Mann Manufacturing, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jun 30, 1971

191 N.L.R.B. 863 (N.L.R.B. 1971)

MANN MFG., INC.
Mann Manufacturing , Inc.' and El Paso Joint Board,
Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, AFL-
CIO, Petitioner. Case 28-RC-2138
June 30, 1971
DECISION AND ORDER
BY CHAIRMAN MILLER AND MEMBERS BROWN
AND JENKINS
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the
National Labor Relations Act, as amended , a hearing
was held before Gordon J. Jorgensen , Hearing Officer.
Following the hearing and pursuant to Section 102.67
of the National Labor Relations Board Rules and
Regulations and Statements of Procedure , Series 8, as
amended , and by direction of the Regional Director for
Region 28, this case was transferred to the National
Labor Relations Board for decision . Both the Em-
ployer and the Petitioner have filed briefs.
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 powers
in connection with this case to a three -member panel.
The Board has reviewed the Hearing Officer's rulings
made at the hearing and finds that they are free from
prejudicial error. They are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in this case, including the
briefs filed herein , the Board finds:
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the Act and it will effectuate the policies of
the Act to assert jurisdiction herein.
2. The Employer contends that no evidence of proba-
tive value has been offered to support any finding herein
that the Petitioner is a "labor organization" within the
meaning of Section 2(5) of the Act. The Employer
further contends that , if the employees within the unit
petitioned for were allowed to become members of a
local union within the purported amalgamation of four
locals in El Paso, they would have no direct voice or
participation with respect to the activities or policies of
the Petitioner . There is testimony that the Petitioner is
a subdivision of the National ' Union of Amalgamated
Clothing Workers of America, which has been chart-
ered by the Alalgamated to exercise functions of a labor
organization on a local level; that the Petitioner is made
up of an amalgamation! of four locals in the El Paso
area; and that these locals have been chartered by the
national office to conduct business in the area over
which the National Union has jurisdiction and to con-
duct, itself in all phases as a labor organization repre-
senting employees in the collective-bargaining phase.
In view of the foregoing, we find that the Petitioner is
' The Employer's name appears as amended at the hearing.
863
a labor organization within the meaning of Section 2(5)
of the Act. In our opinion, the fact that individual
employees do not hold direct membership in the Peti-
tioner does not negate such finding.'
3. No question affecting commerce exists concerning
the representation of certain employees of the Em-
ployer within the meaning of Section 9(c)(1) and Sec-
tion 2(6) and (7) of the Act, for the following reason:
Petitioner seeks a unit of all employees (a total of
about 72 employees) in the shipping department, in-
cluding flashers, stockers, warehousemen, pullers,
packers, checkers, shippers, folders, order expediters,
quality control employees located in the shipping de-
partment, print shop employees, and janitors located in
the shipping department, and excluding office clericals,
guards„ professional employees,, and supervisors as
defined in the Act. As alternative units, the Petitioner
would agree to proceed to an election if it is found that
the quality control employees should be excluded from
the unit sought, or if the print shop employees should
be excluded from the unit. As an another alternative
unit, the Petitioner would agree to proceed to an elec-
tion in any other unit found to be appropriate for the
employees working in the shipping department located
at 7189 Merchant Avenue, El Paso, Texas, herein
called the Overmeyer facility.
The Employer contends that any such unit limited to
only a segment of its integrated facilities is clearly inap-
propriate. The Employer further contends that the
units sought are too restrictive in scope and are based
solely upon the extent of organization which, as a con-
trolling factor in the Board's determination, is prohib-
ited by the Act. The Employer contends that the only
appropriate unit should include all production and
maintenance employees in all of its facilities in El Paso,
Texas, excluding office clericals, guards and super-
visors, as defined in the Act.
The record shows that the Employer is engaged in
the manufacture of jeans, slacks, and shorts for men,
boys, and girls. The Employer employs a total of ap-
proximately 1,211 employees in all of its facilities. At
the time of the hearing herein, all of the manufacturing
operations were housed in separate building complexes
located within the city limits of El Paso, Texas. In 1969,
the Employer erected two buildings at its Gateway
location, known as Gateway 1, which housed the Em-
ployer's engineering operations, and the Gateway 2
facility. On July 1, 1970, the Gateway 2 facility col-
lapsed, necessitating the immediate removal, on a tem-
porary basis, ,of the pressing operations to the Gateway
1 location, and of the shipping operations to the prem-
1 Halliburton Company, 142 NLRB 644, 645.
In view of the finding that the unit sought by Petitioner is inappropriate,
Chairman Miller finds it unnecessary to, resolve the issue of Petitioner's
status as a labor organization.
