The Lumber and Millwork Industry Labor Committee of Cleveland, Ohio

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Apr 13, 1962

136 N.L.R.B. 1083 (N.L.R.B. 1962)

LUMBER & MILLWORK INDUSTRY LABOR COMMITTEE 1083
titled by means proscribed by Section 8(b) (4) (D) to force or require
the Employer to assign the disputed work to its members rather than
to laborers represented by Local 1175.
DETERMINATION OF DISPUTE
Upon the basis of the foregoing findings, and upon the entire record
in the case, the Board makes the following Determination of Dispute
pursuant to Section 10(k) of the Act:
1. Employees engaged as laborers, currently represented by Local
1175, International Hod Carriers, Building and Common Laborers
Union of America, AFL-CIO, are entitled to place and tie reinforce
material at the Employer's Astoria, Long Island, New York, plant.
Accordingly, Local 46, Wood, Wire and Metal Lathers International
Union, AFL-CIO, and Brian Dillon, its business representative, are
not entitled to force or require the Employer to assign the above-
mentioned disputed work to lathers, who are currently represented by
Local 46.
2. Within 10 days from the date of this Decision and Determina-
tion of Dispute, Local 46, Wood, Wire and Metal Lathers Inter-
national Union, AFL-CIO, and Brian Dillon, its business representa-
tive, shall notify the Regional Director for the Second Region, in
writing, whether or not it will refrain from forcing or requiring the
Employer by means proscribed by Section 8(b) (4) (D) to assign the
work in dispute to lathers rather than laborers.
The Lumber and Millwork Industry Labor Committee of Cleve-
land, Ohio, et al.' and International Brotherhood of Teamsters,
Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America, Local
436,2 Petitioner . Cases Nos. 8-RC-4083, 8-RC-4086, and 8-RC-
4102 through 8-RC-4117. April 13, 1962
DECISION AND CLARIFICATION OF CERTIFICATION
Upon a motion for clarification of certification filed by the Em-
ployer on September 5, 1961, the Board ordered a hearing, which was
held before Arthur R. Mattson, Jr., hearing officer, for the purpose
of taking further testimony. The hearing officer's rulings are free
from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.'
1 The parties stipulated that the Independent Lumber Company (8-RC-4107 ) has been
liquidated and is no longer involved in these proceedings.
2 The name of the Petitioner appears as amended at the hearing
S The United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America , Carpenters District
Council of Cuyahoga Lake, Geauga and Ashtabula Counties , AFL-CIO, and its member
Locals 509 and 1365 were permitted to participate in the hearing as joint Intervenors on
the basis of their participation in the previous Board hearing
136 NLRB No. 101.
1084 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Historically, unskilled employees of the member Employers who
were classified as tallymen, utilitymen, working foremen, and saw-
men were represented by Intervenor's Local 509, while the skilled
mechanics, referred to as millmen, continue to be represented by Inter-
venor's Local 1365. Following an election which was held on July 5,
1961, the Petitioner was certified in Case Nos. 8-RC-4083, 8-RC-4086,
and 8-RC-4102-4117 4 as the collective-bargaining representative for
a unit of "All utilitymen, sawmen, talleymen, and working foremen
employed by the Employers which have authorized the Lumber and
Millwork Industry Labor Committee of Cleveland, Ohio, to represent
them, excluding professional employees, guards, all other employees,
and supervisors as defined in the Act."
The Employer's motion is a request for the board 5 to determine
whether formica top helpers,' frame nailers, and employees perform-
ing various other types of work are utilitymen within the meaning of
the certified unit, or whether they are covered by its contract with In-
tervenor's Local 1365 which represents journeymen millmen?
At the hearing, testimony was taken on the following job classifica-
tions : window- and door-frame nailing, frame assembly, sash pinning,
tailing off, and feeding but not setting up sticker machines.
The Employer and the Petitioner's position is that Intervenor's
Local 1365 represents only the skilled employees, or millmen, but that
the jobs in issue are within the definition of utilitymen which the Peti-
tioner was certified to represent. They argue in support of their
position that employees in these job classifications perform work which
is of an unskilled, repetitive nature which requires only a minimum
period of instruction, and that these employees have never been in-
cluded in the skilled unit represented by Intervenor's Local 1365, but
had always been represented by Local 509.
The Intervenors, on the other hand, contend that the disputed jobs
involve craft or skilled work which is within the classification of mill-
men. In support of their contention, the Intervenors point out that
many of the jobs have been performed by millmen traditionally; that
frame nailing of windows and doors, and truss nailing are part of
millwork; that sticker machines are part of the mill and traditionally
operated by millmen; and that all manufacturing is done in the mill.
The record demonstrates that when window or door frames are not
Not published in NLRB volumes.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the Act , the Board has delegated Its
powers In connection with this case to a three -member panel [ Members Leedom , Fanning,
and Brown].
6 All parties at the hearing agreed that there are no formica top helpers employed by
any members of the Employer Committee
4 The Employer adduced evidence at the hearing indicating that the millman 's classifica-
tion as used in Its contract with Local 1365 relates to employees with "ability to con-
struct any piece of millwork from the original blueprint , and from raw material 11
LUMBER & MILLWORK INDUSTRY LABOR COMMITTEE 1085
precut upon arrival at the mill, millmen are needed in order to lay out
and cut the frames from regular lumber before the assembly jobs can
be performed. However, when the frames arrive in a knocked-down
condition, assembly jobs can be accomplished thereupon by the dis-
puted employees without the help of millmen. Further, although
millmen are the only employees qualified to set up sticker machines,
it is clear that these machines may be operated with little advance in-
struction thus enabling utilitymen as well as millmen to operate them.
We find from the record that the employees in the disputed classi-,
fications are hired off the street, do not receive any planned program
of apprenticeship or formal on-the-job training, and perform their
duties after receiving only a minimal period of instruction, usually
ranging from one-half to 4 hours in duration. Further, they have not
been organized along craft lines and they are not supervised as crafts-
men since there is one foreman who supervises all production work
in the mill.
We therefore find that this record fails to establish that the em-
ployees in the classifications of window and frame nailing, frame as-
sembly, sash pinning, tailing off, and feeding, sticker machines exercise
craft skills comparable to millmen. That many of these employees
have held long employment in their particular jobs, thereby receiving
wages comparable to millmen,$ does not demonstrate an experience
equivalent of apprenticeship, as we are not convinced that upon attain-
ment of job proficiency these employees possess and exercise the high
degree of manual dexterity, and judgment to qualify them as true
craftsmen .9 Nor does the Intervenor's evidence that millmen on occa-
sion perform these functions persuade us that the performance of such
duties requires a millman's degree of skill, since performance of these
functions is merely incidental to the millmen's customary work.
Accordingly, we find that the jobs discussed herein are included in
the unit description of utilitymen. We shall therefore clarify the unit
description by including therein : window- and door-frame nailing,
frame assembly, sash pinning, tailing off , and feeding sticker machines.
ORDER
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the unit certified in Cases Nos. 8-RC-4083,
8-RC-4086, and 8-RC-4102-4117 be clarified to include within the
classification of utilitymen employees other than millmen who do win-
dow- and door-frame nailing, frame assembly, sash pinning, tailing
off, and feeding sticker machines.
8 There is no evidence in the record to indicate that such pay raises to employees in
these jobs were given along craft lines
9 See May Department Stores Company (Kaufmann Division ), 129 NLRB 21, 24.