Union Manufacturing Co., Inc.

In the Matter of UNION MANUFACTURING COMPANY, INC. and TEXTILE WORKERS UNION OF AMERICA Case No. R-1378.Decided September 7, 1939 Yarn and Hosiery Manufacturing Industry-Investigation of Representatives: controversy concerning representation of employees : refusal of recognition upon request-Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : production and mainte- nance, excluding supervisory and clerical employees ; no controversy as to- Election Ordered-Certification of Representatives. Mr. Alexander E. Wilson, Jr., for the Board. Weekes & Candler, by Mr. John Wesley Weekes and Mr. Mun°phey Candler, of Decatur, Ga., for the Company. Mr. Herbert G. B. King, of Chattanooga, Tenn., for the T. W. U. A. Mr. William Logan Donnell, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On November 19, 1938, Textile Workers Organizing Committee, herein called the T. W. O. C., filed with the Regional Director for the Tenth Region (Atlanta, Georgia) a petition alleging that a ques- tion affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Union Manufacturing Company, Inc., Union Point, Georgia, herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On April 15, 1939, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act and Article. III, Section 3, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regula- tions-Series 1, as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice. On May 6, 1939, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the T. W..O. C. On May 12, 1939, the Company filed with the Regional Director an "answer" to the petition. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on May 15, 1939, at Madison, Georgia, before Henry J. Kent, 15 N. L. R. B., No. 18. 127 128 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. The Board, the, Company, and the T. W. O. C. were represented by counsel. All participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to ex- amine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bear- ing on the issues was afforded all parties. During the course of the hearing, the Trial Examiner made several rulings on motions 1 and on objections to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. On July 15, 1939, Textile Workers Union of America, herein called the T. W. U. A., filed with the Board a motion supported by affidavit reciting that the T. W. O. C. had been replaced by the T. W. U. A. and.that the latter was in all respects the same labor organization as the T. W. O. C. The motion requested that the T. W. U. A. be sub- stituted for the T. W. O. C. wherever the name of the latter appears in these proceedings. A copy of the motion and affidavit was trans- mitted to counsel for the Company on July 17, 1939. On August 26, 1939, the Board served notice upon the parties that unless sufficient cause to the contrary should appear by September 1, 1939, the Board would, on that date, or as soon thereafter as might be convenient, grant the motion. No objections having been filed with it, the Board, on September 1, 1939, issued its order granting the motion of the T. W. U. A. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following FINDINGS OF FACT I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY Union Manufacturing Company, Inc., is a Georgia corporation having its plant and principal. place of business at Union Point; Georgia, where it is engaged in the manufacture and sale of yarns and men's and boys' hosiery. The yarn and hosiery departments are operated as one plant, under a common management and admin- istration, and the Company itself uses the major portion of the yarn it produces. The materials used by the Company in its business include cotton, rayon, rayon staple, celanese, celanese staple, wool, yarn, dyestuffs, strawboard, needles, and machinery replacements. The Company annually uses approximately 1,489,000 pounds of these materials, of a value of approximately $241,000. It obtains only its raw cotton, yarn, 3 The Trial Examiner also reserved ruling on a motion by counsel for the T. W. O. C. to strike certain objections interposed by counsel for the Company and exceptions to the Trial Examiner's rulings thereon. We find the objections had been ruled upon properly and, since granting the motion would effect no change in the record , the motion is hereby denied. UNION MANUFACTURING COMPANY, INC. 129 and the major portion of its rayon from within the State of Georgia. It obtains over 11.per cent by weight and over 33 per cent by value of all the materials it uses from the States of Maryland, Massachu- setts, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Tennessee. The value of all products sold by the Company an- nually is approximately $900,000, and the weight thereof is approx- imately 1,000,000 pounds. Approximately 95 per cent of these prod- ucts are shipped to points outside the State of Georgia, the principal customers of the Company being F. W. Woolworth & Company, J. C. Penney Company, and Sears, Roebuck & Company, operators of Nation-wide chain stores. II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED Textile Workers Union of America, the successor to Textile Work- ers Organizing Committee, is a labor organization admitting to membership the production and maintenance employees of the Com- pany, exclusive of supervisory and clerical employees. 111. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION In January 1939 and from time to time thereafter, the T. W. O. C. requested the Company to recognize and bargain collectively with it as the representative of a majority of the Company's production and maintenance employees. The Company refused to bargain with the T. W. O. C. as such representative and admitted such refusal in the "answer" filed by it to the petition herein. We find that a question has arisen concerning representation of employees of the Company. IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON COMMERCE We find that the question concerning representation which has arisen, occurring in connection with the operations of the Company described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial relation to trade, traffic, and commerce among the several States, and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The T. W. U. A. claims that the production and maintenance em- ployees, exclusive of supervisory and clerical employees, of the Com- pany constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bar- gaining. The Company has taken no position with regard to the unit. 130 DECISIONS . OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD