mr. Roger T. Clapp, of Providence, R. I.,
for the Company.
Grant d Angoff, by Mr. Harold Roitman, of Boston, Mass., for
the C.T.,1.0.
Mr. Edmwnd J. Kelley, of Providence, R. I., for the Council.
Mr. Bernard Goldberg, of counsel to the Board. ' '
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by United Steelworkers of America, affil-
iated-with the C. I. 0., herein called the C. I. 0., alleging that a ques-
tion affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of
employees of Grinnell Corporation, Providence, Rhbde Island, herein
called the Company,' the National Labor Relations Board provided
for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before John W. Coddaire,
Jr., Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at Providence, Rhode
Island, on May 25, 1944. The Company, the C. I. 0., and the Auburn
Shop Council, an unaffiliated union, herein called the Council, ap-
peared, participated, and` 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 hear-
ings are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. All par-
ties were afforded opportunity to file briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record in the- case, the Board makes the following :
' The Company was previously known as the General Fire Extinguisher Company. Its
main off;ce is located in Providence , Rhode Island , and it operates numerous fabricating
plants, branch warehouses , and offices throughout the United States and Canada. It has
two fabricating plants in Rhode Island , one in Providence and the other in Cranston. This
proceeding is concerned solely with the Providence plant.
56 N. L. R. B., No. 314.
1766
1
GRINNELL CORPORATION 1767
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Grinnell Corporation is a Delaware corporation engaged in the man-
ufacture of a variety of metal products, including pipe,, automatic
sprinkler equipment, valves, fittings, hangers,' and miscellaneous ma-
chine shop products. -
The Providence and Cranston plants are complementary , i. e., all
of the products manufactured at the Providence plant are sent to the
Cranston plant for shipping or for finishing and shipping; 90'per-
cent of the products is shipped to points outside of the State of Rhode
Island. During the 6 months preceding the hearing, the value of fin-
ished products from the two plants amounted to, over $1,000,000.
During the same period both plants used over $750,000 worth of raw
material, 90 percent of which came from points without the State.
The Company admits it is engaged in interstate commerce within
the meaning,of the National Labor Relations Act.
H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
United Steelworkers of America is a labor organization affiliated
with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to member-
ship employees of the Company.
Auburn Shop Council is an unaffiliated labor organization admit-
ting to membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company has refused to grant recognition to the C. I. 0., or
any other union, as the exclusive bargaining representative of its pro-
duction 'and maintenance employes until such union has been certi-
fied by the Board in an appropriate unit.
A statement prepared by a Field Examiner, introduced in evidence'
at the hearing, indicates that each union represents a substantial
number of employees in the units they allege to be appropriate.2
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 C. I. O. seeks a unit consisting of all production and main-
tenance employees in the Providence, Rhode, Island, plant, including
2 The Field Examiner 's report states that C . I. O. submitted 65 application -for-member-
ship cards , and the Council 47, in the unit claimed by the C. I. 0., and 59 in the unit
claimed by the Company and Council . The Company reports show that there are 108
employees in the C. I. O. claimed unit and 123 In the Company-Council unit. The apparent
duplication in applications for membership was not explained . Applications are dated in
March and April 1944 , except for 6 which are undated.
1768 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
shipping department employees, janitors, inspectors ; and group lead-
ers, but excluding printing department employees, laboratory
employees, office and clerical help, watchmen, executives, foremen,
and all supervisory 'employees. The Company, and Council agree gen-
erally with the C. 1. 0. as to the appropriateness of the foregoing unit,
but oppose the exclusion of laboratory and printing department
employees."
Laboratory Employees.-The laboratory has eight employees, ex-
clusive of the head of the department who is responsible to the general
plant manager. ' Six of these employees, one of whom is a chemist,,
are classified as laboratory technicians; the other employees are a
secretary and a janitor. The duty of these technicians is to test the
products of the Company in the different stages of production for
dimensions and gauges , and for tensile, ultimate and welding strength;
salt spray tests are given and photomicrographs are made when re-
quired. Some of the tests are made on the job, while others are made
in the plant laboratory which is located in a separate room. No
'research work is done in the laboratory. The technicians are not
required to have any professional education or training ; a high school
education is considered sufficient qualification for the work. They
are paid on an hourly basis and have substantially the same working
conditions and rules as do the production and maintenance employees.
They are eligible for membership in the C. 1. 0. and no other union has
attempted to organize them. We have customarily held that labora-
tory workers making 'routine production checks are so intimately a
part of the process of production as properly to belong in a unit of
production and maintenance employees .-3 We shall therefore include
the laboratory employees in the unit.
Printing department employees.-The printing department has two
pressmen , two compositors, and one blue print machine operator,'.
a group leader, four bindery girls, a stockman, a department head and
his secretary. The department prints labels, letterheads, envelopes,
production forms, and the company magazine ' for all the plants of
the Company. The head of the printing department is responsible
to the general purchasing agent. The employees are on a time card
basis. The C. I. 0. does not admit the printing department employees
into-its union and has made no attempt to organize them. While the
printing, department is physically located in the main plant, its work
has no proximate connection with the actual production process and
the skills and duties in that department are totally dissimilar to those
of other production employees. We shall exclude the printing de-
partment employees from the unit.
3 Matter of Commercial Solvents Corporation , 45 N. L R. B. 141.
GRINNELL CORPORATION ,1769
We find that all production and maintenance employees in the
Providence, Rhode Island, plant of the Company, including shipping
department employees, janitors, inspectors, laboratory employees, and
group leaders,4 but excluding printing department employees, office
and clerical help, watchmen, executives, foremen, and'all supervisory
employees with authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or
otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively rec-
ommend such action, 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 Rela-
tions Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, it is hereby
DntECrED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Grinnell Corpora-
tion, Providence, Rhode Island, 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 First Region, acting in this matter as agent
for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to Article III,
Sections 10 and 11, 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 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 those em-
ployees who have since quit or been discharged for cause and have
not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the election, to deter-
mine whether they desire to be represented by United Steelworkers of
America, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or
by Auburn Shop Council, unaffiliated, for the purposes of collective
bargaining, or by neither. ,
According to the record these employees do not perform supervisory functions ; they
have no authority to hire, discharge , recommend disciplinary action, or -in any way change
the status of employees under their direction.