Braeburn Nursing Home, Inc.

268 DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD I Braeburn Nursing Home, Inc. and Local 1475, Serv- ice Employees International Union, AFL-CIO- CIC, Petitioner. Case 1-RC-19000 July 29, 1988 DECISION AND CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVE BY MEMBERS JOHANSEN , BABSON, AND CRACRAFT The National Labor Relations Board , by a three- member panel, has considered objections to an election held January 28 , 1988, and the Regional Director's report recommending disposition of them. The election was conducted pursuant to a Stipulated Election Agreement. The tally of ballots shows 22 for and 19 against the Petitioner, with 2 challenged ballots, an insufficient number to affect the results. The Board has reviewed the record in light of the exceptions ' and briefs, has adopted the Region- al Director's findings and recommendations,2 and finds that a certification of representative should be issued. CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVE IT IS CERTIFIED that a majority of the valid bal- lots have been cast for Local 1475, Service Em- ployees International Union , AFL-CIO-CLC, and ' We adopt, pro forma, those recommendations to which there were no exceptions In adopting the Regional Director's recommendations that the objections be overruled in their entirety , we find that the alleged ob- jectionable conduct , considered individually or cumulatively, does not warrant setting aside the election 2 Unlike our dissenting colleague, we find that the Employer's Objec- tion B(2) does not justify setting aside the election Objection B(2) alleges that "[t]he Region did not adequately guard the secrecy of the election because it failed to provide an adequate voting booth " In support of this objection, the Employer argues that its Haitian employees (roughly one- half of the electorate) were suspicious of the ballot secrecy when the Board agent conducting the morning election session did not provide an official voting booth The Employer's contention falls short of articulat- ing objective (as opposed to subjective ) proof from which it can be con- cluded that the failure to provide an official voting booth interfered with the laboratory conditions of the election See, e.g, Newport Newt Ship- budding & Dry Dock Co, 243 NLRB 99 (1979 ) Indeed, there is neither evidence nor a contention that the secrecy of the ballot was, in fact, vio- lated that it is the exclusive collective-bargaining repre- sentative of the employees in the following appro- priate unit: All full time and regular part time service and maintenance employees including nurses aides, housekeepers, laundry workers, kitchen work- ers, maintenance workers, activity aides, cooks and licensed practical nurses employed by the Employer at its Newton, Massachusetts loca- tion, but excluding all registered nurses, pro- fessional employees, confidential employees, department heads, business office clericals, guards and supervisors as defined in the Act. MEMBER JOHANSEN , dissenting. I would sustain the Employer's Objection B(2), set aside the election, and direct that a second elec- tion be held . 3 Objection B(2) alleges that "[t]he Region did not adequately guard the secrecy of the election because it failed to provide an adequate voting booth." I am not persuaded by the Employ- er's argument that the Haitian employees were pe- culiarly susceptible to apprehension regarding ballot secrecy, nor am I basing my dissent alone on the failure of the Region to furnish a booth when the Region had apparently promised that one would be used . Whether the Region promised that a booth would be available is not of primary con- cern, but it does weigh in here as the Employer had briefed its employees that a booth would be used. I am persuaded that the manner in which the election was conducted does not foster public trust in the Board's processes. All the circumstances present here just do not measure up to the stand- ards the Board ought to require of itself in con- ducting elections.4 ' Accordingly, I need not consider the remaining exceptions raised by the Employer 4 The morning session of voting was done on a card table , with a sheet used to cover the voter at the table The parties ' endeavor to make use of available resources in the face of difficulties is commendable , but this does not relieve the Board of its responsibility to conduct elections prop- erly 290 NLRB No. 38