William W. Backus Hospital

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 17, 1975

220 N.L.R.B. 414 (N.L.R.B. 1975)

414 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
William W . Backus Hospital ' and District 1199, Na-
tional Union of Hospital & Health Care Employees,
RWDSU , AFL-CIO,2 Petitioner and Backus Hos-
pital Licensed Practical Nurses Unit #55, Connect-
icut Nurses' Association,3 Petitioner. Cases 1-
RC-13632, 1-RC-13633, and 1-RC-13659
September 17, 1975
DECISION, ORDER, AND DIRECTION OF
ELECTIONS
By CHAIRMAN MURPHY AND MEMBERS FANNING AND
PENELLO
Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9(c) of
the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, a
hearing was held before Hearing Officer Robert Pu-
cini of the National Labor Relations Board. Follow-
ing the close of the hearing the Regional Director for
Region I transferred this case to the Board for deci-
sion . Thereafter, the Employer and both Petitioners
filed briefs which have been duly considered.
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 au-
thority in this proceeding to a three-member panel.
The Board has reviewed the Hearing Officer's rul-
ings made at the hearing and finds that they are free
from prejudicial error. They are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in this proceeding, the
Board finds:
1. The parties stipulated, and we find, that the
Employer is engaged in commerce within the mean-
ing of Section 2(5) of the Act and it will effectuate
the purposes of the Act to assert jurisdiction herein.
2. We find that Petitioners, District 1199 and LPN
Unit #55, are labor organizations within the mean-
ing of the Act.4
3. A question affecting commerce exists concern-
ing the representation of certain employees of the
Employer within the meaning of Section 9(c)(1) and
Section 2(6) and (7) of the Act.
4. In Case 1-RC-13632, the Petitioner (District
1 Herein called the Employer or the Hospital.
2 Herein called Distract 1199.
3 Herein called LPN Unit #55.
° The Employer at the hearing refused to stipulate that the Petitioners are
labor organizations within the meaning of the Act The record evidence
establishes that both Petitioners have employees participating in their orga-
nizations which are formed for the purpose of bargaining collectively with
employers regarding wages , hours, and working conditions . We further take
administrative notice of the fact that on many previous occasions District
1199 has been found to be a labor organization by the Board . See, e.g.,
Nathan and Miriam Barnert Memorial Hospital Association d/b/a Barnert
Memorial Hospital Center, 217 NLRB No. 132 (1975). We find Petitioners to
be labor organizations within the meaning of the Act.
1199) seeks to represent a unit of technical employees
of the Employer; in Case 1-RC-13633, the Petitioner
(District 1199) seeks to represent a unit of service
and maintenance employees of the Employer; and in
Case 1-RC-13659, the Petitioner (LPN Unit #55)
seeks to represent a separate unit of licensed practi-
cal nurses (LPN's) of the Employer. District 1199 in-
tervened in Case 1-RC-13659 at the hearing based
on a showing of interest, contending that a separate
LPN unit is appropriate. The Employer contends
that the only appropriate unit consists of all full-time,
regular part-time, and regular on-call employees of
the Employer, excluding only all registered nurses
(RN's), professional, managerial, and confidential
employees, guards, and supervisors as defined in the
Act. The parties stipulated to the exclusion of tech-
nologists registered by the American Society of Clini-
cal Pathologists (ASCP technologists) and the social
service person from any unit found appropriate.' The
parties also stipulated that certain employees should
be excluded from any unit found appropriate based
on their professional,' supervisory,' managerial,' con-
fidential,9 or student status.1°
The Employer argues that because of the integrat-
ed nature of hospital activity which centers around
the patient, the only appropriate unit would consist
of a hospitalwide unit, excluding all professional,
managerial , and confidential employees, ASCP tech-
nologists , and guards as defined in the Act. In sup-
port of this position, the Employer relies on the legis-
lative history of the hospital amendments, which
directs the Board to give "due consideration" to non-
proliferation of bargaining units, and on preamend-
ment Board decisions, which limited the number of
bargaining units where a high degree of functional
integration was shown to exist." The Board recently
considered such arguments and found that a unit
composed solely of service and maintenance employ-
ees is appropriate."
