Armour Leather Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Apr 12, 1943

48 N.L.R.B. 1144 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

In the Matter of ARAIOUR AND COMPANY OF DELAWARE, TRADING AND
DOING BUSINESS AS, ARMOUR LEATHER COMPANY and INTERNATIONAL
FUR & LEATHER WORKERS UNION, AFFILIATED WITH THE C. I. O.
Case No. R- 077.Decided April 12, 1943
Jurisdiction : hide processing industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re.
fusal to'accord petitioner recognition until certified by the Board; election
necessary. ,
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and maintenance em-
ployees at one of the company's plants, including powerhouse employees and the
charwoman, but excluding watchmen, armed guards, clerical employees, super-
visory employees, and traveling construction employees.
Mr. Paul E. Blanchard, of Chicago, Ill., for the Company.
111r. Harry Millstone, of Williamsport, Pa., for the C. I. O.
Mr. Wallace E. Royster, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon an amended petition duly filed by International Fur & Leather
Workers Union, affiliated with the G. I., 0., herein called the C. I. 0.;
alleging that a question affecting commerce had' arisen concerning
the repi•esentation'of employees of Armour and Company'of,Delaware;
trading and doing business as Armour Leather, .Conipariy, Westover,
Pennsylvania, : herein called the Company, the National ;L'abor' Rd1a
tions Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon clue notice
before W. G. Stuart Sherman,' Trial Examiner. Said hearing was
held on March 29,,1943, at Clearfield, Pennsyldania. The Company
and the C. I. O. appeared, participated, and were afforded full oppor-
tunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to in-
troduce evidence bearing on the issues.,' The, Trial Examiner's rulings
made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby
affirmed.
'Although duly served with notice. Westover Leather Workers Association, unaffiliated,
did not appear or participate in the hearing
48 N. L. R. B, No. 134.
1144
ARMOUR AND COMPANY OF DELAWARE 1145
'Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Armour and Company of Delaware trading and doing business as
Armour Leather Company, is a Delaware corporation with a plant in
Westover, Pennsylvania. The Company is engaged in the processing
of hides from which it produces sole leather, cattle hair, and glue stock.
During the 12-month period ending March 1, 1943, the Company re-
ceived at the Westover plant approximately 6,000,000 pounds of hides,
valued at approximately $1,000,000, and other materials and supplies
1 alued at approxii lately $300,000. Approximately 70 percent of the
hides and 50 percent of the other materials and supplies were shipped
to the Company's Westover plant from points outside Pennsylvania.
During the 12-month period ending January 30, 1943, the. Company
produced sole leather, cattle hair, and glue stock at the Westover
plant, valued at approximately $1,000,000, of which approximately 10
percent was shipped from the plant to points outside Pennsylvania.
'• The Company concedes that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
H. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
International Fur & Leather Workers Union, affiliated with the Con-
gress of Industrial Organizations, is 'a labor organization admitting to
membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
In November 1942, the C. I. O. requested that the' Company recognize
it as bargaining representative of the Company's employees at the
Westover plant. The Company refused recognition runless and until
the C. I. O. is certified as such representative by the Board. The Com-
pany has no collective bargaining contract with any, union at the West-
over plant but both the C. I. O. and the Association have- represented
informally their respective members in presenting grievances.
The statement of the Trial Examiner made at the hearing indicates
that the C. I. O. represents a substantial number of employees in the
unit hereinafter found appropriate.2
2The Trial Examiner stated that the C I 0 submitted 66 application-for-membership
cards ,'all but 6 of which were dated variously from December 1942 to the date of the hear-
ing. Al] cards-bore apparently-genuine original signatures and 55 bore the names of per-
sons whose names appear on the Company's'pay roll of March 20, 194 The pay roll con-
tains the names of approximately 108 employees within the appropriate unit
Although expressly requested to do so, the Association submitted no evidence of mem-
bership among the employees of the Company
1146 DECISIONS OF 'NATIONAL LABOR ' RELATIONS BOARD
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. 1. 0. requests a unit encompassing the production and mainte-
nance employees of the Company, including powerhouse employees and
the charwoman, but excluding watchmen, armed guards, clerical em-
ployees, supervisory employees, and traveling construction employees.
The Company has taken a neutral position and neither contests nor
acquiesces to the unit requested.
We are of the opinion that the unit requested is appropriate. No
other organization seeks to represent the powerhouse employees as 'a
separate unit and under silch circumstances we have frequently held
that powerhouse employees may be included in an industrial unit.
Although the charwoman works only 2 hours daily, and her duties con-
sist solely of cleaning the office and the apartment which the Company
maintains for the. convenience, of its visiting salesmen and executives,
her employment is regular. It is true that she does not work in the
plant but neither is she an office ,employee and the character of her
duties is such as to permit her inclusion in the unit as a maintenance
employee. The exclusions requested are those it is our practice to
require or permit.
In accordance with the foregoing, we find that the production and
maintenance employees of the Company at its plant in Westover,
Pennsylvania; including powerhouse employees and the charwoman,
but exclbding watchmen, armed guards, clerical employees, 'super-
visory employees, an.i traveling construction employees, constitute a
unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the
meaning of Section 9 (b), of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATIOI 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 the Direction of
Election herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in
the Direction.3
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-
a Since the Association did not appear or participate in the hearing , did not submit any
evidence of membership among the Company ' s employees , and has evinced no desire to par-
ticipate in an election, we shall not provide for its appearance on the ballot.
ARMOUR AND COMPANY OF DELAWARE 1147
tions Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor,
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is
hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Armour and Com-
pany of Delaware, trading and doing business as Armour Leather'
Company, Westover, Pennsylvania, 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 Sixth 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 the 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 vacationror 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 Fur &
Leather Workers Union, affiliated with the C. I. 0., for the purposes of
collective bargaining.