Melrose Hosiery Mills, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Nov 28, 1944

59 N.L.R.B. 619 (N.L.R.B. 1944)

In the Matter of MELROSE HOSIERY MILLS, INC., FULL FASHIONED
PLANT , KIVETT DRIVE and UNITED TEXTILE WORKERS OF AMERICA,
A.F.L.
Case No. 5-R-1678.-Decided November 28, 1944
Mr. Kenneth M. Brim, of Greensboro, N. C., and Messrs. Chas. L.
Amos, Joe Boyd, and W. E. Mitchell, of High' Point, N. C., for the
Company.
Mr. Albert W. Cox, of High Point, N. C., and a committee of 5 em-
ployees,) for the Union.
Miss Ruth E. Blie field, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon a petition duly filed by United Textile Workers of America,
A. F. L., herein called the Union, alleging that a question affecting
commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of
Melrose Hosiery Mills, Inc., Full Fashioned Plant, Kivett Drive, High
Point, North Carolina, herein called the Company, the National Labor
Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice
before George L. Weasler, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held
at High Point, North Carolina, on October 25, 1944. The Company
and the Union appeared and participated. All parties were afforded.
full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine'-witnesses,
and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues. The Trial Exam-
iner's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and
are hereby affirmed. All parties were afforded opportunity to file
briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Melrose Hosiery Mills, Inc., a North Carolina corporation, is en.
gaged in the manufacture of women's stockings and full-fashioned
hose at High Point, North Carolina. In connection with its opera-
tion the Company operates two plants, a seamless plant, known as the
1 The committee was composed of the following employees Garvin Strickland, Miss
Katheleen Stiles, Mrs. Havanah Allen , John Travis , and W. S. Lewis.
59 N. L . R. B , No. 122.
619
620 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
English Street plant, where men's hose and misses' anklets are made,
and the Kivett Drive plant, which is the only plant involved in this
proceeding, where full fashioned ladies hose are manufactured. Both
plants are located in High Point, North Carolina. The Company
purchases raw materials consisting of rayon and cotton yarn and
mercerized materials for use in its manufacturing operations. During
the past year immediately preceding the date of the hearing the Com-
pany's purchases of raw materials amounted to approximately $312,000,
approximately 55 percent of which was purchased and shipped to its
plants from points outside the State of North Carolina. During the
same period the Company's finished products were valued at approxi-
mately $780,000, approximately 98 'percent of which was sold and
shipped to points outside the State of North Carolina.
The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
United Textile Workers of America, affiliated with American Fed-
eration of Labor, is a labor organization admitting to membership
employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On August 15, 1944, the Union requested recognition as the exclusive
bargaining representative of the Company's production and mainte-
nance employees, stating that it represented a majority of the Com-
pany's employees in such a unit. The Company, on August 16, 1944,
advised the Union that it doubted the Union's claim and stated that
it would not recognize the Union as the exclusive bargaining repre-
sentative of its employees until the Union has been certified by the
Board in an appropriate unit.
A statement of a Board agent, introduced into evidence at the
hearing, indicates that the Union represents a substantial number of
employees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate.2
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company, within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union requests a unit consisting of all, production and mainte-
nance employees at the Kivett Drive plant, excluding foremen, time-
keepers, foreladies, a fixer named Marvin Workman, clerical em-
ployees, and all or any other supervisory employees with the right to
2 The Field Examiner reported that the Union submitted 88 application for membership
cards ; that the names of 61 persons appearing on the cards were listed on the Com-
pany's pay roll, which contained the names of 133 employees in the appropriate unit ; and
that all the cards were dated August 1944.
MELROSE HOSIERY MILLS, INC. 621
hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes in
the status of employees, or effectively recommend such action. The
Company is in general agreement with the unit requested by the
Union, except that it would include therein the fixers, the forelady,
and the timekeeper.
The timekeeper, whom the Company desires to include in the unit,
spends about 90 percent of her time making out tickets for the legger
operators. This work involves computing the number of hours worked
by the various piece-rate employees, and the number of pieces com-
pleted and noting such computations on record sheets which are sent
to the English Street plant of the Company for the purpose of pre-
paring the pay-roll record. A portion of the timekeeper's work is
done in the plant, and the balance in the office of the superintendent.
The timekeeper is paid at a lower rate than the piece workers. We
shall exclude the timekeeper from the appropriate unit, since it
appears that she is a clerical worker.
The Union desires the exclusion, and the Company the inclusion of
the forelady. The forelady works directly for the foreman in the
finishing department. She inspects the work of the pairers, and
brings defective work to the foreman, but she makes no recommenda-
tion concerning the employees responsible for such defective work.
Her rate of pay is not as high as that of the piece workers, but is
about the same as that of the hourly paid workers. The forelady has
no supervisory authority of any kind, nor can she recommend the
discharge or disciplining of any employees. We shall, therefore, in-
clude the forelady in the appropriate unit, since it appears that she
is not a supervisor within our usual definition.3
The Company employs two fixers, both of whom it desires to in-
clude in the unit. The Union, however, desires the exclusion of one
fixer, Marvin Workman, and agrees to the inclusion of the other.
The record shows that Workman is a mechanic, and is resphosible for
the repair of the looping and seaming machines. He spends about
15 percent of his working time repairing machines, and about 60 per-
cent of his time carrying work from one machine to another. He is
paid less than the average rate of knitters, who are piece-work em-
ployees. Nevertheless, the testimony indicates that he has the author-
ity to recommend the hiring and discharging of employees and has
exercised that right in the past, and that'the superintendent of the
plant has, acted upon his recommendations. Since it appears that
Workman is a supervisory employee within our usual definition, we
shall exclude him from the appropriate unit under the designation of
supervisory fixer.
8 The title forelady will not appear in our designation of the appropriate unit, since
I it appears that such title is a misnomer.
-622 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
The other fixer, Thomas Redding, is employed as a fixer on knitting
machines, and spends all his time on repair work. He has no au-
thority to hire, discharge, or discipline employees, and will therefore
be included in the unit in'accordance with the desire of both parties
herein.
We find that all production and maintenance employees including
the shipping clerk, but excluding the timekeeper, the supervisory fixer,
the foremen, and all or any other supervisory employees with author-
ity to hire, promote, discharge, discipline, or otherwise effect changes
in the status of employees, or effectively recommend such action con-
stitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining
within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We shall direct that the question concerning representatioii which
has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em-
ployees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-
roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Election
herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in, the Di-
rection.
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 9, of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, as amended, it is
hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Melrose Hosiery
Mills, Inc., Full Fashioned Plant, Kivett Drive, High Point, North
Carolina, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as early as pos-
sible, but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of this Direction,
under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the
Fifth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Re-
lations Board, and subject to Article III, Sections 10 and 11, of said
Rules and Regulations, among the employees in the unit found appro-
priate 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 the said pay-roll period because
they were ill or on vacation or temporarily laid off, and including em-
ployees in the armed forces of the United States who present them-
selves in person at the polls, 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.