McAdoo Sportwear Company, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 24, 1939

12 N.L.R.B. 1199 (N.L.R.B. 1939)

In the Matter of MCADOO SPORTSWEAR COMPANY , INC. and INTERNA-
TIONAL LADIES ' GARMENT WORKERS UNION
Case No. R-1338.-Decided May 24, 1939
_Novelty Sportswear Industry-Investigation of Representatives : controversy
concerning representation of employees : refusal by employer to recognize union
as exclusive representative ; majority status disputed by employer-Unit Appro-
priate for Collective Bargaining : production employees , excluding supervisors,
clerical employees , the head cutter , and the machinists-Election Ordered
Mr. Joseph F. Castiello, for the Board.
Mr. R. S. Hemingway, of Bloomsburg, Pa., for the Company.
Douglass & Handler, by Mr. Sydney G. Handler, of Harrisburg,
Pa., for the Union.
Mr. Louis Cokin, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On March 16, 1939, International Ladies' Garment Workers Union,
herein called the Union, filed with the Regional Director for the
Fourth Region (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) a petition, subsequently
amended, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen con-
cerning the representation of employees of McAdoo Sportswear Com-
pany, Inc., Danville, Pennsylvania, herein called the Company, and
requesting an investigation and certification of representatives pur-
suant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat.
449, herein called the Act. On March 25, 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 Rela-
tions Board Rules and Regulations-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 March 31,1939, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing,
copies of which were duly served upon the Company and upon the
Union. Pursuant to the notice, a hearing was held on April 11, 1939,
at Danville, Pennsylvania, before Henry J. Kent, the Trial Examiner
12 N. L. R. B., No. 117.
1199
1200 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
duly designated by the Board. The Board, the Company, and the-
Union were represented by counsel, and all participated in the hear-
ing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine wit-
nesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded
all parties. During the course of the hearing, the Trial Examiner-
made several rulings on motions and on objections to the admission
of evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Ex-
aminer and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The-
rulings are hereby affirmed.
On April 29, 1939, the Company filed with the Board a Petition for-
Reopening Hearing. The petition is hereby denied for the reasons
stated in Section VI infra.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following:-
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The Company operates plants at McAdoo and Danville, Pennsyl-
vania, where it cuts, presses, and assembles cotton cloth into novelty
sportswear for converters. The present proceeding concerns only-
the Danville plant. All of the cotton cloth is shipped to the Com-
pany's plant from points outside the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,
and after processing all of it is reshipped outside the Commonwealth.-
The Company employs an average of 120 employees and knits
approximately 30,000 dozen garments annually at its Danville plant.
H. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
International Ladies' Garment Workers Union is a labor organiza-
tion admitting to its membership all production employees of the
Company, excluding supervisory, clerical, and maintenance employees.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
In February 1939 the Union commenced organization activities in
the Company's Danville plant and on February 22, 1939, claiming
to represent a majority of the employees, requested the Company to.
deal with it as exclusive representative of the employees. The Com-
pany refused this request, stating that it doubted the Union's claim
to a majority.
We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation,
of employees of the Company.
McADOO SPORTSWEAR COMPANY, INC. 1201`
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 Union urges that all employees of the Company at its Danville,
plant, except supervisors, clerical employees, the head cutter, and the
machinists, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective
bargaining. At the hearing the Union clarified its claim by defining
"employees" as those actively engaged in the production of the cotton
garments. The only controversy concerning the unit has to do with the
machinists and the head cutter. The Union desires the exclusion of
these employees, and the Company their inclusion.
The machinists keep the production machines in working condition.-
Their work requires a higher skill than that of the production em-
ployees. The machinists are not eligible to membership in the Union,.
and evidence was introduced by the Union to show that machinists
are traditionally not organized along with the production employees
in the ladies' garment trades. We shall exclude the machinists from;
the unit.'
There are four cutters in the plant, of whom one is called a head'
cutter. Although he does not have the power to hire or discharge, he,
is in charge of distributing work tickets to the other cutters. In the.
absence of the general manager of the Company, he is responsible for-
maintaining discipline in the cutting department. We shall exclude
the head cutter from the unit.
We find that all the production employees of the Company, exclud-
ing supervisors, clerical employees, the head cutter, and the machinists,,
constitute a unit appropriate for the purpose 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.
VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
There was introduced in evidence at the hearing the Company's pay
roll for the period from March 13 to 24, 1939 , bearing the names of,
1 Cf. Matter of Clinton Garment Company and International Ladie8' Garment Workers
Union, 8 N. L. R. B 775.
1202 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
110 employees in the appropriate unit. In support of the claim to
representation, the Union produced membership cards signed by 62
of these employees. All the cards were signed during February or
March 1939. The majority of the cards bore the heading "Affiliated
with the American Federation of Labor." The Company alleges that
the Union was under suspension from the American Federation of
Labor during February and March 1939 and contends that therefore
the cards are worthless because "any employee receiving one of said
application cards would be led to believe that the International Ladies'
Garment Workers Union, whose name appeared on said application
card, was affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, and if
this is not true then a palpable fraud or misrepresentation has been
committed upon each employee that signed such a card." The Com-
pany stated that it would, however, consent to an election. Although
it does not affirmatively appear that the employees were in fact misled
by the wording on the cards, and while the exact status of the Union
in relation to the American Federation of Labor is not clearly shown
by this record, we feel that under the circumstances, an election by
secret ballot is advisable in order to avoid any doubt as to the actual
desires of the employees. The name of the Union will appear on the
ballot merely as "International Ladies' Garment Workers Union."
This disposition of the case makes it unnecessary to investigate further
the validity of the designations on the cards submitted by the Union.
The Company's petition to reopen the hearing is accordingly denied.
As was noted hereinbefore, the pay roll for the period from March
13 to 24, 1939, was introduced in evidence. There was no objection to
this pay roll by any of the parties. Accordingly, the employees eligible
to vote in the election shall be those within the appropriate unit who
were employed during the pay-roll period from March 13 to 24, 1939,
including employees who did not work during such pay-roll period
because they were ill or on vacation.
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 McAdoo Sportswear Company, Inc., Dan-
ville, Pennsylvania, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section
2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act.
2. All the production employees of the Company, excluding super-
visors, clerical employees, the head cutter, and the machinists, con-
stitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining,
within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations
Act.
McADOO SPORTSWEAR COMPANY, INC. 1203
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
Relations Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended,
it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board
to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining
with McAdoo Sportswear Company, Inc., Danville , Pennsylvania,
an election by secret ballot shall be conducted within fifteen ( 15) days
from the date of this Direction , under the direction and supervision
of the Regional Director for the Fourth Region, acting in this matter
as agent for the National Labor Relations Board and subject to Arti-
cle III , Section 9, of said Rules and Regulations , among all the produc-
tion employees of the Company at its Danville plant, who were
employed during the pay-roll period ending March 24 , 1939, including
employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they
were ill or on vacation , but excluding supervisors , clerical employees,
the head cutter , the machinists , and employees who have since quit or
been discharged for cause , to determine whether or not they desire
to be represented by International Ladies' Garment Workers Union
for the purposes of collective bargaining.
MR. DONALD WAKEFIELD SMITH took no part in the consideration of
the above Decision and Direction of Election.
169134-39-vol. 12-77