With regard to technical employees, the Board
held, consistent with its well-established practice in
other industries, that because of their differing inter-
3 These stipulations were reached without agreement on the professional
status of these employees.
6 The group includes the pharmacists and physical therapists.
r This groups includes. chief technologist, clinical laboratory supervisors,
laundry supervisor, assistant chief engineer, director of medical records,
chief radiology technologist, assistant chief radiology technologist. supervi-
sor of central supply, and supervisor of respiratory and inhalation therapy.
8 This group includes: public relations director, director of purchasing,
chief engineer, and personnel director
9 This group includes: assistant administrators, administration secretaries
and receptionist. personnel department interviewer and secretaries, and sec-
retaries to the director of nursing.
10 The parties stipulated to the exclusion of the pharmacy intern or ap-
prentice on the ground that he is a pharmacy student.
11 Citing e.g., Woodlawn Park Hospital, Inc, 205 NLRB 888 (1973); and
Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, et al, 210 NLRB 949 (1974).
13 Newington Children's Hospital, 217 NLRB No. 134 (1975).
220 NLRB No. 107
WILLIAM W. BACKUS HOSPITAL
ests, technical employees should be granted a sepa-
rate unit when sought." In determining the composi-
tion of the technical unit the Board analyzed such
factors as the distinctive training, experience, and
functions inextricably allied with the status of a tech-
nical employee and found that LPN's are techni-
cals.14 The Board, therefore, found that LPN's should
ordinarily be included in a technical unit.15 Adhering
to the unit determinations established by these cases,
we find the following units appropriate in the instant
case : ( 1) a service and maintenance unit , including
hospital clericals; (2) a technical unit, including
LPN's. In so doing we note that LPN Unit #55 stat-
ed at the hearing that it was unwilling to represent
anything but an LPN unit. Thus, having found that
an LPN unit is inappropriate and that the LPN's
should be included in the technical unit, we shall dis-
miss the petition in Case 1-RC-13659.
Based on the available record evidence we make
the following unit placement determinations for the
units found appropriate herein:
Clerical employees: Consistent with our decisional
guidelines on the unit placement 16 of clerical em-
ployees, we will include the hospital clericals in the
service and maintenance unit . Hospital clericals are
those clericals who work side by side with service and
maintenance employees in various departments
throughout the hospital, performing clerical func-
tions . Their work and working conditions are materi-
ally related to unit work; they have continual contact
with unit employees and are generally supervised by
the same supervisors that supervise unit employees.
We find that the following employees, because they
possess the above characteristics, are hospital cleri-
cals and shall therefore include them in the service
and maintenance unit: dietary clerical, housekeeping
clerical , laboratory clericals , maintenance clerical,
operating room clerical, pharmacy clerical, radiology
clerical, and ward clerks.
Also consistent with our decisional guidelines we
will exclude the business office clercials from the ser-
vice and maintenance unit. The community of inter-
est of business office clericals is not related to that of
the service and maintenance unit . They work in a
department separate and apart from the service and
maintenance employees, perform business office
work which is, at the maximum, tangentially related
to unit work, have minimal contact with unit employ-
13 Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra; Newington Children's Hospital,
supra.
14 St. Catherine 's Hospital of Dominican Sisters of Kenosha, Wisconsin, Inc,
217 NLRB No. 133 ( 1975).
13 Cf. Otis Hospital, Inc, 219 NLRB No. 55 (1975), Bay Medical Center,
Inc 218 NLRB No. 100 ( 1975).
ld Mercy Hospitals of Sacramento, Inc., 217 NLRB No 131 (1975): St
Catherine 's Hospital, supra.
415
ees, and are supervised by different individuals. We
find the following employees, because they possess
the above characteristics, fall within the category of
business office clericals and shall accordingly ex-
clude them from the service and maintenance unit:
business office employees, including cashier, billing
clerks, electrical data processing employees, and
bookkeeper; information clerks; public relations
clerical; switchboard operators; finance office clerks;
purchasing department clericals; and stockroom
clerk.
Medical records employees: The medical records
department is located on the hospital's main floor
separate and apart from the administration and busi-
ness offices. There are 13 medical records employees,
including a file clerk and her substitute and 4 tran-
scriptionists. There is in addition one tumor registrar.
