The A. S. Abell Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Aug 9, 1943

51 N.L.R.B. 1162 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

In the Matter of THE A. S. ABELL COMPANY and BALTIMORE MAILERS'
LOCAL No. 88, AFFILIATED WITH INTERNATIONAL TYPOGRAPHICAL
UNION
Case No. R-5644.-Decided Auugst 9, 1943.
Mr. George L. Weasler , for the Board.
Semmes, Bowen & Semmes, by Mr. William D . MacMillan, and
Mr. Emmet P. Kavanaugh , both of Baltimore , Md., for the Company.
Messrs . Jacob J. Edelman and Isador Roman, of Baltimore, Md.,
and Mr. William Rose, of Philadelphia , Pa., for the I. T. U.
Mr. Webster C. Tall, of Baltimore , Md., for the Association.
Mr. A. Summer Lawrence , of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by Baltimore Mailers' Local No. 88, affili-
ated with International Typographical Union, herein called the
1. T. U., alleging that a question affecting commence had arisen con-
cerning the representation of employees of The A. S. Abell Company,
Baltimore, Maryland, herein called the Company, the National Labor
Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due no-
tice before Earle K. Shawe, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held
at Baltimore, Maryland, on June 24,1943. The Company, the I. T. U.,
and Sun Mail Room Employees Association, herein called the Asso-
ciation, appeared, 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 hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
All parties were afforded opportunity to file briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The A. S. Abell Company, a Maryland corporation , has its principal
office and place of business in Baltimore , Maryland , where it is engaged
51 N. L . R. B., No. 181.
1162
THE A. S. ABELL COMPANY 1163
in the printing and publishing of several newspapers known as The
Sun, The Sunday Sun, and The Evening Sun, respectively. During
the year 1942, the Company purchased for use at its Baltimore plant
raw materials obtained from points outside the State of Maryland and
amounting in value to approximately $1,500,000. During the same
period, the Company sold and distributed to points outside the State
of Maryland newspapers valued at approximately $121,000. The news
gathering, news interchange, and news distributing activities of the
Company are widespread and are conducted through its branch offices
in New York City, Washington, D. C., London, England, and through
its correspondents in principal foreign news centers. 'The Company
admits that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the
National Labor Relations Act.
H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
Baltimore Mailers' Local No. 88 is a labor organization affiliated
with International Typographical Union, admitting to membership
employees of.the Company.
Sun Mail Room Employees Association is an unaffiliated labor
organization admitting to membership employees of the Company?
M. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On May 25, 1943, the I. T. U., claiming to represent a majority of
the Company's mailing room employees, requested that the Company
recognize it as exclusive bargaining representative of such employees.
The Company declined the request upon the ground that it had an
existing collective bargaining agreement with the, Association and fur-
ther stated that it would not negotiate with the I. T. U. until ordered
to do so by the Board.
The Association and the Company contend that the existing col-
lective bargaining agreement is a bar to the present proceeding. The
agreement is an exclusive bargaining contract executed February 19,
1941, and will continue in force and effect until February 26, 1944.
As previously stated, a question exists as to the status of the Asso-
ciation . Under the circumstances, including the fact that the con-
tract is for a period of 3 years and has been in existence for over 2
1 The I. T. U. contends that the Association is no longer in existence and introduced evi-
dence at the hearing to the effect that the Association had been formally dissolved and the
members and funds thereof transferred to the I. T. U. local . On the other hand, there
was introduced at the hearing evidence tending to establish that the dissolution proceedings
were irregular and void by reason of a failure to give proper notice to the membership of
the meeting at which it was voted to dissolve the Association . While there is some doubt
as to the status of the Association , upon all the evidence we are of the opinion and find that
the record does not establish that the Association has been dissolved , or that it is other-
wise incapable of functioning as representative of the employees of the Company.
