NOTICE: This
opinion is subject to formal revision before publication in the bound volumes
of NLRB decisions. Readers are requested
to notify the Executive Secretary, National Labor Relations Board,
WeCare Transportation, LLC and International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 294. Case
3–RC–11819
September 17, 2008
DECISION AND ORDER
By Chairman Schaumber and Member Liebman
On April 24, 2008,[1]
the Regional Director for Region 3 issued a Decision and Direction of Election
in which she found that the petitioned-for unit of long-haul truckdrivers
employed at the Employer’s
After careful consideration of the entire record, we find, contrary to the Regional Director, that the Employer has rebutted the presumption that the single-facility unit is appropriate, and we find that the unit must include the long-haul truckdrivers at the Weedsport facility. Accordingly, we grant review, reverse the Regional Director, and dismiss the petition.[3] We also deny as moot the Employer’s motion to stay the election.[4]
i. facts
The Employer transports various types of waste and other
materials from transfer stations and customers to landfills in
At the
The Weedsport office maintains the
A formal hiring committee, which is based out of the Weedsport terminal, makes all of the Employer’s hiring decisions.[8] The hiring committee is comprised of the Employer’s president, its CEO, and its controller. Requests for new hires at both facilities are made to the committee, which in turn determines whether the position must be filled. Dispatchers at both facilities often notify the committee if someone is seeking a job with the Employer, or they may take an application and pass it along to Wallace.
According to the Employer’s testimony, any terminations
and other major disciplinary decisions for drivers at either facility are to be
brought to Wallace’s attention at Weedsport.
He is responsible for investigating the conduct at issue and determining
whether discipline is warranted. There
have been no instances of disciplinary problems with the
There are three dispatchers at the Weedsport terminal and
one at the
Dispatcher Santoro is responsible for creating the daily
dispatch sheet at the
In addition to creating the dispatch sheet, Santoro and
the other dispatchers grant time-off to drivers, schedule their vacations, and
report driver performance/discipline issues to Wallace. However, it is undisputed that, at least with
respect to Santoro, the dispatcher exercises no independent judgment in
performing these duties. The Regional
Director specifically found that dispatcher Santoro is not a statutory
supervisor, and no party requested review of this finding.
All drivers are required to fill out a daily work order
detailing where they started their work, where they ended their work, what load
they picked up, and a bill of lading. At
the Canaan terminal, dispatcher Santoro collects these sheets and sends them to
Weedsport daily. He also collects the
Both groups of drivers primarily haul waste to the Seneca
Falls landfill in
The
Both groups of drivers are paid biweekly on the same day. They are compensated on a per drop basis, and the rates are the same for drivers at both terminals. They receive the same fringe benefits, such as medical, dental, and 401(k), and they receive the same employee handbook, drivers’ procedures manual, and safety manual. They also undergo the same job orientation.
There is no history of bargaining on either a single facility
or multifacility basis. As noted above,
the Employer began employment of the
ii. analysis
With respect to unit determinations of employees at single versus multilocation units, the Board has long held that a petitioned-for single-facility unit is presumptively appropriate, unless it has been so effectively merged into a more comprehensive unit, or is so functionally integrated, that it has lost its separate identity. See J & L Plate, Inc., 310 NLRB 429 (1993). The party opposing the single-facility unit has the heavy burden of rebutting its presumptive appropriateness. However, the Board “has never held or suggested that to rebut the presumption a party must proffer ‘overwhelming evidence . . . illustrating the complete submersion of the interests of employees at the single store,’ nor is it necessary to show that ‘the separate interests’ of the employees sought have been ‘obliterated.’” Petrie Stores Corp., 266 NLRB 75, 76 (1983).
To determine whether the single-facility presumption has been rebutted, the Board examines a number of community-of-interest factors, including (1) central control over daily operations and labor relations, including the extent of local autonomy; (2) similarity of employee skills, functions, and working conditions; (3) the degree of employee interchange; (4) the distance between the locations; and (5) bargaining history, if any exists. J & L Plate, Inc., supra at 429; R & D Trucking, Inc., 327 NLRB 531 (1999).
In finding the single-facility unit appropriate here, the
Regional Director found that, despite a lack of statutory supervisory
authority, the Canaan dispatcher operates with significant local autonomy over
that facility; there is a lack of contact and interchange between employees at
Contrary to the Regional Director, we find that there
exists a substantial degree of temporary employee interchange and functional
integration between the two terminals.