These employees are responsible for sorting and fil-
ing medical records, retrieving charts, organizing and
preparing final patient charts, and compiling statis-
tics. In addition, the transcriptionists transcribe pa-
tients' medical histories, reports of surgical proce-
dures, etc., dictated by physicians at dictation
stations located on the nursing units and in the medi-
cal records department. When patients' charts are re-
quested by doctors, they are sent to the floors via
pneumatic tube or hand carried by the medical rec-
ords department file clerk. During the evening and
night hours, when medical records employees are not
working, charts of unscheduled admissions are
picked up and taken to the floors by the nursing su-
pervisor. According to the uncontradicted testimony
of Hospital Director Charles Lotreck, medical rec-
ords employees spend the majority of their time with-
in the department but are frequently called upon to
go out of their department to the nursing units, busi-
ness office, admitting offices, central supply, etc.
Medical records employees have additional contact
with nursing unit employees when the latter are sent
to the medical records department to pick up pa-
tients' files.
The medical records employees at Backus, similar
to those at Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace, 217 NLRB
No. 135 (1975), deal primarily with patients' medical
records rather than the types of records dealt with by
business office employees. They work closely with
physicians to construct and maintain permanent pa-
tient records, and, in addition, have substantial con-
tact with service and maintenance employees. Ac-
cordingly, we find that the medical records
employees have a significant community of interest
with the service and maintenance employees and
shall therefore include them in the service and main-
tenance unit.
Admitting clerks: The admitting office is located
416 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
across from the switchboard and adjacent to the fi-
nance and business office and operates from 7 or 8
a.m. to 12 midnight; at midnight the switchboard op-
erator performs the admitting functions." The admit-
ting office consists of four admitting clerks, one ad-
dressograph clerk," and one admitting person on the
switchboard, all of whom are under the direction of
the chief admitting clerk.19 The admitting clerks gath-
er relevant information necessary for the patients'
files and assign patients to units partially based on
availability of beds and particularly on the patient's
illness . Admitting clerks wear white uniforms and
spend only about 50 percent of their time in the ad-
mitting office. The remainder of their time is spent
taking patients to the nursing units or the laboratory,
or going to the switchboard or the information
booth. Admitting clerks, who are required to have a
high school education, are paid at grade level 4.20
We find the admitting clerks to be hospital cleri-
cals. They have continual contact with patients and
other service and maintenance employees. Although
located near the business office, they are physically
separated from business office employees, work pri-
marily with patients' records rather than the materi-
als with which business office employees deal, and
are not supervised by the controller as are business
office clericals. Accordingly, we shall include, in this
case, the admitting clerks in the service and mainte-
nance unit.21
Emergency room clerks (ER clerks): The Employer
employs four ER clerks (alternately referred to as
business office clerks in the emergency department).
ER clerks are stationed in the emergency room and
their immediate supervisor is the emergency room
head nurse. While ER clerks take orders directly re-
lated to patients from the head nurse, they are ulti-
mately responsible to the controller who hired them
and who is responsible for transferring or discharg-
17 There is evidence on the record that both switchboard operators and
admitting clerks must be cross-trained to perform one another's jobs due to
the amount of interchange which occurs . Switchboard operators are respon-
sible directly to the administrative assistant to the hospital administrator,
Lotreck, remain at the swtichboard, and have very little contact with service
and maintenance employees . While the switchboard operators do perform
admissions functions during the 12-8 shift, such interchange appears to be
limited to that period. Further , the volume of such activity is necessarily low
due to the hours involved and there is no evidence that switchboard opera-
tors have increased contact with service and maintenance employees as a
result of this interchange Accordingly , we shall exclude the switchboard
operators from the service and maintenance unit.
18 Absent additional information regarding the work performed by the
addressograph clerk , she will be permitted to vote in the service and mainte-
nance unit , subject to challenge
19 The parties did not stipulate that the chief admitting clerk is a supervi-
sor and there is no evidence as to whether she has the authority to hire or
fire admitting employees or effectively recommend their promotions or
grant time off. Absent such evidence she will be permitted to vote in the
service and maintenance unit, subject to challenge.
