Pee Dee Manufacturing Co.

In the Matter of PEE DEE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, PLANT No. 2 and TEXTILE WORKERS UNION OF AMERICA, C. I. 0. In the Matter Of PEE DEE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, PLANT No. 1 and TEXTILE WORKERS UNION OF AMERICA, C. I. 0. Cases Nos. 5-R-P308 and 5-R-23.19, respectively.-Decided July 11, 1946 Mr. W. S. Blakeney, of Charlotte, N. C., for the Company. Mr. M. W. Lynch, of Rockingham, N. C., and Mr. Julius R. Fry, of Charlotte, N. C., for the Union. Mr. Jerome J. Dick, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE Upon separate petitions duly filed by Textile Workers Union of America, C. I. 0., herein called the Union, alleging that questions affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of em- ployees of Pee Dee Manufacturing Company, Rockingham, North Carolina, herein called the Company, the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate consolidated hearing upon due notice before Charles Y. Latimer, Trial Examiner. The hearing was held at Rockingham, North Carolina, on June 4, 1946. The Company and the Union appeared and participated. All parties were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues. The Trial Exam- iner'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 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Pee Dee Manufacturing Company, a North Carolina corporation, is engaged in the manufacture of cotton textile products at its plant in 69 N. L. R. B., No. 48. 409 410 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD Rockingham, North Carolina. This plant consists of two buildings, which are known as Building No. 1 and Building No. 2. During the year 1945 the Company used at its plant raw materials exceeding $1,000,000 in value, of which 90 percent was received from points out- side the State of North Carolina. During the same period it manu- factured at its plant products exceeding $2,000,000 in value, of which approximately 75 percent was shipped to points outside the State of North Carolina. The Company does not deny, and we find, that it is engaged in corn, merce within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act. II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED Textile Workers Union of America is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to member- ship employees of the Company. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION The Company has refused to grant recognition to the Union as the exclusive bargaining representative of its employees until the Union has been certified by the Board in an appropriate unit. 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 requests a unit composed of all production and main- tenance employees of the Company's Rockingham, North Carolina, plant,' excluding office clericals, foremen, and other supervisory em- ployees. Although the Company is in substantial agreement, contrary to the Union's position, it would exclude yard men, on the ground that their interests are different from those of the production and main- tenance employees, and section men, on the ground that they are super- visory employees. The Company employs six yard men who maintain the plant yard by cutting grass, weeding the yard, and keeping the yard clean in general. They also work in the Company's village and maintain the septic tanks located there. In addition, as the Company' president testified, the yard men are available for any general work which might be assigned to them. Like the production and maintenance workers, they are paid hourly and receive only 5 cents an hour less than the average production and maintenance employee. It is apparent that ' The Union filed petitions for separate units of production and maintenance workers at each of the Company's Buildings . However, as indicated in Section I, supra, both Build- ings form the plant, and it would appear from the record that the Union desires a single plant-wide unit of production and maintenance employees PEE DEE MANUFACTURING COMPANY 411 the interests of the yard men are identified with those of the production and maintenance employees. Accordingly, we shall include them in the unit. Section men 2 are under the supervision of the foremen 3 of their departments, and they repair and maintain the machines situated in their respective departments. Unlike the foremen, they are hourly paid and have the same vacation plan as the production and main- tenance employees. Moreover, the loom fixers, who are admittedly non-supervisory, receive a higher hourly rate. It is true that at one point in his testimony the Company's president stated that the section men have authority to recommend the hire and discharge of employees, but he later admitted that he knew of no instance in which section men actually made such a recommendation. In view of the above facts, we find that the section men do not fall within the meaning of the Board's customary definition of supervisory employees:' Therefore, we shall include them in the unit. We find that all production and maintenance employees of the Coin- pany's Rockingham plant, including yard men and section men, but excluding office clericals, foremen, and all other supervisory employees with authority to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status of employees, or effectively recommend such action, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bar- gaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act. V. TIIE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES We shall direct that the question concerning representation which has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among employees 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 3, as amended, it is hereby DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa- tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Pee Dee Manufac- turing Company, Rockingham, 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 2 They are also called second hands by the Company 3 The foremen are also called overseers by the Compan3 4 See Matter of Thomaston Cotton Mills, Griffin Division, 66 N L R B 731. 412 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD supervision 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, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regula- tions, among employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above, who were 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 and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the election, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by Textile Workers Union of America, C. I. 0., for the purposes of collective bargaining.