Revere Copper and Brass Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 12, 1947

74 N.L.R.B. 88 (N.L.R.B. 1947)

In the Matter of REVERP' COPPER AND BRASS INCORPORATED (NEW BED-
FORD DIVISION), EMPLOYER and INTERSTATE METAL WORKERS UNION
DIVISION OF MECHANICS EDUCATIONAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA,
PETITIONER
Case No. 1-R-..5ttC.-Decided Jm),e 12, 19
Mr. John H. El ikenberg, of Rome, N. Y., for the Employer.
Mr. Frank O. Edwards, of New Bedford, Mass., for the Petitioner.
Mr. Bernard L. Balieer, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
ANI)
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
Upon a petition duly filed, hearing in this case was held at New
Bedford, Massachusetts, on February 25, 1947, before Thomas H.
Ramsey, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the
hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the National Labor Relations
Board makes the following:
FINDINGS OF F.w,r
I. THE BUSINESS OF Till" 10111111LOY1"R
The Employer is a Maryland corporation with main offices in New
York City and various divisions located in the States of Illinois,
Maryland, Michigan, New York and the Commonwealth of Massa-
chusetts. The New Bedford, Massachusetts, plant of the Employer,
the only plant involved in this proceeding, is engaged principally in
the processing of non-ferrous metals. During 1946, the New Bedford
Division purchased copper, zinc, nickel, and other non-ferrous metals,
exceeding $1,000,000 in value, 90 percent of which originated outside
the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. During the same period, sales
exceeded $1,000,000 in value, :i0 percent of which was shipped to points
outside the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
The Employer admits and we find that it is engaged in commerce
within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
74 N L R B, No. 22
88
REVERE COPPER AND BRASS INCORPORATED
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
89
The Petitioner is a labor organization, claiming to represent em-
ployees of the Employer.
III. TIIE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Employer refuses to recognize the Petitioner as the exclusive
bargaining representative of employees of the Employer until the
Petitioner has been certified by the Board in an appropriate unit.
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Employer, within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT ; THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
The Petitioner seeks a unit of all main office clerical employees
(including the mechanical engineering, production, methods, cost ac-
counting, pay roll and bonus, purchasing, general accounting, billing
and order entry, sales, tabulating, traffic, stenographic and general,
and cashier's departments), and mill clerical employees, excluding
executives, confidential secretaries, personnel department employees,
time-study engineering department employees, and supervisory em-
ployees.' The Employer agrees generally to the unit sought by the
Petitioner, but desires to exclude from the unit mill clerical em-
ployees, draftsmen, apprentice draftsmen, and certain individuals
discussed hereinafter who the Employer contends are confidential, su-
pervisory, or managerial employees. The parties agree that clerks
in the Employer's Sales Branch Offices, and janitors should be ex-
cluded from the unit.2
Draftsmen and apprentice draftsmen: The draftsmen design new
equipment and make prints and lay-outs Necessary to build tools,
equipment, and machinery. After "laying out" a job, they estimate
its cost, order necessary material, and direct the installation of the
equipment. The draftsmen are required to have a college education
in mechanical engineering or its equivalent in technical and practical
knowledge. Their salary is substantially higher than that of the
clerical employees. In view of their technical functions, we shall ex-
clude the draftsmen and apprentice draftsmen from the unit.3 We
shall, however, include the clerk in the drafting department.,
Secretaries: The Employer desires to exclude the secretaries to the
methods supervisor, the technical advisor and the assistant sales man-
'The Petitioner currently represents the Employer's production and maintenance
employees
2 There are approximately 120 employees in the alleged appropriate unit
9 Matter of U. S. Electrical Motors Inc, 65 N. L R B. 1474.
90 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
agers, on the ground that they are confidential employees. The record
does not reveal, however, that the afore-mentioned executives make
recommendations regarding or participate in the formulation of the
Employer's over-all labor relations policy. We find, therefore, that
the secretaries in question do not act in a confidential capacity to per-
sons who exercise managerial functions in the field of labor relations.
Accordingly, we shall include them in the unit.
Cost Ledger Bookkeeper: The Employer contends that the cost
ledger bookkeeper should be excluded as a confidential employee, inas-
much as he utilizes the material prepared by other cost accounting
clerks to compile manufacturing and sales cost reports and profit and
loss analyses. Although such information may be confidential from
a business standpoint, it does not relate directly to labor relations
matters.' Accordingly, we find that he is not a confidential employee
as defined by the Board.
The Employer further contends that this employee is supervisory,
inasmuch as he is responsible for the work schedules of other em-
ployees. However, the cost ledger bookkeeper testified at the hearing
that he had never exercised or been told that he possessed supervisory
authority. We are of the opinion that the record does not establish
that he possesses authority to hire, promote, or discharge any em-
ployees, or effectively to recommend such action.
Inasmuch as we find that the cost ledger bookkeeper is neither a
confidential nor supervisory employee within the Board's usual defi-
nition of those terms, we shall include him.
General Ledger Bookkeeper: This employee maintains and compiles
reports showing operating costs, from which the Employer's profit
and loss is determined. The Employer desires his exclusion as a con-
fidential employee. For the reasons set forth above in regard to the
cost ledger bookkeeper, we do not find that lie enjoys a confidential
status. We shall, therefore, include him.