20 Employees' grades run from a low of I to a high of 11
Si Cf Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace, supra; St. Catherine's Hospital, supra
ing them. The record indicates, however, that before
taking such action the controller would probably first
consult with the director of nursing. ER clerks are
the only employees in the ER department performing
clerical functions. Like admitting clerks, they inter-
view emergency room admissions regarding finan-
cial, personal , and other critical data. They are re-
sponsible for seeing that patients' medical records
contain the proper medical information and are com-
pleted and that these records are directed to the cor-
rect location when the patient leaves the emergency
room. A "high school level" education and some
business office experience (a minimum of 6 months
in the billing department) are prerequisites to becom-
ing an ER clerk.
We find that ER clerks are hospital clericals. They
are engaged in functions similar to those of ward
clerks and admitting clerks, whom we find herein to
be hospital clericals. They have continual contact
with patients and other emergency room personnel
and work with patients' files rather than business of-
fice records. While they are ultimately responsible to
the controller, their immediate supervisor is the
emergency room head nurse. Furthermore, any ac-
tion taken by the controller regarding their transfer
or discharge is first taken up with the director of
nursing . Accordingly, we shall include the ER clerks
in the service and maintenance unit.22
Radiology technicians: There are two types of ra-
diology technicians within the radiology department:
regular diagnostic technicians, registered and nonre-
gistered, and radioisotope technicians. Both are su-
pervised by the chief radiology technician and are
ultimately responsible to him. The majority of X-ray
technicians are registered by the American Radiolo-
gy Group. Registered technicians are paid at grade
level 9, whereas nonregistered technicians are paid at
grade level 8. There is no evidence that registered
technicians perform different or more difficult as-
signments than nonregistered technicians. Radioiso-
tope technicians are paid at grade level 11. In addi-
tion to having graduated from either a hospital or
associate degree radiology program, radioisotope
technicians have been sent by Backus to Yale, where
they have received additional, more specialized train-
ing. Like regular diagnostic technicians the work
they do is diagnostic rather than therapeutic. In ac-
cordance with our decision in Barnert Memorial Hos-
pital Center, supra, we shall include all radiology
technicians, registered and nonregistered, in the tech-
nical unit.
Darkroom technicians: The darkroom technicians
work in the X-ray department processing X-ray film.
Like the radiology technicians they work under the
22 Mercy Hospitals of Sacramento, Inc, supra
WILLIAM W. BACKUS HOSPITAL 417
chief radiology technician. While the educational re-
quirements for this position are not set forth in the
record, the evidence does show that they are paid at
the lowest grade level, labor grade 1. There is no evi-
dence that the darkroom technicians perform techni-
cal duties or exercise judgment and their pay is com-
parable to that of service and maintenance
employees. Accordingly, we shall include the dark-
room technicians in the service and maintenance
unit 23
Laboratory technicians: The record shows that the
Employer has four categories of laboratory techni-
cians, I, II, III , and IV. The minimum qualification
for a basic technician, laboratory technician I, is a
high school education, some on-the-job training, and
work experience. These employees are paid at grade
level 3. Technicians II are certified laboratory assis-
tants who have had 1 year of training at Backus or
another hospital, are certified by the American Soci-
ety of Clinical Pathologists, and are paid at grade
level 7. Technicians III are medical laboratory tech-
nicians who have graduated from an associate degree
program, are certified, and are paid at grade level 9.
Technicians IV are ASCP technologists and the par-
ties stipulated they are to be excluded from any unit
found appropriate. Technicians I lack the specialized
training required to become a technician II or III.
There is no evidence that they have any expectation
of advancement to technician II or III status. They
are not certified and are paid at a salary level compa-
rable to that of service and maintenance employees
rather than technical employees.24 Accordingly, we
shall exclude technicians I from the technical unit
and include them in the service and maintenance
unit.25 As to technicians II and III, we find they are
technical employees. They have the specialized train-
ing and skill of technical employees, exercise inde-
pendent judgment regarding technical matters, are
certified, and are paid at a level comparable to that
of other technical employees 26 We shall, therefore,
include technicians II and III in the technical unit.
