National Labor Relations Board v. E. C. Atkins & Co. (331 U.S. 398)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided May 19, 1947 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 331 U.S. 398 · 67 S. Ct. 1265
- Docket
- No. 419
- Argued
- March 7, 1947
- Decided
- May 19, 1947
- Term
- October Term 1946
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority author
- Justice Murphy
- Issue area
- Unions
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
How the Justices voted
- Majority
- Justice Burton, Justice Douglas, Justice Reed, Justice Black, Justice Rutledge, Justice Murphy (wrote)
- Dissenting
- Chief Justice Vinson (wrote), Justice R. H. Jackson (wrote), Justice Frankfurter (wrote)
Opinion excerpt
Mr. Justice Murphy delivered the opinion of the Court. The problem posed by this case is whether private plant guards, who are required to be civilian auxiliaries to the military police of the United States Army, are employees within the meaning of § 2 (3) of the National Labor Relations Act, 29 U. S. C. § 152 (3). At all material times, the respondent corporation was engaged in the manufacture of saws, tools and armor plate. It employed more than 1,200 production and maintenance employees at its two plants at Indianapolis, Indiana. Before it began to produce armor plate for defense and war purposes, respondent employed about six watchmen or guards. When it entered upon war production, however, the War Department required that an auxiliary military police force of sixty-four members be established to guard the plants. In 1943, after the necessary additional guards had been recruited, a union petitioned the National Labor Relations Board for investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to § 9 (c) of the Act. It was alleged that the union represented the sixty-four plant guards employed by respondent at its two plants. The respondent moved to dismiss the petition on the ground that it was not the employer of the guards within the meaning of § 2 (2) and that the guards were not employees as defined by § 2 (3). A hearing was thereupon held and evidence concerning…
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