NLRB v. Thompson Ramo Wooldridge, Inc.

• Decision Date: 17 July 1962
• Docket Number: No. 13554.,13554.
• Citation: 305 F.2d 807
• Parties: NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD, Petitioner, v. THOMPSON RAMO WOOLDRIDGE, INC., Respondent.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

305 F.2d 807 (1962)

NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD, Petitioner, v. THOMPSON RAMO WOOLDRIDGE, INC., Respondent.

No. 13554.

United States Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit.

July 17, 1962.

Marcel Mallet-Prevost, Asst. Gen. Counsel, Margaret M. Farmer, Attorney, National Labor Relations Board, Washington, D. C., Stuart Rothman, Gen. Counsel, Dominick L. Manoli, Associate Gen. Counsel, Rosanna A. Blake, for petitioner.

Eugene B. Schwartz, Edward J. Simerka, Stanley, Smoyer & Schwartz, Cleveland, Ohio, for respondent.

Before SCHNACKENBERG, KNOCH and KILEY, Circuit Judges.

KILEY, Circuit Judge.

This is a petition under § 10(e) of the National Labor Relations Act¹ by the National Labor Relations Board for enforcement of its order, against respondent, to cease and desist from unfair labor practices in violation of the Act; and to take affirmative "remedial action."

Respondent's home office is in Cleveland, Ohio. Its Dage Television Division is located in Michigan City, Indiana. In 1956 Dage employees, with help of respondent's officials, organized the Dage Employees Association. Early in 1960 Dage employed about sixty hourly employees and about 125 salaried employees, all of whom, including supervisors and officers, "with at least 30 days seniority," were members of the Association. On January 19, 1960 the Teamsters Union² distributed leaflets to respondent's employees. This activity grew into the events subject of the NLRB complaint and the order before us.

The Teamsters filed the charges upon which the Board's complaint against respondent issued. The relevant issues, made by the Board's complaint and respondent's answer, before the trial examiner were (a) whether respondent violated § 8(a) (1)³ of the Act by interrogating employees about union activities and by prohibiting union solicitation on company premises at all times; (b) whether it discharged employee Rachel Treece in violation of § 8(a) (3):⁴ and (c) whether the Association was a "labor organization" dominated and supported by respondent in violation of § 8(a) (2).⁵ Upon the "basically admitted facts" the trial examiner decided the issues against respondent. The Board adopted the findings, conclusions and recommendations of the trial examiner, except the recommendation as to Rachel Treece,⁶ and entered the order sought to be enforced.

The first question is whether the Board erred in concluding that respondent violated § 8(a) (1)⁷ of the Act by interrogating employees concerning their union activities: and in promulgating "an unduly broad no-solicitation rule."

The trial examiner considered this alleged violation in the context in which the questions were addressed to employees. This was proper under decisions of this court that the questions "cannot be considered as isolated words cut off from the relevant circumstances and background." N. L. R. B. v. Kropp Forge Co., 7 Cir., 178 F.2d 822, 827-829 (1949), cert. denied, 340 U.S. 810, 71 S.Ct. 36, 95 L.Ed. 595 (1950); N. L. R. B. v. Wagner Iron Works, 7 Cir., 220 F.2d 126, 139-140 (1955), cert. denied, 350 U.S. 981, 76 S.Ct. 466, 100 L.Ed. 850 (1956).

The relevant circumstances and background are the distribution by the Teamsters of the leaflets to respondent's employees on January 19, 1960; the Dage plant manager's immediate call to the home office in Cleveland; respondent's personnel director's arrival at Dage the next day and his conference with Dage officials; Dage Manager Lahey's notice, that day, to the employees through two "line foremen," Dalman and Cloud, of "last night's unfortunate incident of the Teamsters Union's attempt to organize." The notice stated the "unenviable reputation" of the Teamsters, that there was no necessity for "any outside union entering into our relationships," and that management's "position in this matter" would be expressed in a letter to the employees. The next day each employee received a letter denouncing the motives of the Teamsters and inviting employees to bring their complaints and problems "in the open": and if the "outside union" approached you "tell him" "how you feel." It was at this time that Dalman spoke to "several women employees." "I asked, `Where do we stand with the Union'" or "what did the girls think of the union." Later he talked to other women and asked them what they thought of the union's chances.

January 28, Manager Lahey called a meeting of the Association Board to discuss the Teamsters "matter" openly, and it was decided to amend the Association Charter. February 5 a notice was posted stating management had learned that "solicitation for fund raising * * * and organizational memberships, had become more frequent in recent weeks," and prohibiting "any unauthorized solicitations for any purpose on company time or on company property." February 17 Mrs. Treece, who had passed union applications to fellow employees, was discharged.

We think the Board's conclusion from these undisputed facts that respondent violated § 8(a) (1) of the Act by interrogation of its employees is not erroneous. The question of the prohibitory rules is not argued because respondent admitted the prohibition was a violation and applied the proper remedy.

Cases cited by respondent are not persuasive. In N. L. R. B. v. Arthur Winer, Inc., 7 Cir., 194 F.2d 370, 373 (1952), there was a "serious question" of the sufficiency of evidence to sustain many findings of the examiner. In Sax v. N. L. R. B., 7 Cir., 171 F.2d 769 (1948), and N. L. R. B. v. Armour & Co., 5 Cir., 213 F.2d 625 (1954), the "perfunctory, innocuous remarks" stood "alone". And in N. L. R. B. v. Pecheur Lozenge Co., Inc., 2 Cir., 209 F.2d 393 (1953) the questions were of "trivial consequence." N. L. R. B. v. Columbus Iron Works Co., 5 Cir., 217 F.2d 208 (1954) concerned a connection between an employee's discharge and the questions of "only one of respondent's fifty supervisors." And in N. L. R. B. v. Peerless Products Co., 7 Cir., 264 F.2d 769 (1959) the employers told employees they could have a union if they wanted one and the court thought that the questions asked were not intended to, and did not, interfere with employee rights.

The next question is whether the Board erred in concluding that the Association was a labor organization within the meaning of § 2(5)⁸ of the Act.

The admitted and undisputed evidence showed consultation by Lahey with the Association Board of Representatives about their preference for a paid holiday; and that Personnel Officer Watkins agreed to investigate a grievance over failure of an employee to receive a wage rate presented by the Board of Representatives. There was also in evidence the company's printed policy "Do You Have A Grievance" outlining steps to be taken on grievances and "You are entitled to have a fellow employee accompany you, if you feel it will help you in explaining your case." And there is evidence that respondent's officials sometimes discussed grievances with representative committees as individuals representing employees. The Board concluded that respondent recognized that a function of an employees association was presentation of individual grievances, and that this function was enough to justify the finding that the Association was a "labor organization."

We cannot say that the Board's conclusion that the Association was a "labor organization" is erroneous. The conclusion is supported by the rule in National Labor Relations Board v. Cabot Carbon Co., 360 U.S. 203, 213, 79 S.Ct. 1015, 3 L.Ed.2d 1175 (1959), "that these Committees existed, at least in part, for the purpose `of dealing with employers concerning grievances * * *.' This alone brings these Committees squarely within the statutory definition of `labor organizations.'" True, in that case the committees made recommendations and here there is no evidence of recommendations being made. But express recommendation is not essential to "dealing," if discussion between respondent and the Association Board was designed to remedy grievances.

We see no merit in respondent's argument that there was insufficient evidence of employee participation in the...