Flint Manufacturing Co.

In the Matter of FLINT MANUFACTURING COMPANY and UNITED TEx- TILE WORKERS OF AMERICA (A. F. OF L.) Case No. B-5730.-Decided August 21,1943 Mr. George B. Mason, of Gastonia, N. C., for the Company. Mr. J. L. Hamnne, of Gastonia, N. C., Mr. Johrl W. Pollard, of Spar- tanburg, S. C., and Mr. C. E. Earnhardt, of Salisbury, N. C., for the Union. Mr. Glenn L. Moller, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION I I STATEMENT OF THE CASE Upon a petition duly filed by United Textile Workers of Amer- ica (A. F. of L.), herein called the Union, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of em- ployees of Flint Manufacturing Company, Gastonia, North Carolina, at its Plants Nos. 1 and 2, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice before Robert A. Levett, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at Gastonia, North Carolina, on July 22, 1943. The Company and the Union appeared, participated, and were afforded full op- portunity 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 Flint Manufacturing Company, a North Carolina corporation, op- erates two plants at Gastonia, North Carolina, where it is engaged in the manufacture, sale and distribution of combed yarns, practically all of which are used in the manufacture of material for Army and Navy uniforms. _ 52 N. L. R. B., No. 14. 63 64 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD The principal raw material used by the Company at the Gastonia plants is cotton, approximately.90-,percent;of which-is shipped to the, said plants from points outside the State of North Carolina. The Company's purchases of cotton for processing at the aforesaid plants amount in value to approximately $1,000,000 annually. The Com- pany ships about 75 percent of the finished products of the Gastonia plants to points outside the State of North Carolina. Such finished products amount in value annually to approximately $2,000,000. The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within `the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act. II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED United Textile Workers of America, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, is a labor organization admitting. to member- ship employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION The parties stipulated that the Union requested recognition by the Company as the exclusive bargaining representative of its employees and that the Company refused such recognition on the ground that it doubted the Union's alleged majority status and on the further ground that the alleged bargaining unit, was inappropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. A statement of the Regional Director, introduced into evidence at the hearing, and a supplemental statement by the Trial Examiner at the hearing indicate that the Union represents a substantial number of employees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate., We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The Union seeks a unit composed of all production and maintenance .employees at botli,plahts'of the Company,;'e$cludiilgisuperiisory^em- ployees and clerical employees.2 The principal dispute concerns the ' The Regional Director reported that the Union submitted 177 authorization cards bearing apparently genuine signatures of persons listed on the Company 's pay roll of June 18 , 1943, which contained the names of 476 employees in the appropriate unit. The Union submitted to the Trial Examiner at the hearing 21 additional cards bearing appar- ently genuine unduplicated signatures of persons whose names appear on the Company's pa} roll of the same date In a previous decision , the Board dismissed a petition of, the Union for an , election confined to Plant No . 2 of the Company's operations on the ground that a single plant unit \\ as inappropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining . -This decision was based primarily upon the high degree of functional integration between the two plants. The Union in the instant proceeding is petitioning for a unit which includes the employees of both plants Matter of Flint Mfg. Co. ( Plant No. Z), 49 N L. R. B. 1084. FLINT MANUFACTURING COMPANY 65 classification of several categories of employees whom the Union con- tends are supervisory employees and would therefore exclude from the appropriate unit . These categories are section hands, fixers, and -card grinders. The Company contends that the employees in the afore- mentiohed"categories are not supervisory and should therefore be in- cluded in the unit. ' The Company also wishes to include clerical employees in the unit. The parties stipulated that the plant superin- tendent, the four overseers , the master mechanic, and the office man- ager are supervisory employees and should be excluded. There are 12 section hands, 6 in each plant. They are paid on an hourly basis, although their wage rate is considerably higher than that of the ordinary production and maintenance employees. They keep time records for all piece -rate and hourly paid employees under their supervision. In addition, they set the frames for changes in the size and type of thread produced . Section hands do not have authority to hire or discharge other employees, but it is their duty to mare recommendations with respect to promotion , discharge, and discipline and their recommendations are generally the basis for such action by the overseers and usually have controlling influence on de- cisions involving the status of employees . The plant superintendent described the section hands as the "mouthpiece" for the overseers, the means by which management maintains actual contact with the work- ers. Clearly section hands are supervisory employees with authority and responsibility ' for making. recommendations affecting the status of their subordinates: ' W'e' 'sliall exclude them. from the unit. There are 12 fixers and 2 card grinders, divided equally between the two plants. They are the skilled maintenance workers whose func- tion is to keep the machinery in correct adjustment. On occasion, it is necessary for fixers and card grinders to obtain help , although only for a few minutes at a time. Their need for assistance is not suffi- ciently great that it is necessary to provide regular helpers for them. When a helper is needed, the fixer or card grinder usually calls upon whatever employee happens to be near by. They are paid on an hourly basis , like other production and maintenance employees, and have the same vacation privileges and the same recreational and rest facilities fas;the;other production ;and, maintenance employees. The Union contends and the Company denies that fixers and card grinders have authority to recommend discharge . The evidence indi- cates that fixers and card grinders have the right to complain of unsat- isfactory work by employees - whose work affects their own, just as any other employees can 'complain of unsatisfactory work' affecting them. , Such complaints cannot be said to be an effective recommenda- tion of disciplinary action. The record does not indicate that it is the duty or responsibility of fixers and card grinders to recommend dis 66 DE'CTSSIONS OF NIATIONAL LABOR RELAfrIONS BOARD charge or, other disciplinary action. We shall include them • in the appropriate units I , The Union would exclude the two clerical employees from'tile unit while the Company would include them. The clerical employees work in' a separate building located between the two plants. We custom- arily exclude clerical employees from units of production employees in the absence of some compelling reason for including them. They are not eligible to membership in the Union and the Union has made no attempt to organize them. We shall exclude the clerical employees from the unit. In accordance with the stipulation of the parties and the above con- clusions, we find that all production and maintenance employees of the Company, at its two plants at Gastonia, North Carolina, including fixers, card grinders, and watchmen, but excluding clerical employees, the plant superintendent, overseers, the master, mechanic, and office manager, section hands and any other supervisory employees with authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively to 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 shall direct that the question concerning representation which has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em= ployees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction. 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 Relations 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 Flint Manufactur- ing Company, Gastonia, North Carolina, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and super- vision 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. 3 Matter of Aponaug Mfg. Co., 36 N. L. R. B. 371. FLINT MANUFACTURING COMPANY 67 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 of the United States who present themselves in person at the polls, but excluding those employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by United Textile Workers of America, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, for the purposes of collectiv' bargaining. CHAIRMAN MILLfs took no part in the consideration of the above Decision and Direction of Election. 54J87:3 -44 -yol. 52 --(