Lake Charles Memorial Hospital

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Nov 8, 1976

226 N.L.R.B. 849 (N.L.R.B. 1976)

LAKE CHARLES MEMORIAL HOSPITAL
Southwest Louisiana Hospital Association d/b/a Lake
Charles Memorial Hospital and Office & Profes-
sional Employees International Union , Local 87,
AFL-CIO, Petitioner . Case 15-RC-5817
November 8, 1976
DECISION ON REVIEW AND DIRECTION
BY CHAIRMAN MURPHY AND MEMBERS JENKINS
AND WALTHER
On January 29, 1976, the Acting Regional Director
for Region 15 issued a Decision and Direction of
Election in the above-entitled proceeding, directing
an election in the following unit of employees of
Southwest Louisiana Hospital Association d/b/a
Lake Charles Memorial Hospital (herein called the
Employer):
All employees of the Employer; excluding all
business office clerical employees, temporary
employees, managerial employees, confidential
secretaries, professional employees, guards, and
supervisors as defined in the Act.
Thereafter, in accordance with Section 102.67 of
the National Labor Relations Board Rules and Reg-
ulations, Series 8, as amended, the Employer timely
filed a request for review of the Acting Regional
Director's decision. The Board denied the
Employer's request on February 25, 1976, except as
to the alleged supervisory status of licensed practical
nurses (LPN's) 2 and 3, serving as charge nurses
(CN's), and the unit placement of out-patient service
representatives and patient affairs clerks. The Board
directed that the employees in these classifications be
permitted to vote subject to challenge.
Pursuant to the Decision and Direction of Elec-
tion, as amended by the Board's Order, an election
by secret ballot was conducted on February 26, 1976,
in the above unit of employees of the Employer. The
tally of ballots showed that there were approximately
319 eligible voters and that 158 voted for, and 135
voted against, the Petitioner, with 49 challenged bal-
lots. The challenged ballots were sufficient in num-
ber to affect the results of the election. Thereafter,
the Employer timely filed objections to conduct af-
fecting the results of the election.
The Regional Director for Region 15 investigated
the objections and the challenged ballots and, on
May 6, 1976, issued his Report on Objections and
Challenged Ballots with Recommendations to the
Board. He concluded that the Employer's objections
(1 through 10) did not raise substantial or material
issues affecting the election or the results thereof. He
849
therefore recommended that the objections be over-
ruled. He further concluded that the LPN's 2 and 3,
who serve as charge nurses, were not supervisors
within the meaning of the Act and therefore recom-
mended that the challenges to the ballots of the 25
LPN's 2 and 3 be overruled and their ballots be
opened and counted. He further concluded that the
out-patient service representatives and the patient af-
fairs clerks were business office clerical employees
and properly excluded from the unit as originally de-
termined. He therefore recommended that the chal-
lenges to their ballots be sustained.
The Employer timely filed exceptions to the Re-
gional Director's report and a supporting brief.
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 considered the entire record in this
case, including the Regional Director's Report on
Objections and Challenged Ballots with Recommen-
dations to the Board, and the Employer's exceptions
and brief, and hereby adopts the Regional Director's
findings, conclusions, and recommendations,' as
modified below.
The Employer has excepted to the Regional
Director's exclusion of the out-patient service repre-
sentatives and the patient affairs clerks from the unit
found appropriate herein on the ground that they are
business office clerical employees and therefore ex-
cluded from the unit. We disagree with the Regional
Director's determination.
The out-patient service representatives work in a
department which is located on the first floor in the
main area of the hospital and opens into the emer-
gency room. They receive emergency out-patients,
interview them, and secure the personal data from
them necessary for admission, such as name, address,
employment, and applicable health insurance cover-
age. They then escort the patients to the emergency
room or to other ancillary departments such as X-ray
and physical therapy. They also assist the emergency
room employees in observing the patients. The infor-
mation they secure from the patient becomes a part
1 In its Objection 5, the Employer alleges that Petitioner through its agent,
Bailey, unlawfully induced hospital employees to sign union authorization
cards by conditioning waiver of initiation fees upon execution of such cards
prior to the election In adopting the Regional Director 's overruling of
Employer's Objection 5, we note that the Employer does not, in its objection
5, controvert the Regional Director's finding that Petitioner's international
representative stated on several occasions at union meetings held during the
campaign and attended by the hospital employees that no one would pay
any union dues or initiation fees until after a contract had been negotiated
and approved by employees
In his report, the Regional Director also ruled on several other challenges
for various other reasons Neither party has excepted to these rulings. In the
absence of exceptions thereto, the Board adopts , pro forma, the Regional
Director's recommendations with respect to these challenges
226 NLRB No. 136
850 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
of the patient's medical records chart. On the basis of
the out-patient service representatives' contact with
patients, the emergency room, and other functional
department personnel such as X-ray and physical
therapy, and their securing and preparation of medi-
cal record data, we find that they have a community
of interest with nursing and ancillary department
personnel and, like the emergency room clerks in
William W. Backus Hospital,' they are hospital cleri-
cal, rather than business office clerical, employees.
We shall therefore include them in the unit found
appropriate, overrule the challenges to their ballots,
and direct that their ballots be opened and counted.
The patient affairs clerks work in the admitting
office and interview and initially admit patients to
the hospital. They secure the personal and financial
data necessary for admission from the patients. They
maintain a record of the location of all patients ex-
cept those in the intensive care unit. They also are in
continual contact with the nursing and housekeeping
employees in coordinating the patients' needs for
beds with the available supply of beds in the hospital.
We find that, like the admitting clerks in William W.
Backus Hospital, supra, they are hospital clerical em-
' 220 NLRB 414 (1975) We find nothing in Trumbull Memorial Hospital,
218 NLRB 796 (1975), cited and relied on , infra, by Member Jenkins, which
is contrary to this determination , as there is no discussion in that case of the
duties and contacts of the admitting clerk
ployees, rather than business office clerical employ-
ees. We shall therefore include them in the unit, over-
rule the challenges to their ballots, and direct that
their ballots be opened and counted.'
DIRECTION
It is hereby directed that the Regional Director for
Region 15 shall, pursuant to the Board's Rules and
Regulations, Series 8, as amended, within 10 days
from the date of this Order, open and count the bal-
lots of the LPN 2 and 3 employees who serve as
charge nurses, the patient affairs clerks, and the out-
patient service representatives, all of whom are listed
in the Regional Director's Report on Objections and
Challenged Ballots with Recommendations to the
Board, and of Carol Simon and Catherine Stand-
berry.4
IT IS HEREBY FURTHER DIRECTED that thereafter the
Regional Director prepare and cause to be served on
the parties a revised tally of ballots, including therein
the count of said ballots, and thereafter issue an ap-
propriate certification.
3 Member Jenkins agrees with the Regional Director that the out-patient
representatives and the patient affairs clerks are business clericals , and were
properly excluded from the service and maintenance unit herein Trumbull
Memorial Hospital, 218 NLRB 796
4 Neither party excepted to the Regional Director 's recommendation that
the challenges to the ballots of Simon and Standberry be overruled