Kanawha Valley Memorial Hospital, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board DecisionsJun 25, 1975

218 N.L.R.B. 846 (N.L.R.B. 1975)

846 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD Kanawha Valley Memorial Hospital , Inc.l and Nation- al Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees, 1199 W. VA., RWDSU, AFL-CIO, Petitioner. Cases 9-RC-10871, 9-RC-10872, and 9-RC- 10873 June 25, 1975 DECISION ON REVIEW AND DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS BY MEMBERS FANNING, JENKINS, AND KENNEDY 2 Upon petitions duly filed under Section 9(c) of the National Labor Relations -Act, as amended, a consolidated hearing was held on January 7 and 8, 1975, before Hearing Officer Francis X. Schweg- mann. On January 28, 1975, the Regional Director for Region 9 issued a Decision and Direction of Election in which he found that the Employer's service and maintenance employees, licensed practi- cal nurses , nurses aides, office clerical employees, and technical employees, but excluding registered nurses and other professional employees, confiden- tial employees, and members of the hospital auxilia- ry, junior auxiliary, and guards and supervisors as defined in the Act constitute a unit appropriate for collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9(b) of the Act. Thereafter, the Petitioner and the Employer in accordance with Section 102.67 of the National Labor Relations Board's Rules and Regula- tions, Series 8, as amended, filed requests for review and accompanying briefs. In its request for review the Petitioner contends that the Regional Director erred in directing an election in a broad unit rather than in the three separate units of licensed practical nurses, office clerical employees, and service and maintenance employees sought by the Petitioner. The Employer, in its request for review, contends that the Regional Director erred in finding that members of the auxiliary and junior auxiliary should be excluded from the unit found appropriate. The Regional Director concluded that these individuals, all of whom assist at the Employer's hospital on a voluntary basis with little or no compensation, are not employees of the Employer in the usual or normal sense and thus have little or no interest in common with any employees included in the unit. 1 Employer's name appears as corrected at the hearing. 2 Member Kennedy dissented from the grant of review. 3 See St. Catherine 's Hospital ofDomimcan Sisters of Kenosha; Wisconsin, Inc., 217 NLRB No 133 (1975). 4 Although the record is silent insofar as the certification or educational requirement and qualification of the operating room technicians is concerned, it appears that they do receive 6 months of formal training. Accordingly, we shall allow the operating room technician to vote in the 218 NLRB No. 135 By telegraphic order dated February 26, 1975, the Board granted Petitioner's request for review and denied the Employer's request for review. Thereafter, the Petitioner and the Employer filed briefs. Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, the National Labor Relations Board has delegated its authority in this proceeding to a three-member panel. The Board has considered the entire record in the case, with respect to the issues under review, including the request for review and the briefs filed by the parties, and makes the following findings: The Employer, a West Virginia corporation, is engaged in the operation of a general hospital located in Charlestown, West Virginia, which pro- vides 116 beds and has approximately 275 employ- ees. As noted, the Petitioner seeks to represent the Employer's licensed practical nurses , office clerical employees, and service and maintenance employees in three separate units. The Employer maintains that only an overall unit of employees, as found by the Regional Director, is appropriate. We agree with the Regional Director's finding that a separate bargaining unit consisting solely of licensed practical nurses as petitioned for in Case 9- RC-10871 is inappropriate.3 The record indicates, however, that the Employer's work force includes five x-ray and four lab technicians, all of whom have undergone several years of specialized training and most of whom are certified, and two operating room technicians.4 In accordance with our decisions in St. Catherine's Hospital of Dominican Sisters of Kenosha, Wisconsin, Inc., supra and Nathan and Miriam Barnert Memorial Hospital Association d/b/a Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, 217 NLRB No. 132 (1975), we conclude that a unit consisting of these technical employees and including the licensed practical nurses is an appropriate unit for bargaining and we shall direct an election therein.5 Contrary to the Regional Director, we fmd a unit of all of the Employer's business office clerical employees to be an appropriate unit for the purposes of collective bargaining.6 From the record it appears that the medical records and medical library employ- ees and the laboratory clerks are not located in the central business office area, do not share common supervisors with the business office employees, and do not share close working relationships sufficient to technical unit subject to challenge. 5 The record indicates that the EKG technicians can perform their functions after approximately 2 weeks of training and are not certified. Based on these considerations we shall exclude the EKG technicians from the technical unit as we find that they are not technical employees. See Barnert Memorial Hospital Center, supra. 6 See Mercy Hospitals of Sacramento, Inc., 217 NLRB No. 131 (1975). KANAWHA VALLEY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL, INC. establish a significant community of interest with the business office clericals included in the unit.7 Therefore the medical records and medical library employees and the laboratory clerk will be excluded from the unit. Finally, we find appropriate a unit consisting of the Emp1loyer's service and maintenance employees as sought by the Petitioner in Case 9-RC-10873.8 We shall include in the service and maintenance unit all clerical employees who are not business office clerical employees.9 Thus, the medical records employees, the medical library employees, and the laboratory clerk will be included in the unit. Also included in the unit are the EKG technicians. In Case 9-RC-10871: All full-time and regular part-time x-ray technicians, lab technicians, operat- ing room technicians, and licensed practical nurses employed at Kanawha Valley Memorial Hospital, Charlestown, West Virginia, excluding all other employees, confidential employees, guards, and supervisors as defined by the Act. In Case 9-RC-10872: All full-time and regular part-time business office clerical employees, includ- ing admissions clerks, pharmacy clerks, credit clerks, billing clerks, posting clerks, and switchboard opera- 7 See Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace, 217 NLRB No. 135 (1975). B See St. Catherine's Hospital of Dominican Sisters of Kenosha supra; Newington Children's Hospital, 217 NLRB No. 134 (1975). B See Mercy Hospital of Sacramento, Inc., supra. 10 Inasmuch as the election being directed in Cause 9-RC-10871 is in a broader unit than the unit petitioned for by the Petitioner, and because it is not clear from the record whether the Petitioner is willing to proceed to an election in such unit , Petitioner may now wish to reconsider whether it wishes to proceed to an election in the unit directed . If it does wish to so 847 tors employed at Kanawha Memorial Hospital, Charlestown, West Virginia, excluding all other employees, confidential employees, guards, and supervisors as defined by the Act. In Case 9-RC-10873: All full-time and regular part-time service and maintenance employees, in- cluding nurses aides , nurse attendants, nursing unit clerks, housekeeping, dietary, laundry, and mainte- nance employees, EKG technicians, medical records and medical library employees, and laboratory clerks employed at Kanawha Memorial Hospital, Charles- town, West Virginia, excluding all other employees, confidential employees, guards and supervisors as defined by the Act. [Direction of Elections 10 and Excelsior footnote omitted from publication.] MEMBER KENNEDY, dissenting: I would adopt the Regional Director's Decision and direct a single election in a broad unit (excluding as did the Regional Director the members of the auxiliary and junior auxiliary). See my dissenting opinion in St. Catherine's Hospital of Dominican Sisters of Kenosha, Wisconsin, Inc., 217 NLRB No. 133 (1975). proceed, it will be necessary for the Petitioner to submit to the Regional Office an adequate showing of interest in such unit . Accordingly, we direct that the Petitioner advise the Regional Director whether or not it wishes to proceed to an election , and, if it does desire to do so and does not already have a sufficient showing of interest, submit its additional interest showing. Failure to submit a sufficient additional interest showing or , alternatively, a request to withdraw petitions within 10 days from the date of this Decision will result in dismissal of the petition in Case 9-RC-10871.