Mad River Community Hospital

350 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD American Hospital Management Corp. d/b/a Mad River Community Hospital and United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, AFL-CIO, Petitioner. Case 20-RC-12554 September 16, 1975 ORDER GRANTING MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION, SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION ON REVIEW, AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION By CHAIRMAN MURPHY AND MEMBERS JENKINS AND PENELLO On July 9, 1975, the Board issued a Decision on Review and Direction of Election in the above-enti- tled proceeding finding appropriate a unit of techni- cal employees which included x-ray technicians, lab- oratory technicians, and licensed practical nurses.' Thereafter, in accordance with Section 102.48(d) of the National Labor Relations Board Rules and Re- gulations, Series 8, as amended, both the Employer and the Petitioner filed motions for reconsideration of the Board's decision. Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, the Na- tional Labor Relations Board has delegated its au- thority in this proceeding to a three-member panel. In its Motion for Reconsideration, the Employer contends: (a) that the laboratory technicians are ac- tually medical laboratory technologists and therefore professionals and should not be included in a unit composed of technical employees; (b) that the appro- priate unit should be one composed of all profession- al employees; (c) that it is a departure from Board policy to direct an election of technical employees when this unit was sought by neither the Petitioner nor the Employer; and (d) that it is a departure from Board policy to direct an election including licensed practical nurses in the unit when a unit of technical employees was not sought and where the community of interest between the licensed practical nurses and the other technical employees of the facility has not been established on the record. In its Motion for Reconsideration, the Petitioner requests an extension of time for submitting addi- tional showing of interest and also requests that the '219 NLRB No.4 term "licensed practical nurses" be deleted from the Board's decision inasmuch as the hospital does not employ licensed practical nurses, but rather employs licensed vocational nurses. After due consideration, the Board has decided to grant the Employer's Motion for Reconsideration, in part, as set forth below and to grant the Petitioner's Motion for Reconsideration in its entirety. Accord- ingly, we shall amend our original Decision in the following respects: 1. The unit description of technical employees in our original decision included laboratory techni- cians. The Employer argues that these technicians are actually medical laboratory technologists and therefore professional employees rather than techni- cal employees. As the record is not sufficiently com- plete to make a determination as to the professional status of these employees, we shall grant the Employer's motion, in part, and they shall be al- lowed to vote subject to challenge. After the election, a hearing shall be held on the issue of the profession- al status of laboratory technicians. If the Regional Director concludes that they are professional em- ployees, their ballots shall not be opened, and they shall be excluded from the unit. If, on the other hand, the Regional Director or the Board determines that the laboratory technicians are technical employ- ees and therefore properly in the unit, the ballots shall be opened and counted.' 2. The unit description in our original decision in- cluded "licensed practical nurses." The Petitioner contends, and the record discloses, that the classifica- tion should be correctly termed "licensed vocational nurses." Accordingly, we shall grant the Petitioner's motion and substitute the term "licensed vocational nurses" in the unit description. 3. In view of our decision to reconsider, we shall grant the Petitioner's motion for additional time to submit additional showing of interest. The Petitioner is hereby given 10 days from the date of this Supple- mental Decision in which to present the requisite showing of interest to the Regional Director.3 2 The Board adopts this unusual procedure in the interest of avoiding further delay in the running of the election herein. The petition herein was filed January 21, 1975. 3 Member Penello would grant the motion for reconsideration of the question of the separate unit for technical employees As set forth in his dissent in Nathan and Miriam Barnert Memorial Hospital Association d/b/a Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, 217 NLRB No 132 (1975), Member Pe- nello would not find appropriate a unit of technical employees which ex- cludes other employees , but rather would find the appropriate unit to be all service and maintenance employees including technical employees and li- censed vocational nurses, but excluding business office clericals and all other employees 220 NLRB No. 58 MAD RIVER COMMUNITY HOSPITAL 351 We therefore find that the appropriate unit in this case is: All regular full-time and part-time technical em- ployees including X-ray technicians and li- censed vocational nurses, employed at Employer's Arcata, California, facility, but ex- cluding service and maintenance employees, business office clericals, professional employees, guards, and supervisors as defined in the Act and all other employees. [Direction of Election and Excelsior footnote omit- ted from publication.]