Peterzell & Gelles, Inc.

346 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD bargaining units because one group keeps sales records and another keeps the records of purchases. As the receiving clerks are only a segment of the larger group of clerical employees working in the same offices and having similar duties, the Petitioner's request for a separate unit or to represent them as part of the production and maintenance unit is denied. Accordingly, having found that the unit requested by the Petitioner is inappropriate, we shall dismiss the petition. Order IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition filed herein be, and it hereby is, dismissed. PETERZELL & GELLES, INC. and UNITED TEXTILE WORKERS OF AMERICA, AFL, PETITIONER. Case No. 15-RC487. May 8, 1951 Decision and Direction of Election Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before Charles A. Kyle, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hear- ing are free from prejudicial error'and are hereby affirmed.' Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member panel [Chairman Herzog and Members Houston and Murdock]. Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds : 2 1. The Employer is-engaged in commerce within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. The labor organization involved claims to represent certain em- ployees of the Employer. 3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa- tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. 4. The parties generally agree that a unit of all production and maintenance employees, excluding supervisors, is appropriate. The 1 We find no merit in the contention of the Employer that this proceeding should be stayed because of the pendency of unfair labor practice charges filed by the Petitioner against the Employer and by the Employer against the Petitioner . The Petitioner has filed a waiver with the Board in Case No . 15-CA-184, and the General Counsel has sus- tained the Regional Director 's dismissal of the charges filed by the Employer against the Petitioner in Case No. 15-CB-41. Kimsey Manufacturing Company, 87 NLRB 651; Olin Industries, Winchester Repeating Arms Company Division, 85 NLRB 396; South Georgia Pecan Shelling Company, 85 NLRB 591. 2 The Employer requested the Board to, reject the Petitioner's brief because it was filed after the expiration of the time limit given to the parties for the filing of briefs, and because it contained new factual material without verification. As the Petitioner's brief was not timely filed, we have not considered it in arriving at our decision. 94 NLRB No. 56. PETERZELL & GELLES, INC. 347 parties disagree as to the following job classifications: Watchmen, mechanics (fixers), time-study employees, employees in the production department, and office and clerical employees. The Employer would include these disputed classifications, whereas the Petitioner would exclude them.3 Watchmen: There are three full-time and one part-time watchmen, who work under the supervision of the maintenance foreman. They are not armed or deputized. Their primary duty is that of guarding the Employer's premises against unauthorized entrance and keeping a watch for fire. Between 6 p. m. and 6 a. in., the watchmen make rounds every hour and punch watchmen's clocks at various stations throughout the plant.4 Each round takes from 20 to 25 minutes. The watchmen also do some janitorial and maintenance work such as sweeping , painting, moving and setting up presses and sewing machines, and maintaining the boiler operations .5 The record does not show how much of their time is thus spent. If less than 50 percent of the watchmen's working time is spent in watchmen's duties, they.shall, in accordance with our usual practice, be regarded as maintenance employees and be included in the unit.'- Mechanics : 7 There are five mechanics and an apprentice who work in the knitting department, and two who work in the sewing depart- ment." They repair and adjust the knitting and sewing machines used in the Employer's operations. There is a machine shop for each department where major repairs and those which cannot be done in the plant are made. The mechanics do not have authority to hire, discharge, or effectively to recommend a change in status of other ernployeess As no other union is seeking to represent these employees in a separate unit, we shall include the mechanics in the production and maintenance unit .10 Time-study employees: There are two time-study employees whose function is timing the various elements of production jobs as deter- 8 The Petitioner wishes to exclude these employees because it has not sought to organize them. Neither the Petitioner 's Jurisdictional limitations on membership , nor the extent of its organizational activities, are grounds for excluding employees whose inclusion in the unit would otherwise be appropriate. Miller and Rhoads, Incorporated, 86 NLRB 625; Mutual Rough Hat Company, 86 NLRB 440 ; Cannell & Chanln, Inc., 85 NLRB 887. 