191 NLRB No. 154
864 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
ises at the Overmeyer location, which the Employer
leased on a month -to-month basis pending completion
of repairs. There is testimony in the record that, at the
time of the hearing , the Gateway 2 location was nearing
completion , with an anticipated reopening date of
April 1, 1971. When completed, the shipping depart-
ment operations from the temporary Overmeyer
facility , as well as the pressing operations from Gate-
way 1 facility, will return to the reconstructed Gateway
2 facility. There is also testimony in the record that on
April 1, 1971, or as soon after as possible , there will be
an adjustment of locations to a total of six facilities,
namely, Chihuahua Street, Myrtle Street, and Mills
Street, all three of which facilities will contain the sew-
ing operations; Gateway 1, which facility will house the
engineering operations ; Gateway 2 , which facility will
house the pressing and shipping operations; and Com-
merce Street , which facility will house the offices, piece
goods, cutting , and knee patch operations.
The manufacturing process originates in the
production control department which consists of three
areas, namely, piece goods, purchasing , and sched-
uling . Piece goods are normally picked up by long
range trucks that go into the southeastern part of the
country . These goods are received in bales and are
stored in bins in the piece goods area located at the
Myrtle Street facility. A small piece of each bolt of
cloth is taken in order to determine the proper shade
for matching in the manufacturing of the garments.
Upon receiving a cutting report from the production
control department , the appropriate amount of cloth is
issued and delivered to the cutting department. After
determining the desired style, patterns are marked on
paper for use as a guide to the cutters. Prior to the
actual cutting , the material is set on a table by spread-
ers. After the material is cut, it is bundled and piece
rate tickets are placed thereon . The bundles are then
tied and loaded on flats for delivery by a local truck-
driver to the sewing plant facilities.
The sewing plant facilities are normally manned by
a total of from 30 to 40 employees . After the garments
have been sewed , they are then inspected by quality
control inspectors that work for the quality control
department in various departments throughout the op-
eration . The inspected garments are then tied in bun-
dles and placed in baskets for delivery to the pressing
department. As previously noted, the pressing depart-
ment was temporarily located at the Gateway 1 facility
but, upon completion of the reconstruction of the Gate-
way 2 facility, will be again located in the Gateway 2
facility . In the pressing department the garments are
handled by leggers, who have the duty of pressing the
legs of the garments, and are also handled by toppers,
who have the duty of pressing the tops of the garments.
If the garments are to be of the permanent type, they
are placed on a conveyor and sent through an oven.
After the required pressing duties have been accom-
plished, the garments are folded and sent to the ship-
ping department for flashing, which function is the
attachment of the advertisement label to a garment.
After the garments have been flashed they are then
placed into stock bins by stockmen.
The distribution phase involves the processing of or-
ders from the allocation section for garments. A puller
takes the order, removes the garments from the stock
bins, places them on carts, and then delivers them to
the checking section for verification by a checkman as
to the accuracy of the order delivered by the puller. The
checkmen then deliver the garments to the packing
section where the garments are placed into cartons and
sealed .The cartons are finally moved to the shipping
department for addressing , shipment scheduling, stor-
ing if necessary, or lining up for local pickups. The
deliveries of finished garments are made by local truck-
drivers coming in from sources to pick them up for
commercial shipping . At this point , the deliveries are
either made by local trucks that come from different
sources to pick up the garments to be shipped commer-
cially or the orders are set aside to be shipped out on
long distance trucks to the eastcoast area of the coun-
try.
The record shows that at the time of the hearing
herein the pressing department employees delivering
goods to the Overmeyer facility are in daily contact
with the shipping department employees and, as previ-
ously indicated , there is evidence that the pressing de-
partment and the shipping department employees will
be reunited in the reconstructed Gateway 2 facility.
Employees of the merchandising department are in
contact with the shipping department employees about
once a week for the purpose of processing samples and
to facilitate orderly and periodical production and
delivery of garments to the sales force. It appears that
there are duties performed by pressing department em-
ployees that are similar to duties performed by some of
the shipping department employees. Temporary assign-
ments into the shipping department are given to em-
ployees from other departments in the conducting of
inventory or in the relabeling of merchandise.
In addition to the similarity of duties performed by
employees in departments other than the shipping de-
partment unit sought , the record shows that within a
period of a little more than 1 year prior to the hearing
herein there were'21 permanent transfers of employees
into, and 2 out of, the unit sought herein.
In view of the foregoing, and all the facts disclosed
in the record , we are persuaded that the requested
group does not possess a degree of functional distinct-
ness and autonomy which would warrant a finding that
they have a separate community of interest sufficient to
entitle them to separate representation. We find, there-
fore, that the unit sought is too narrow in scope to be
MANN MFG., INC. 865
appropriate.' Accordingly, as the Petitioner does not
seek a unit broader than one limited to the shipping
department employees, we shall dismiss the petition
herein.
ORDER
It is hereby ordered that the petition in Case 28-RC-
2138 be, and it hereby is, dismissed.
' Farah Manufacturing Company, Inc., 185 NLRB No 92