|
|
|
OFFICE OF THE UMPIRE No. C-160 JANUARY 11, 1944
Job Classification and Wage Rate
GRIEVANCE: Olds Forge Plant No. 1 -- Case C-12 "I request that back pay be given me from the time the line was changed over. This is a conveyor tending job and should be paid as such."
Umpire’s Decision:
In the Matter of: United Automobile Workers of America—C.I.O.—Local 652 and General Motors Corporation—General Motors Forge Plant No. 1 – Case C-12
On July 21, 1943, Employee R. presented a grievance which read as follows: "I request that back pay be given me from the time the line was changed over. This is a conveyor tending job and should be paid as such". A hearing on this matter was held in Lansing, on December 7, 1943.
Nature of Case When the local wage agreement was negotiated at the General Motors Forge Plant No. 1 on December 31, 1941, a conveyor carried 75 MM shells only as far as a paint machine. The shells were then painted, were taken out of the painting machine by an operator and were placed on a bench for inspection. After inspection the shells were rolled to one end of the inspection bench to an employee whose duty it was to pack them into cartons. The operation of packing the shells in cartons was negotiated and classified as "Packer .95 -- 1.01". This rate has since been increased by a Directive of the War Labor Board to $.99 -- 1.05 per hour. It is contended by the Union that the aforesaid classification rightly should be designated as "Conveyor Attendant—Loader or Unloader", and that Employee R. should be entitled to an increase in rate retroactively to the date of the instant grievance. Union Claim The Union contends that at the time of the original rate negotiations for the classification of "Packer", the job content required that the work be done by hand. It claims that several men were needed to set up cartons, put in shells, seal the cartons and mark the code letters on the cartons. These men all worked in one group, the Union notes, and received the "Packer’s" rate of pay. A change in this method was instituted by Management, the Union holds, so that the men who were formerly classed as Packers experienced a large increase in the amount of shells handled and were required to be in constant attendance on the conveyor line. To all intents and purposes, the Union maintains, the duties of these men became equivalent to those classed as Conveyor Attendants. The Union further contends that at the time of the original signing of the local wage agreement, the job content of the "Packer" classification did not include any provision for an "automatic conveyor". The Union further maintains that changes in methods of manufacture or production make it mandatory upon Management to negotiate with the Union and establish a new "meeting of the minds" as to proper wage rates and job classifications. To follow any other procedure, the Union concludes, would result in unilateral setting of wage rates and job classifications. The Union asks, therefore, that the job presently classified as "Packer" be reclassified to that of "Conveyor Attendant—Loader or Unloader", and that the proper rate applicable to this operation be paid Employee R. on a retroactive basis. Corporation Position The Corporation maintains that the operation performed by Employee R. was recognized by the parties to be a packing operation during the discussions leading up to the signing of the local wage agreement on December 31, 1941, and that a wage rate of this classification was negotiated and included in that wage agreement. The Corporation states that the primary function of Employee R. is to pack the shells into cartons. The installation of a packing machine immediately behind his place of work in no way added to his responsibilities and did not necessitate any requirement of added skill or experience on his part in the performance of his packing operation, the Corporation holds. The shells must be packed regardless of how they arrive at the packing station, the Corporation notes, and the addition of a mechanical means of conveying the shells to the operator at the packing post did not necessarily result in an increase in the number of shells to be packed. The Corporation reasons that constant improvements in methods of operation and the addition of new and better equipment all contribute toward the attainment of increased production in the manufacture of any article. The Corporation concludes that the Union’s claim that the job has been changed in a manner sufficient to warrant a reclassification is not proper and is not based upon fact.
Observations and Decision of the Umpire Because there was some difference of opinion as to the actual content of the packing job involved in this case, the Umpire felt it necessary to have an inspection made of the job. The Assistant to the Umpire examined the job in question on January 5, 1944. The inspection divulged the fact that where formerly the packer was merely required to slide the shells off a bench directly into a carton, he now is required to lift each one of the shells and pass it across his body in an arc of approximately 150 degrees. While the actual physical effort involved in the packing task has been greatly increased by the addition of the automatic conveyor, there would not be sufficient reason in that fact alone to hold that any reconsideration of the rate for the job was warranted. In fact, if the production of the job had been increased considerably because of the elimination of certain "kinks" in prior steps of the productive process, there would still be no reason to hold that the rate was not applicable. However, the major point of significance in the change that has occurred in the packing task is the addition of the automatic conveyor. The packer now must gear his work directly to the tempo of a conveyor in a manner that was not present in any way at the time the original rate was established for this job at this particular plant. The necessity to gear himself directly to the work of the painters and examiners, and to keep the end of the conveyor clear of shells (the work of the whole line will stop if any shell touches the automatic lever just beyond the packing position) has affected his task considerably. While the job is still basically that of packing shells in cases, there has been such a significant change in the task that a reconsideration of the classification and rate is necessary. Inasmuch as the job in question is still so basically that of packing shells, the Umpire cannot hold that the job should be reclassified as "Conveyor Attendant". On the other hand, he cannot support Management in its contention that the job should be continued under the existing "Packer" classification and rate. Therefore, neither party can be supported entirely in their position. It is necessary to return this matter to the parties for negotiations so that they may mutually determine whether the present classification and rate should be continued for the job or whether some adjustment should be made therein. It should be understood by both parties that this finding applies only to the specific job involved and only to that job in General Motors Forge Plant No. 1.
Decision
Decision Signed G. Allan Dash, Jr. UMPIRE January 11, 1944. |