4 There are no rounds made while the mill is in operation between 7 : 15 a. in. and 6 p. m. , The Employer does not employ any firemen or boilermen . The second and third shift watchmen maintain' the boiler operations entirely, and the first shift watchman starts and helps maintain the boiler for heating and steam. "Henry C. Lytton & Company, 88 NLRB 268; Lake Superior District Power Company, 87 NLRB 8; Mixer and Company, 86 NLRB 656. '' The mechanics are also known as fixers. 8 There are 12 knitters in the knitting department. 6 There is a conflict in the testimony as to the power of the mechanics to lay off employees. On the basis of the entire record, we are persuaded , as testified by the Employer, that these employees do not have any supervisory authority. io Shelburne Shirt Co , Inc., 86 NLRB 1308; Riverside Mills, 85 NLRB 969 ; Inman Mills, 82 NLRB 735; Boaz Mills, Inc., 78 NLRB 1086; The Pierce-Williams Company, 76 NLRB 1002. 348 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD mined by the plant engineer, under whose supervision they work. They report their findings to the engineer, who, after checking and reviewing these findings, uses this information to determine and fix piece rates. The time-study employees do not select the elements of a. job which are to be timed, and have nothing to do with the fixing of rates. No special education, training, or experience is necessary for this work. The period of training required is only long enough to teach the time-study employees how to read a slide rule and handle a stop watch. This usually can be learned in a week or less 11 The time-study employees do not have authority to hire or discharge employees, or effectively to recommend such action. They do not super- vise or direct other employees in their work. Their pay rates are the same as those of the production employees. We find that the time-study employees are not office clericals, as contended by the Petitioner, and that despite the clerical aspects of their work, their interests and duties are sufficiently allied to those of the other employees in the unit to warrant their inclusion in that unit .12 Production department employees: There are six employees in this department who, from information secured from customers' orders, issue work orders or job tickets to the initial processing department 13 After they have broken down orders into convenient manufacturing units, they make bundle tickets which go to the sewing department, and accompany the bundles through each of the various operations until the garments are finished. They keep daily progress reports on the status of all orders.'' In order to determine the status of par- ticular orders, they maintain close contact with the manufacturing and processing operations, checking frequently with the different produc- tion departments 15 We are of the opinion that the production department employees have a, community of interest with the production and maintenance employees. We shall include them in the unit's Clerical department employees: The Employer's main office where all purchasing, sales, and accounting work is done, is located in New York. There are approximately 30 office and clerical employees work- ing at the mill. Most of the clerical work done by employees in the office at the mill is that necessary to assist the mill in carrying out its production activities. All of the clerical employees whose inclusion 11 The time-study employees received their training at the Employer 's mill. One of them had previously been a typist in the mill office 'Z Aragon-Baldwvin Mills, Inc, Aragon Plant, 80 NLRB 1042. i' This may be the cutting or the knitting department. 14 These reports are written up at a desk in the plant office. 35 When necessary, they check with the employees actually doing the work. 36 Cf Watson-Flagg Machine Co., 83 NLRB 734. PETERZELL & GELLES, IIQC. 349 in the unit is contested by the Petitioner are hourly paid, as are some of the production employees. All of these employees work under the supervision of the plant comptroller, who also supervises the em- ployees in the shipping, receiving, and stockroom departments 1' They work the same hours as do other employees in the mill, and have the same benefits and working conditions. None does any production work. The following are the clerical employees whose inclusion in the unit is in dispute 18 Eva Ruth Wyatt: This employee determines from correspondence what garment labels and hangers are to be used for a given order. She- is responsible for seeing that the proper labels and hangers are usedIL on the garments. She works with the operators in the finishing de- partment to see that they are supplied with necessary materials. She sometimes changes the hanger that is being used by an operator for another, to meet a particular customer's demand. She does not, how- ever, supervise any of the finishing department employees. About 50 percent of her time is spent in the mill. The remainder of her time is spent in the office doing clerical work in connection withler work in the mill. She is designated on