Assistant Supervisors : The Employer desires the exclusion of cer-
tain employees who it alleges act as assistant supervisors i n the pay-
roll and bonus, stenographic and general, and billing and order entry
departments.5 These employees assign work, supervise its perform-
ance and have the power effectively to recommend the hiring and
discharge of employees within their jurisdiction. We find that they
are supervisory employees, and we shall therefore exclude them.
Switchboard and Teletype Operators: The switchboard operator
performs the usual duties of a telephone operator. Since it is her
* Matter of Alunsnnie Company of America , 61 N. L R B 1066, at pages 1072 and 1073.
6 E T De Moranville , M M Mansfield , E A Cataldo and A D Bruce
REVERE COPPER AND BRASS INCORPORATED 91
duty' only to see that proper connections are made, contrary to the
contention of the Employer, she would not acquire confidential in-
formation concerning labor relations matters in the normal per-
formance of her duties. We shall therefore include her.6
Although the Employer alleges that the teletype operator, who
also serves as relief switchboard operator, receives teletype messages
dealing with labor, sales, and financial matters, the record does not
establish that the Employer customarily receives or transmits con-
fidential information regarding labor relations matters over the tele-
type machine or that the teletype operator obtains such information
in the normal course of her duties. We shall, therefore, include the
teletype operator in the xuiit.7
Assistant to the Assistant Treasurer and Cashier: This employee
prepares the weekly pay roll for employees in the unit 'hereinafter
found appropriate, as well as for executives and other representatives
of management. It is alleged by the Employer that these salary fig-
ures are confidential and that therefore this employee should be ex-
cluded as a confidential employee. The Employer further contends,
in effect, that this employee is also managerial, inasmuch as in the
absence of the cashier, an executive of the Employer, she acts in his
stead. However, the record does not show that such substitution oc-
curs frequently or with any degree of regularity or that it entails the
making of executive decisions or the formulation of management
policy. We find that this employee is neither confidential nor man-
agerial within the Board's usual definition of those terms; we shall
include her in the unit.
Mill Clerics: The Petitioner desires mill clerks and main office cleri-
cal employees to be included in the same unit. The Employer main-
tains such inclusion would be inappropriate because the interests of
the mill clerks are more closely allied to those of the production and
maintenance employees. Where the' parties are in dispute with refer-
ence to the composition of a production and maintenance unit, the
Board customarily includes plant clerical employees in the same unit
as the production and maintenance employees.' We are also of the
opinion that where, as here, the dispute involves the composition of a
clerical unit, and there is a ldibor organization seeking to represent or
currently representing the production and maintenance employees,
the plant clerical employees should be included in the production and
maintenance unit. However, inasmuch as these employees have not
6 Matter of Alznnnam Company/ of America, supra, at page 1073
Matter of Bethlehem Steel Coipoyation , 52 N L R B 1217, Matter of Aluminum
Company of America, supra
8 Matter of Goodman Manufacturing Company, 58 N L R B 531 , Matter of American
Locomotive Company, 67 N L It B 1123.
92 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
been included in the production and maintenance unit currently rep-
resented by the Petitioner , we shall direct that a separate election be
held to determine their desires in the matter .9 Accordingly, we shall
make no finding with respect to the unit placement of the foregoing em-
ployees pending the outcome of the election . If in such election the
mill clerks select the Petitioner as their, bargaining representative,
they will be taken to have indicated their desire to be included in the
existing unit of production and maintenance employees and the Peti-
tioner may bargain for them as part of such unit.
We find that all main office clerical employees at the Employer's
New Bedford Division plant, including the secretaries to the methods
supervisor, technical advisor and assistant sales managers , the cost
ledger bookkeeper , the general ledger bookkeeper , the switchboard op-
erator, the teletype operator, the clerk in the drafting department, and
the cashier 's assistant , but excluding executives , confidential secretaries,
personnel department employees, time=study engineering department
employees, draftsmen, apprentice draftsmen , the assistant supervisors
of the bonus and pay-roll, stenographic and general , and order and bill-
ing departments , and all supervisory employees with authority to hire,
promote, discharge , discipline , or otherwise effect changes in the status
of employees , or effectively recommend such action , constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the mean-
ing of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
We shall direct that separate elections by secret ballot be -held among
the employees in the unit found appropriate above and among the em-
ployees at the Employer's New Bedford Division plant, in the follow-
ing voting group :
(1) All mill clerical employees , excluding supervisory employees
with authority to hire, promote , discharge , discipline , or otherwise ef-
fect changes in the status of employees , or effectively recommend such
action.
As previously indicated , we shall at this time make no final deter-
mination with respect to the appropriate unit of mill clerical em-
ployees pending the outcome of the election herein directed among
them. '
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the pur-
poses of collective bargaining with Revere Copper and Brass Incorpo-
rated (New Bedford Division), New Bedford, Massachusetts, elections
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 di-
Matter of Armour and Company , 64 N L. R. B. 230.
REVERE COPPER AND BRASS INCORPORATED 93
rection 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 Sections 203.55 and 203.56, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 4, among the employees in the
unit and in the voting group described 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 employees
who have since quit or been discharged for cause and have not been
rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the elections, to determine
whether or not they desire to be represented by Interstate Metal Work-
ers Union Division of Mechanics Educational Society of America, for
the purposes of collective bargaining.
CHAIRMAN HERZOG took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision and Direction of Elections.