We find that the production and maintenance employees of the Company, exclusive of supervisory and clerical employees , constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining and that said unit will insure to employees of the Company the full benefit of their right to self-organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. VC. TILE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES The T. W. U. A. claims to represent a majority of the employees in the appropriate unit and at the hearing introduced some evidence in support of its claim . No documentary evidence was introduced, however, upon the basis of which we can make a finding that a major- ity of the employees in the appropriate unit had designated and se- lected that organization as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining. We therefore find that an election by secret ballot is necessary to resolve the question concerning representation herein presented. The T. W. U. A. desires that those employees within the appro- priate unit whose names appear on the May 5, 1939, pay roll shall be eligible to vote at such an election . The Company has taken no position on this question. We see no reason for not determining eligibility as of a current date. We shall accordingly direct that employees in the appropriate unit whose names appear upon the Company's pay roll immediately preceding the date of our Direction of Election herein, including employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation, and employees who were then or have since been temporarily laid off, but excluding those who have since quit or been discharged for cause, shall be eligible to vote in the election. Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following: CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of Union Manufacturing Company, Inc., Union Point, Georgia , within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. 2. The production and maintenance employees of the Company, exclusive of supervisory and clerical employees , constitute a unit ap- propriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the mean- ing of Section 9 (b) of the Act. UNION MANUFACTURING COMPANY, INC. 131 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 Rela- tions Act and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of the National Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, it is hereby DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of. collective bargaining with Union Manufacturing Company, Inc., Union Point, Georgia, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted within fif- teen (15) days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Tenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for .the National Labor Relations Board and subject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations, among the production and maintenance employees of Union Manufacturing Company, Inc., whose names appear upon the Company's pay roll immediately preceding this Direction of Election, including employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation, and employees who were then or have since been tem- porarily laid off, but excluding supervisory and clerical employees and those who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to deter- mine whether or not they desire to be represented by Textile Workers ,Union of America for the purposes of collective bargaining. MR. EDwIIc S. SMITH took no part in the consideration of the above Decision and Direction of Election. {SAME TITLE] CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES September 29, 1939 On September 7, 1939, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, issued a Decision and Direction of Election, in the above-entitled proceeding. The Direction of , Election directed that an election by secret ballot be conducted under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Tenth Region (Atlanta, Georgia) within 15 days from the date of the Direction among the production and maintenance employees of Union Manufacturing Company, Inc., Union Point, Georgia, whose names appeared upon the Company's pay roll immediately preceding the Direction of Election, including employees who did not work during such pay- roll period because they were ill or on vacation and employees who were then or had since been temporarily laid off, but excluding super- 132 DECISIONS. OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD visory and clerical employees and those who had since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by Textile Workers Union of America for the purposes of collective bargaining. Pursuant to the Direction of Election, an election by secret ballot was conducted on September 14, 1939. Full opportunity was ac- corded to all parties to participate in, the election and to make challenges. On September 15, 1939, the Regional Director, acting pursuant to, Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, issued and duly served upon the parties his Election Report. No objections to the conduct of the ballot or to the Election Report have been filed by any of the parties. . 'As to the results of the secret ballot, the Regional Director reported as follows : Total'number of employees eligible------------------------- 620 Total number of ballots cast-------------------------------- 551 Total number of votes for Textile Workers Union of America__ 449 Total number of votes against Textile Workers Union of America-------------------------------------------------- 98 Total number of blank ballots------------------------------ 0 Total number of void ballots-------------------------------- 1 Total number of challenged ballots-------------------------- 3 By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela- tions Act, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Sections 8 and 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2,. IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that Textile Workers Union of America has been designated and selected by a majority of the production and maintenance employees of Union Manufacturing Company, Inc., Union Point, Georgia,' excluding supervisory and clerical employees, as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining and that, pursuant to the provisions of Section 9 (a) of the Act, Textile Workers Union of America is the exclusive representative of all such employees for the purposes of collective bargaining in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment. 15 N. L. R. B., No. 18a..