the payroll as being in the order and registry department. We believe that Wyatt is essentially a plant clerical employee, such as we have customarily included in units of production and mainte- nance employees. We shall include her in the unit. Laverne Howard: She is in charge of the boxes used to pack the Employer's products, and is responsible for seeing that there are boxes at the mill for all orders on hand. She keeps an inventory of the boxes, and as they are unloaded from the truck checks them in to ascertain that everything ordered has been received. She orders special boxes required by customers, and checks to make sure they are in the milt when needed. Howard spends more than half of her time working with the order packers in the boxing department, selecting the proper size boxes to meet the customer's requirements. If the customer does not express any preference for the way the garments are to be boxed, she deter- mines which boxes are to be used.' She also determines the most economical method of packing, and works with the boxer and folder to find the best way to fold a particular garment to fit the box. When not, working in the mill, Howard works at a desk in the office on related work. She is on the procurement department payroll. 17 There have been some temporary transfers from the clerical staff of the shipping, receiving, and stockroom departments. "The record does not clearly show the duties and functions of all the office and clerical. employees The remaining clerical employees appear to be stenographers and typists- We shall exclude them from the unit as office clerical employees 19 Howard's decisions are subject to the approval of the plant comptroller. 350 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD We find that Howard is a factory clerical employee, and shall include her in the unit 20 Delores Vaughn: She is a sample expediter who spends about 70 per- cent of her time in various departments in the mill, seeing that samples follow the proper schedule and get shipped to the customer. She has no supervisory authority.21 She sometimes cuts swatches of cloth to accompany a sample to the customer to show the other colors and ,designs that are available in that particular line. When necessary, she boxes, wraps, and mails samples. When not in the mill, she works in the office making up weekly sample reports and handling correspond- ence to the New York office and to customers with reference to samples.22 We find that Vaughn's interests are similar to those of the production employees, and shall include her in the unit.23 Supply clerks: There are two clerks who maintain an inventory of consumable supplies and findings.- They work with the production departments in determining what supplies and findings will be used. When the exact shade of thread is not available, they advise the oper- ators what substitutions may be made. Roberts watches the operators to make sure they use the thread and other findings in accordance with plans made by the Employer. She frequently dyes zippers in order to use up stock, instead of buying new stock. She spends approximately 40 percent of her time working with the production employees in the mill. Williams spends about 35 percent of her time in the mill. Although they handle some purchasing, very little is done from the mill because raw material purchases are made through the New York office. Roberts does some procurement work, such as ordering machine parts and supplies. She writes up requisitions for them, and follows up the order to make sure the needed parts come in. Williams also handles some accounts payable bills. She attaches receiving tickets to invoices which are then sent to the New York office. We believe that the interests of these employees are closely con- nected with those of the production and maintenance employees.25 We shall include them in the unit. Payroll clerks: There are four clerks who record the employees' time as shown on their time cards and piece-rate production reports.26 They spend some time in the mill checking with the piece-rate workers 20 Cf. TWm. P. McDonald Corporation, 83 NLRB 427. 21 If Vaughn finds that a sample is not ready for shipment on time, she makes a report on it to the plant comptroller. 22 These letters are sometimes typed by one of the typists in the office. 22 Gluck Bros ., Inc., 83 NLRB 683: General Electric Company, 81 NLRB 654; Orleans Materials & Equipment Co, Incorporated, 76 NLRB 351. 24 The supply clerks are Lula Roberts and Anita Williams. 25 Cf Southern Athletic Company, Inc ., 86 NLRB 908 ; Goodall Company, 80 NLRB 562. 