1164, DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
years, we find that the contract is not a bar to a present determina-
tion of representatives.2
A statement of the Regional Director together with other evidence
introduced at the hearing, indicates that the I. T. U. and the Associa-
tion severally represent a substantial number of employees in the
unit hereinafter found appropriate.3
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of the 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 I. T. U. contends that the appropriate unit should consist of
all employees of the mailing department who are engaged in mailing,
addressing, stamping, labeling, wrapping, marking wrappers, taking
papers from escalators, stacking, handling of mail sacks, and tying
bundles, but excluding all temporary employees, all utility helpers,
all maintenance employees, inserters, porters, and special policemen,
and all,supervisory employees with the rank of assistant foreman or
above, and all clerical employees. The Association would include
all the categories included by the I. T. U. with the exception of two
hourly paid employees,' and desires to add thereto the inserters and
one Fred W. Gleim, who is claimed to be a supervisor of the inserters.
The Company desires to include all employees sought by the I. T. U.
and all employees sought' by the Association. The Company takes
no position with respect to the two hourly paid employees. All
parties agreed that the porter, temporary employees, special police-
men, the night foreman and his assistant, and the day foreman and
his assistant are to be excluded from the appropriate unit. The
parties also agreed that there are neither maintenance, nor clerical
employees connected with the mail room. The contested categories
and individuals will be considered in the order named.
The inserters
These employees consist of 12 women workers who are located in
the mail room and whose duties consist of inserting into the Sunday
2 See Matter of National Battery Company, 28 N. L. R. B., 826 ; Matter of Wichita Union
Stockyards Company, 40 N. L R. B. 369.
8 The Regional Director reported that the I. T. U. had submitted 26 designations of
tinbich 11 were dated in May 1943, and 15 undated ; that of this number 25 bore the
apparently genuine original signatures of persons whose names appear on the Company's
current pay roll for the mail room department , containing the names of 56 employees
currently employed , including the names of 12 employees known as inserters whom the
I. T. U. would exclude from the appropriate unit, but whom the Company and the Associa-
tion would include therein . The Association relied upon its contract as evidence of its
interest in the proceeding and also introduced in evidence at the hearing 2 petitions
requesting continued representation by the Association and signed respectively by 10
regular mailing room employees and by 11 of the 12 women inserters , all of which signatures
corresponded to the names of persons on the said pay roll of the Company, according to a
check made and reported by the Trial Examiner at the hearing.
The employees referred to are Emil Beuritz and John Noellert.
THE A. S. ABELL COMPANY 1165
paper, certain comic and magazine sections. This work consumes
a full 5-day week and when it is done, the final step of completing
the paper, by adding the news and sports sections, is effected by the
mailers and extra help on Saturday of each week. The inserters
work from Monday through Friday,, both inclusive. Two days a
Week the inserters go to another building and there perform the
work of inserting said sections of the paper. At the present time,
the inserters perform no other operations in connection with the
daily papers.
The I. T. U. bases its request for the exclusion of women inserters
upon the ground that these employees are not skilled mailers; that
they are not eligible to membership in and have not been solicited
by the I. T. U. On the other hand, while these employees are at
present confined to the work of inserting, the Company plans shortly
to broaden their activities to include the other functions of mailers
in anticipation of such time as when, by reason of the increasing
manpower shortage, the entire mailing room may eventually be op-
erated by women employees. Accordingly, it is the view of the Com-
pany that women inserters are essentially apprentices and are paid
wages corresponding to those of mail room apprentices.5
While the women inserters have not to date been represented under
the. collective bargaining agreement between the Company and the
Association," their male predecessors whose positions they now hold
were covered by a supplemental agreement of March 5, 1942,7 though
subject to certain differences in treatment due to the necessity-of
not interfering with the existing seniority and vacation privileges
of other mailing room employees. Moreover, it appears that the
work of inserting is part and parcel of mailing room work and is
frequently performed by regular mailing room employees in con-
nection with other work. Under these circumstances, including the
fact that women inserters are to a large extent presently organized
by the Association, we find that they have substantial interests in
common with the other mailing room employees. We shall, accord-
ingly, include them within the appropriate unit.