Electrocardiogram technicians (EKG technicians):
The Employer has two EKG technicians and one
nursing assitant who is cross-trained to take EKG's
in the absence of the EKG technician . They are part
of the cardiopulmonary laboratory, which falls under
the jurisdiction of the nursing department. EKG
technicians are not licensed but receive approximate-
ly 6 weeks' on-the-job training. Frequently intelligent
23 Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra
24 Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra
23 If additional evidence not included in the record would establish that
technicians I are inappropriately placed, the parties may challenge these
votes.
26 Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra
nursing attendants are trained and upgraded to be-
come EKG technicians. As such they are paid at
grade level 3. They spend 50 percent of their time in
the laboratory and the other 50 percent taking
EKG's on patients throughout the hospital, including
the emergency room and various patient care units.
While part of the cardiopulmonary laboratory, there
is no evidence that EKG technicians perform tests or
operate equipment in conjunction with the inhalation
therapists found herein to be technical employees.
Based on these facts we find the EKG technicians
in the instant case comparable to the EKG techni-
cians in Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra. In
accordance with that decision, we find that the EKG
technicians are not technical employees and there-
fore shall include them in the service and mainte-
nance unit.
Electroencephalogram technicians (EEG techni-
cians): The EEG department is located on the first
floor of the hospital and contains the equipment nec-
essary to take an electroencephalogram. The EEG
department falls under the jurisdiction of the depart-
ment of nursing and the EEG technician is directly
responsible to the director of nursing. The Employer
has one EEG technician and one nursing assistant
who is cross-trained as an EEG technician. Elec-
troencephalograms are taken exclusively within the
EEG department since the equipment necessary for
the tests is immobile. All of the department's clerical
work is performed by the EEG technician. EEG
technicians receive some formal education but this is
not provided at Backus. The specific nature of the
training is unclear. The record indicates that it can
vary from 4 weeks to 4 years. The present EEG tech-
nician was formerly a nursing assistant, but the exact
type of formal education she had to have to make
this transition is not revealed. We find that EEG
technicians are not technical employees and shall
therefore include them in the service and mainte-
nance unit .17
Respiratory therapists and technicians: The respira-
tory therapy department is part of the cardiopulmo-
nary laboratory. It falls under the jurisdiction of the
department of nursing and its employees are ulti-
mately responsible to the director of nursing.
Employer's three full-time respiratory therapists and
two full-time and one part-time respiratory therapy
technicians are supervised by the chief respiratory
therapist. Respiratory therapists come to Backus
from either a combined hospital and associate degree
or college program of respiratory therapy approved
by the American Medical Association and are re-
quired to take a national registration examination in
order to practice. They spend 90 percent of their time
27 Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra.
418 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL. LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
on various patient care floors throughout the hospi-
tal, administering such therapy as carbon dioxide
treatment, oxygen therapy, postural drainage, and
nebulizer treatment as prescribed by physicians.
While respiratory therapists work independently,
taking their orders directly from patients' charts, they
work closely with the RN's particularly in critical
cases. In addition to administering therapy, inhala-
tion therapists inspect and maintain the equipment
used by the department. They are paid at grade level
7. Unlike respiratory therapists, respiratory therapy
technicians are not certified; they have, however, a
year of formal training. Respiratory therapy techni-
cians are paid at grade level 6. Both therapists and
technicians work two shifts, 7 days a week; and,
when neither is available, nursing department em-
ployees, trained through inservice programs run by
the respiratory therapy department, administer the
necessary treatments.28
In light of their educational preparation, their cer-
tification, and therein use of independent judgment,
we find respiratory therapists to be technical em-
ployees.29 Accordingly, we shall include them in the
technical unit. We also find that respiratory therapy
technicians have a community of interest with other
technical employees. While not certified, they have
received a year of preparatory training in respiratory
therapy before coming to Backus, are paid at a level
comparable to that of other technical employees,
only one grade below respiratory therapists, and like
therapists are engaged in the function of providing
respiratory therapy to patients pursuant to doctors'
orders.30 Accordingly, we shall also include respirato-
ry therapy technicians in the technical unit.
Surgical technicians: The employer has from six to
eight surgical technicians; they are supervised by the
operating room supervisor, who is an RN. Surgical
technicians do not circulate (go in and out of the
operating room) as do RN's; instead they remain sta-
tionary, working beside the surgeon, passing instru-
ments. In addition surgical technicians along with
LPN's act as scrub technicians helping the other op-
erating room employees scrub and gown for surgery.