Further, we find that the autonomy at
The
Regional Director found substantial evidence of centralized
control of labor relations and operations.
Wages and benefits are determined centrally. Employee timecards, personnel files, customer
invoices, and other administrative records are processed and housed at the
Employer’s Weedsport terminal. All drivers
are given the same employee manual and driver procedures handbook. All drivers are paid on the same biweekly basis
and receive the same wages and benefits.
The Regional Director further found that employees at both facilities
have similar skills, job functions, and working conditions. This evidence supports finding a multifacility
unit. See Trane, 339 NLRB 866 (2003); Dayton
Transport Corp., 270 NLRB 1114 (1984).
In addition, we find significant employee interchange and
functional integration between the two terminals. From January through March 2008, the
Furthermore, on any given day, there are up to 14 (out of
18)
While the Regional Director relied on the absence of
contact between the Weedsport and Canaan drivers in finding the single-facility
unit appropriate, the record does not indicate that the
We further find, contrary to the Regional Director, that
the record evidence does not demonstrate the exercise of significant autonomy
over local terms and conditions through the
Furthermore, it is undisputed that Dispatcher Santoro does
not have the authority to terminate or discipline the
This
evidence indicates that Wallace effectively supervises the drivers at the
Although we acknowledge that there are 194 miles between
the
Accordingly, we find, contrary to the Regional Director,
that the only appropriate unit must include long-haul truckdrivers employed at
both the Weedsport and
ORDER
The petition is dismissed.
Dated,
______________________________________
Peter C. Schaumber, Chairman
______________________________________
Wilma B. Liebman, Member
(seal) National
Labor Relations Board
[1] All dates hereafter are in 2008, unless otherwise indicated.
[2] The parties stipulated that the appropriate unit shall includeall full-time and regular part-time long-haul truckdrivers, excluding residential area pickup employees (curbside drivers), dispatchers, mechanics, transfer station operations, clerical employees, professional employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act.
[3] The Petitioner has indicated that it is not willing to proceed to an election in a broader unit.
[4] Effective midnight December 28, 2007, Members Liebman, Schaumber, Kirsanow, and Walsh delegated to Members Liebman, Schaumber, and Kirsanow, as a three-member group, all of the Board’s powers in anticipation of the expiration of the terms of Members Kirsanow and Walsh on December 31, 2007. Pursuant to this delegation, Chairman Schaumber and Member Liebman constitute a quorum of the three-member group. As a quorum, they have the authority to issue decisions and orders in unfair labor practice and representation cases. See Sec. 3(b) of the Act.
[5] The
Employer acquired the Canaan terminal on November 15, 2007, and the
[6]
There is no evidence regarding the drivers employed by the Employer at its
[7] The parties took no position as to whether McNamara, Tingler, Jarrard, Wallace, or Seeley are statutory supervisors.
[8] The
record does not indicate whether this hiring committee is involved in the
hiring of employees at the Employer’s
[9] For instance, some drivers only take local runs, and some drivers are not certified for dump trailers or triples or other types of runs.
[10] Sometimes drivers will do a “drop and hook” at the customer site. This requires the driver to drop off his empty trailer at the customer’s site and pick up a previously loaded trailer at that location. The drivers also perform “shuttle runs,” which require the driver to go from the terminal to a customer and then back to the terminal. The driver does not go to the landfill in a shuttle run.
[11] The Weedsport dispatch sheet also lists subcontractors who provide service to Weedsport customers.
[12] “Eco” is presumably a remnant of the time when the terminal was owned by Eaco Operations.
[13] The temporary employees were directly supervised by the terminal manager from the point of dispatch. Dayton Transport, supra at 1116.
[14] The
Regional Director found little relevance in the fact that Canaan drivers
routinely appear on the Weedsport dispatch schedule, i.e., servicing Weedsport
customers, because there was no evidence that the
[15] Wallace must get approval from the Employer’s president, Thomas Jarrard, before actually terminating an employee.
[16] Because of the significant and substantial employee interchange between the Weedsport and Canaan drivers, the circumstances are distinguishable from those in Bowie Hall Trucking, supra at 43 (no evidence of substantial or significant employee interchange between terminals).