26 The payroll clerks are Bernice Carter, Emma Rae Cole, Shirley Slater, and Margie Lopez. PETERZELL & GELLES, INC. 351 to make sure the information is properly recorded. They fill the payroll envelopes, and distribute them to the production employees. One of the clerks, Carter, spends about half of her time operating the switchboard. We believe that these payroll clerks have a greater community of interest with the office clericals than with the production and main- tenance employees. We shall therefore exclude them from the unit 2r Lili Palner: This employee is an expediter of chain store orders ; she goes into the mill to follow up the orders of various large chain stores. If an order is not moving properly, she checks with the production employees to see what the bottleneck is. If she cannot correct the situation herself, she makes a report to the plant comptroller. When requests are received from customers to accelerate a delivery date, it is her responsibility to see that the orders are speeded up. She spends at least 75 percent of her time in the mill. She is listed on the payroll as being in the order and registry department. We believe that her interests lie with those of the production employees, and shall include her in the unit. Bernice Dickens: She spends approximately 50 percent of her time in the mill taking orders from employees for garments the Employer manufactures. The remainder of her time is spent in the office writing up these orders, and assisting Roberts, one of the supply clerks. We do not believe that her duties and interests are closely connected with those of the production and maintenance employees. We shall exclude her from the unit. Sales order correspondence clerk (Joyce Green) : She secures in- formation from department heads and production employees in order to answer inquiries from customers concerning orders. She then drafts letters to the customers for the signature of the plant comp- troller. She also supervises employees in the order and registry de- partment.23 We shall exclude her from the unit as a supervisor. Jean Whatley: This employee is a typist and dictaphone operator. She also models some garments produced by the Employer. We find that her duties and interests are separate and distinct from those of the production and maintenance employees, and shall therefore exclude her from the unit. We find that all production and maintenance employees at the Employer's Pascagoula, Mississippi, mill, including the mechanics, time-study employees, production department employees, Eva Ruth Wyatt, Laverne Howard, Delores Vaughn, the supply clerks, Lili Palner, but excluding the payroll clerks, Bernice Dickens, Joyce T'Cf Buckeye Rural Electric Co-Operative, Inc, 88 NLRB 196; The Electric Auto-Lite Company, 87 NLRB 129; Boeing Airplane Company, 86 NLRB 368; Western Electric Company, hte, 85 NLRB 227. 2s Green does not have authority to hire or discharge employees , or effectively to recommend such action. 352 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD Green, Jean Whatley, all other office and clerical employees, and supervisors, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of col- lective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (c) of the Act. [Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this volume.] LARRANCE TANK CORPORATION and INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF BOILERMAKERS, IRON SHIP BUILDERS AND HELPERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL 592, AFL. Cases Nos. 16-CA-241 and 16-CA-264. May 9, 1951 Decision and Order On December 29, 1950, Trial Examiner Albert P. Wheatley issued his Intermediate Report in the above-entitled proceeding, finding that the Respondent had engaged in and was engaging in certain unfair labor practices and recommending that it cease and desist therefrom and take certain affirmative action, as set forth in the copy of the Intermediate Report attached hereto. Thereafter the Re- spondent filed exceptions to the Intermediate Report and a supporting brief. The Board 1 has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial error was committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. The. Board has considered the Intermediate Report, the Respondent's exceptions and brief, and the entire record in the case and, finding merit in the Respondent's exceptions, hereby adopts only such of the Trial Examiner's findings and conclusions as are consistent with this Decision and Order. On February 21 and March 29, 1950, respectively, as found by the Trial Examiner, the Union filed charges and amended charges in Case No. 16-CA-241 alleging, inter alia, that the Respondent had refused to bargain in violation of Section 8 (a) (5) and (1) of the Act. On April 7, 1950, the Respondent and the Union executed a settlement agreement with respect to the charges in that case. The settlement agreement required the Respondent to post notices for 60 days stating that it would not interfere with, restrain, or coerce its employees in the exercise of their rights under the Act, and that it would bargain collectively with the Union. The record establishes that the Respond- ent posted such notices for the required period, and that the Regional Director was advised that the notices had been posted. The Trial Examiner in the instant case relies on conduct of the Respondent ' Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with this case to a three-member panel [Members Houston , Reynolds, and Styles]. °4 NLRB No. 71.