If a surgical technician is not available to do this job,
the responsiblity is assigned to an LPN. At some
point in the past Backus Hospital sponsored a 6-
28 Included in its list of relevant job classifications Employer lists the
cardiopulmonary technician. This is apparently an additional employee
classification not discussed on the record and presumably working in the
cardiopulmonary laboratory. The cardiopulmonary technician is paid at
grade level 8, above respiratory therapists and technicians. Absent addition-
al evidence we will permit the cardiopulmonary technicians to vote in the
technical unit , subject to challenge.
29 Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra.
70 Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra: Trumbull Memorial Hospital,
218 NLRB No. 122 (1975).
month on-the-job training program for nursing assis-
tants and orderlies to become surgical technicians.
The record is not clear as to how many of the current
surgical technicians come from this program or the
educational requirements for the position generally.
Some have been military corpsmen, some are high
school trainees, others have graduated from a junior
college program, and apparently none are currently
certified. It appears that regardless of their prepara-
tory background, surgical technicians are paid at
grade level 6.
We find that although the surgical technicians are
not certified, licensed, or registered, they are techni-
cal employees. They are used interchangeably with
LPN's, are paid at a salary level comparable to that
of other technical employees, have been trained for a
minimum of 6 months, and have achieved a suffi-
cient level of familiarity with surgical tools and pro-
cedures to assist physicians during surgery.31 Accord-
ingly, we shall include the surgical technicians in the
technical unit.
Librarian: The librarian works in the hospital's li-
brary, which is located on the ground floor of the
hospital annex. The library is primarily used by phy-
sicians, RN's, and LPN's. The librarian is supervised
by the director of nursing. The current librarian does
not have a degree in library science and is paid at
grade level 4. Since there is only one such employee,
who is paid at a level comparable to that of the ser-
vice and maintenance employees and who would
otherwise remain permanently unrepresented, we
shall include her in the service and maintenance unit.
Graduate technicians (grad techs): The Employer
applies this title to registered nurses who have gradu-
ated from a 3-year school of nursing or a 4-year col-
lege nursing program in a foreign country but are not
licensed as RN's in the State of Connecticut. While
the training and experience of grad techs is equiva-
lent to that of RN's, they cannot serve as such be-
cause they are not licensed. Grad techs are ajob clas-
sification separate and apart from either RN's or
LPN's, but their functions at Backus closely parallel
those of the LPN's. Like the LPN's, they are super-
vised by RN's and paid at grade level 6. However,
while grad techs have received advanced training be-
yond that of LPN's, they cannot be utilized to per-
form all the same functions. For example, they are
not permitted to give medications as are LPN's. The
Employer currently employs three grad techs and as-
signs them primarily to medical-surgical floors.
There is no evidence on the record indicating that
grad techs must pass the State's registered nursing
examination in order to maintain their jobs.
Ji Cf. Kanawha Vallee Memorial Hospital . Inc., 218 NLRB No. 135, In. 4
(1975).
WILLIAM W. BACKUS HOSPITAL
Despite the fact that grad techs cannot perform all
of the functions performed by LPN's, we conclude
that they share a community of interest with LPN's
and other technical employees.32 They do much the
same work as LPN' s, are on the same salary scale as
LPN's, and comprise a job classification in their own
right. Accordingly, we shall include grad techs in the
technical unit.
Graduate practical nurses (GPN's): These individu-
als have completed 1 year of required vocational
training to become LPN's but have not taken, or are
awaiting the results of, the State's practical nurse li-
censing examination . The record does not reveal
whether continued employment is conditioned upon
passing the state licensing examination. Further-
more, unlike the grad techs who have a separate job
classification , Employer's exhibits give no indication
that GPN's are considered anything other than en-
try-level LPN's.
We find that GPN's share a community of interest
with LPN's and other technical employees. They
have received the same educational training as
LPN's, are hired with the expectation that they will
pass the licensing examination, and from all indica-
tions are paid as entry-level LPN's. Accordingly, we
shall include them in the technical unit.