Fred W. Gleim. This employee, who is one of the Company's oldest
employees, is in charge of the women who do the work of inserting
" The I . T U admits to membership ordinary apprentices but contends that women
inserters do not fall within this category upon the ground that they are not "practical
mailers "
6 The women employees here concerned were hired since the execution of the agreement
However, it appears that the work of " inserting" has been included among other mailing
room functions under a collective bargaining agreement with another Baltimore publisher, as
well as in agreements with a number of publishers in Washington, D. C
I The supplemental agreement modified the original agreement of February 19, 1941, by
including certain named employees who were then listed as piece workers and who were
performing the functions of inserters . The supplemental agreement put these men on a
salary basis which amounted to an increase in pay.
1166 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
and whom he keeps supplied with material for such work. In addi-
tion, he directs the work of the extra help on Saturdays and makes,
a record of the production of such extra help who are paid on a piece-
rate basis. Gleim is generally regarded by employees as supervisor
of the color department and is carried on his employment card' as
an assistant foreman. There is also evidence to the effect that Gleim
is considered as having the power to recommend the hiring and dis-
charging of employees. While there is no evidence that such action
has ever been taken as the result of Gleim's recommendations, it is
a reasonable assumption that Gleim's recommendations, in view of
his substantial supervisory duties, would be given effective weight in
situations involving the status of employees under his supervision.
We shall, accordingly, exclude him from the appropriate unit.
Emil Beuritz. This employee has been working regularly for the
past 3 or 4 months. His work consists of laying down paper bottoms
upon which other employees place bundles of newspapers. He was
originally hired as a Saturday night man and subsequently was given
work to do during the week. However, he is paid by the hour similar
to the manner of temporary employees, whereas regular mailers draw
weekly salaries. There is also nothing in -the record to indicate that
while he now works during the week, he has been given a status dif-
ferent from that of 'a temporary Saturday employee. We find,. ac-
cordingly, that he is a temporary employee and shall exclude him
from the appropriate unit in accordance with 'the stipulation of the
parties providing for the exclusion of temporary employees.
John Noellert. This employee does the same work as Beuritz, pre-
viously referred to, and was hired on a temporary basis to take the
place of an employee who is out sick but who upon recovery is expected
to return to work. While there is no evidence as to when the em-
ployee whose position Noellert now occupies will resume his former
duties with the Company, there is also nothing to indicate that
Noellert has since been given a status different from that of temporary
employees. We find, accordingly, that he is a temporary employee
and shall exclude him from the appropriate unit.
We find that all employees of the Company's mailing department
who are engaged in mailing, addressing, stamping, labeling, wrap-
ping, marking wrappers, taking papers from escalators, stacking,
handling of mail sacks and tying bundles, and inserting, but exclud-
ing all temporary employees (including Emil Beuritz and John Noel-
lert), all utility helpers, all maintenance employees, porters, special
policemen, and all supervisory employees with the rank of assistant
foreman or above (including the night and day foremen and their
assistants), and all supervisory employees with authority to hire,
THE A. S. ABELL COMPANY 1167
promote, discharge, or effectively recommend 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 find that the question concerning representation which has
arisen can best be resolved by means of an election by secret ballot
among the employees in the appropriate unit who were employed dur-
ing the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direc-
tion of Election herein, subject to the limitations and additions set
forth in the Direction.
The I. T. U. requests that, in any election which is held, the name
of the Association be excluded from the ballot because it is no longer
in existence as a labor organization. In view, however, of our find-
ing that the record does not establish that the Association is incapable
of functioning as representative of the employees of the Company,
we do not believe that the Company's employees should be deprived
of an opportunity to select the Association as their collective bargain-
ing representative 8 We shall, therefore, direct that the name of
the Association appear on the ballot in the election hereinafter
directed.
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
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with The A. S. Abell
Company, Baltimore, Maryland, an election by secret ballot shall be
conducted as soon 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 Fifth 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,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
i
8 See Matter of National Battery Company, 28 N. L. R. B. 826.
1168 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
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 they desire to be represented by Baltimore
Mailers' Local No. 88, affiliated with International Typographical
Union, or by Sun Mail Room Employees Association, for the purposes
of collective bargaining, or by neither.
CHAIRMAN MILLis took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision and Direction of Election.