Dothan Silk Hosiery Co., Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 18, 1946

70 N.L.R.B. 1350 (N.L.R.B. 1946)

In the Matter of DOTHAN SILK HOSIERY COMPANY, INC., EMPLOYER
and UNITED TEXTILE WORKERS OF AMERICA, A.. F. L., PETITIONER
Case No. 15--R-1748.-Decided September 18, 1946
Brooks, McLendon, Brim d Holderness, by Mr. E. F. Upchwich,
Jr., of Greensboro, N. C., for the Employer.
Mr. Joseph Jacobs, of Atlanta, Ga., Messrs. Walter Mitchell and
R. R. Wade, of Birmingham , Ala., and Mr. K. R. Forehand, of Dothan,
Ala., for the Petitioner.
Mr. James Zett of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, hearing in the case was held at Dothan,
Alabama, on August 9, 1946, before Charles G. Kessler, hearing
officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from
prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire -record in the case, the National Labor Relations
Board makes the following:
FINDINGS OF -FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF TILE EMPLOYER
Dothan Silk Hosiery Company,-Inc., is an Alabama corporation
affiliated with May, McEwen, Kaiser Company of Burlington, North
Carolina. The Employer maintains a plant at Dothan, Alabama,
where it is engaged in the manufacture of ladies' full-fashioned hosiery
on a commission basis; it does not own the raw materials that it
processes. From December 1, 1945 to May 31, 1946, the Employer
received approximately 66,000 pounds of yarn, all of which was
shipped to its Dothan, Alabama, plant from points outside the State
of Alabama. During the same period of time the Employer received
approximately $300,000 in commissions for its manufacturing services.
All products manufactured were shipped to points outside the State.
The Employer admits and we find that it is engaged in commerce
within the meaning ofthe National Labor Relations Act.
70 N L R B, No. 13S.
1350
DOTHAN SILK HOSIERY COMPANY, INC.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
1351
The Petitioner is a labor organization affiliated with the American
Federation of Labor, claiming to represent employees of the
Employer.
III. TIIE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Employer refuses to recognize the Petitioner as the exclusive
bargaining representative of employees of the Employer until the
Petitioner 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 Employer, within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRTATE UNIT
The Petitioner seeks a unit of all production and maintenance
employees of the Employer, including the janitor, but excluding
watchmen, three miscellaneous women employees ,' fixers, office em-
ployees, superintendent , assistant superintendent , and fixer foremen.
The Employer is in general agreement with the proposed unit but
would include watchmen, the three miscellaneous women employees
and fixers, and would exclude the janitor.
Watchmen: The Employer employs three watchmen who spend the
major portion of their time sweeping and scrubbing the plant floor.
They are neither armed nor deputized and exercise no monitorial
.duties. The watchmen appear to be little more than plant janitors.
We shall , in accordance with our practice , include them in the pro-
duction and maintenance unit.
Janitor: This individual cleans the offices and rest rooms, tends
the grounds , and hauls coal into the plant for heating purposes during
the winter months.. We shall include him in the unit.
Vera Causey, Frances Swicord and Lorraine Cook: These three
women, each of whom is in charge of a group of employees, have no
specific job titles. They do no manual work but direct the activities
of groups of employees whose work they check and whose time and
production records they keep. In addition , they also act as instruc-
tors of new employees . They can grant permission to operators to
leave their work and, in cases of emergency, to leave the plant. They
report cases of insubordination to the foreman in charge who in turn
refers the matter to the superintendent for appropriate disciplinary
action.2 Like the foremen , these three women are hourly paid whereas
production workers are compensated on a piece-work basis. We are
' Vera Causey , Frances Swicord and Lorraine Cook
2 The foremen are agreed exclusions.
1352 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
satisfied that Vera Causey, Frances Swicord, and Lorraine Cook con-
stitute the Employer's lowest level of supervision. Accordingly, we
shall exclude them.
Fixers: These employees are mechanics who are responsible for the
repair and maintenance of the knitting machinery. In addition to
their duties as mechanics, they advise employees on the proper utiliza-
tion of the machinery and they substitute for the foremen during
absences of the-latter. The Petitioner contends that fixers are super-
visors and therefore should be excluded from the unit. We find it
unnecessary to determine the precise status of the fixers in view of our
determination in other cases that there exists a well established pattern
of collective bargaining in the full-fashioned hosiery industry whereby
fixers are excluded from units of production and maintenance em-
ployees.3 In accordance with this collective bargaining practice to
which we have adhered in other cases, we shall exclude the fixers from
the unit.4 l
We find that all production and maintenance employees of the Em-
ployer at its Dothan, Alabama, plant, including janitors and watch-
men, but excluding fixers, office employees, superintendent, assistant
superintendent, foremen fixers, and all other supervisory employees 6
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
bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
At the time of the hearing the Employer had three employees in
the armed services who, it asserts, come within the coverage of the unit
heretofore found appropriate. The Employer requests that these men
in the services be permitted to ballot by mail in any election which the
Board may direct. The circumstances in this case are substantially
like those in the South TVest Pennsylvania Pipe Lines case,' where we
permitted such mail balloting. We shall, therefore, as in that case,
provide for mail balloting of employees on military leave.
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
' Matter of Mock, Judson , Voehringcr Company of North Carolina , Inc, 63 N . L. R. B.
96; Matter of Tower Hosiery Mills, Inc., 64 N. L. R. B. 1245; Matter of Hudson Hosiery
Company, 64 N. L. R. B. 1520
4 Fixers were excluded from a production and maintenance unit at a plant of the Em-
ployer's parent organization Matter of May, MU wen, Kaiser Company-May Full Fashion
Division, 66 N L. R. B. 1341.
6 Excluded from the unit as supervisory employees are Vera Causey , Frances Swicord,
and Lorraine Cook.
Matter of South West Pennsylvania Pipe Lines , 64 N. L R B 1384.
DOTHAN SILK HOSIERY COMPANY, INC. 1353
immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein,
subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction. The
Regional Director is authorized to mail ballots to employees within
the appropriate unit on military leave, provided one or more of the
parties hereto, within seven (7) days from receipt of the Direction of
Election, files with the Regional Director a list containing the names,
most recent addresses, and work classifications of such employees. The
Regional Director shall open and count the ballots cast by mail by
employees on military leave, provided such ballots are returned to and
received by the Regional Director within thirty (30) days from the
date they are mailed to the employees by the Regional Director.?
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with Dothan Silk Hosiery Company,
Inc., Dothan, Alabama, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted
as early, as possible, but not later than forty-five (45) days from the
date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision of the
Regional Director for the Fifteenth Region, acting in this matter as
agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to Sections
203.55 and 203.56 of National Labor Relations Board Rules and ltegu-
lations-Series 4, among the 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, 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 United Textile Workers of
America, A. F. L., for the purposes of collective bargaining.
7 A free interchange between the interested parties of information on the addresses and
work categories of the employees to be voted by mail will be necessary to avoid challenges
and post election objections . Accordingly, the Board will make available to all inter-
ested parties any information of this nature furnished it by any other party. In the event
that the parties should send the absentee voters information or literature bearing directly
or indirectly on the pending elections , copies of all such documents should be simulta-
neously filed with the Regional Office for inspection by or transmittal to the other parties.
However , acceptance or transmittal of such literature by the Board ' s Office is not to be
construed as conferring immunity on the filing party in the event that objections are later
interposed concerning its contents . The usual principles will apply