Hemodialysis technician: The hemodialysis techni-
cian works directly under the head nurse of the he-
modialysis department. She is responsible for certain
technical functions, assists with patients, and handles
the hemodialysis equipment under the direction of
the head nurse . She is not, however, permitted to do
venapunctures, a function which the RN is trained to
perform. Hospital Director Lotreck testified that the
individual currently occupying the position of hemo-
dialysis technician is extremely qualified and were
she to leave the hospital, Backus would probably em-
ploy an LPN, or RN, or an individual with at least I
year's experience with hemodialysis equipment to
take her place. The record shows that the hemodialy-
sis technician is paid at grade level 6.
We find the hemodialysis technician to be a tech-
nical employee. Her salary is equivalent to that of
other technical employees and her work requires the
specialized training and skills necessary to make in-
dependent judgments in technical matters. Accord-
ingly, we shall include the hemodialysis technician in
the technical unit.
We therefore find the following units appropriate
for the purpose of collective bargaining within the
32 In Barnerl Memorial Hospital Center, supra, at fn . 34, the Board found
a comparable group of employees shared a community of interest with RN's
and therefore excluded them from the technical unit found appropriate
therein . However, unlike those employees, there is no evidence here that the
grad techs must pass the registered nurse examination or lose their jobs
419
meaning of Section 9(b) of the Act:
All regular full-time and part-time technical em-
ployees including X-ray technicians, respiratory
therapists and respiratory therapy technicians,
licensed practical nurses, graduate practical
nurses, graduate technicians, hemodialysis tech-
nicians, and laboratory technicians II and III
employed by the Employer at its hospital facility
located at Washington Avenue, Norwich, Con-
necticut, but excluding all service and mainte-
nance employees, business office clerical em-
ployees, confidential employees, professional
employees, guards and supervisors as defined in
the Act.
All regular full-time and part-time service and
maintenance employees,33 including nursing as-
sistants, ward clerks, admitting clerks, emergen-
cy room clerks, dietary employees, housekeeping
employees, laundry employees, laboratory tech-
nicians I, EKG technicians, EEG technicians, li-
brarian, medical records employees, and hospi-
tal clerical employees employed by the
Employer at its hospital facility located at
Washington Avenue, Norwich, Connecticut, but
excluding all technical employees, business of-
fice clerical employees, confidential employees,
registered nurses, professional employees,
guards and supervisors as defined in the Act.
ORDER
It is hereby ordered that the petition in Case
1-RC-13659 be, and it hereby is, dismissed.
[Direction of Elections omitted from publica-
tion.] 34
MEMBER PENELLO, dissenting
For the reasons set forth in the dissenting opinions
in Barnert Memorial Hospital Center 35 and in New-
ington Children's Hospital,36 I disagree with the deci-
sion of my colleagues to exclude the technical em-
ployees from the service and maintenance unit
herein, and to establish a separate unit for them.
Mindful of the congressional mandate, as evi-
33 The Employer includes the gift shop clerk in its list of relevant employ-
ees. The gift shop clerk is hired by the hospital auxiliary, a volunteer organi-
zation , which runs the gift shop , and is supervised by the director of volun-
teers While the Hospital 's personnel department evaluates thejob itself and
the Hospital apparently pays the clerk's salary, it is reimbursed by the auxi-
liary. Based on these facts we find that the gift shop clerk is not a hospital
employee and therefore is not eligible to vote.
The position of child technician was vacant at the time of the hearing and
Hospital Director Lotreck was unable to predict when or whether the posi-
tion would be filled. Accordingly, we will not pass on the unit placement of
the child technician at this time.
34 [Excelsior fn. omitted from publication.]
3'217 NLRB No. 132 (1975).
36217 NLRB No. 134 (1975).
420 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
denced by the legislative history preceding the pas- of bargaining units in the health care industry, I
sage of the 1974 health care amendments to the Na- would require, unlike my colleagues, that all techni-
tional Labor Relations Act," to avoid proliferation cal employees, including LPN's, be included in the
service and maintenance unit herein.
37 S. Rept . 93-766, 93d Cong., 2d sess. 5 (1974); H. Rept . 93-1051, 93d
Cong., 2d sess . 7 (1974).