Startex Mills

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 25, 1942

44 N.L.R.B. 486 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In the Matter of STARTEX MILLS and UNITED TEXTILE WORKERS OF
AMERICA (A. F. OF L.)
Case No. R-1.200.Decided September 25, 1942
Jurisdiction : textile manufacturing industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re-
fusal to accord petitioner recognition until certified by the Board; election
necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : proposed unit confined to em-
ployees of Company's production mill held appropriate despite Company's re-
quest for inclusion of finishing plant employees, in view of limited extent of
union organization ; clerical, supervisory, outside, store, hotel employees, and
watchmen excluded.
Mr. Benjamin 0. Johnson, of Spartanburg, S. C., for the Company.
Mr. John V. Pollard, of Spartanburg, S. C., for the Union.
Mr. Raymond J. Heilman, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by United Textile Workers of America,
affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the
Union, alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen con-
cerning the representation of employees of Startex Mills, Tucapau,
South Carolina, herein called the Company, the National Labor Rela-
tions Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due notice
before Robert F. Koretz, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was held at
Spartanburg, South Carolina, on August 6, 1942. The Company and
the, Union appeared, participated, and were afforded full opportunity
to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to intro-
duce evidence bearing upon the issues. The Trial Examiner's rulings
made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby
affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Startex Mills, a South Carolina Corporation, is engaged at Tucapau,
South Carolina, in the manufacture and sale of toweling and print
44 N. L. R. B., No. 85.
486
STARTEX MILLS , 487
cloths. The principal raw materials used by the Company are cotton
and'flax. It purchases annually approximately 24,000 bales of cotton
and approximately 1,000 tons of flax. Over 50 percent of the total of
each of these materials originates outside the State of South Carolina.'
The Company's finished products amount to approximately 300,000
yards of toweling and 700,000 yards of print cloth. per week. Nearly
all of the toweling and about 25 percent of the print cloth are shipped
by the Company to points outside the State of South Carolina. The
remainder of the print cloth is shipped to finishing plants within the
State and ultimately is shipped from those plants to points outside the
State.
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 is a labor organization, af-
filiated, with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to mem-
bership employees of the Company.
III.. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The parties stipulated that on or about July 1, 1942, the Company,
in response to a request made by a representative of the Union,
declined to recognize or bargain with that organization unless it were
certified by the Board.
A statement by a Field Examiner for the Tenth Region, introduced
into evidence at the hearing, shows that the Union represents a sub-
stantial number of employees within the unit alleged by the Union
to be appropriate.1 -
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 seeks a unit of the production and maintenance em-
ployees of the Company, excluding the employees of the finishing
i The Field Examiner reported that, as shown by the Company' s pay roll for the week
ending July 25, containing 1,083 names , there were 841 employees in the unit claimed
appropriate by the Union and 1 , 007 in the unit claimed appropriate by the Company ; that
the Union, in support of its claim of representation of a majority of employees in the
alleged appropriate unit, submitted 467 application -for-membership cards bearing 346
apparently genuine signatures of persons whose names appeared on said pay roll These
cards bore various dates from January to August 1942, inclusive.
The Company' s president testified at the hearing that the approximate number of em-
ployees in the unit claimed appropriate by the Union was 915 and that the unmf desired
by the Company would include approximately 92 additional employees.
488 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
.plant, clerical, supervisory, outside, and store and hotel employees,
and watchmen. The Company contends that the' employees of the
finishing plant should be included in the unit but does not otherwise
object to the Union's claim as to the appropriate unit.
The Company's entire, industrial, plant consists of two principal
buildings, about 350 yards apart, one called the mill, in which towel-
ing and print cloths are manufactured, and one in which the finishing
department is located. About 25 per cent of the print cloth produced
in the mill is thereafter processed in the finishing department. There
are between 841 and 915 employees in the unit desired by the Union
and between 76 and 92 employees in the finishing plant.2
The mill and the finishing department are operated under common
management and supervision. A maintenance overseer and his crew,
a head carpenter, a master mechanic, and a group of machinists work
in both the mill and the, finishing plant buildings as well as in other
buildings of the Company. There is a separate overseer for the
finishing department. -
There is very slight difference in wages between the mill and the
finishing department, with a somewhat higher wage in the former.
In each department there are both piece and hourly rated jobs. There
is no appreciable difference in the skill'required generally as between
these two departments. There. is,, however,, little interchange of
employees bet}veen,them.3
The Company's position apparently is that the finishing plant em-
ployees should be included in the unit because, the finishing-plant
operations are an integral part of, the general manufacturing opera-
tions.
The Union has made no effort to organize the finishing-plant em-
ployees and has no members among them, although such employees
are eligible for membership in the Union. No labor organization is
here seeking to represent employees of the finishing plant.
We are of the opinion that a unit which coincides with the extent
of the Union's organization is appropriate. To find otherwise would
deprive the employees in the mill of the benefits, of collective bargain-
ing until those of the finishing department were organized.4 We shall
therefore exclude the finishing-plant employees from the unit. Our
2 See footnote 1, supra
3 None has been transferred from the finishing plant to the mill in the past year The
maximum number thus transferred at any one time previously was about 20, and the trans-
fers were not made more than 2 or 3 times per year / Such transfers generally were made
only on the request of the employees and for periods of a few weeks only , during which
the work in the finishing , plant was slack Two or three employees ' who work regularly
in the mill are sometimes transferred for a few weeks at a time to do work in the finishing
plant for which they are particularly experienced
4 See Matter of The Patterson-Kelley Company, Iiic. and Industrial ihotherhood or
Boilermakers, Iron Shipbuilders, Welders , Welders' Helpers of America, Local' No 397
(A "F of L ), 38 N L R B 1229
STARTEX MILLS 489
determination herein as to the appropriate unit, however, is no'bar to
a later revision in accordance with any changes which may occur in
the status of self-organization of the Company's employees.
TWe'find.that the production and maintenance employees of the Com-
pany, excluding the,employees of the finishing plant, clerical, super-'
visory, outside, and store and hotel employees, and watchmen, consti-
tute 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 representation 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 Direc-
tion.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National Labor
Relations Boardby 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 2, as amended, it is, hereby,,
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain. representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Startex Mills,
Tucapau, South Carolina, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted
as early as possible but not later than thirty (30) days from the date
of this Direction, under the. direction and, supervision of the Regional
Director for the Tenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the
National Labor Relations Board and subject to Article III, Section 9,
of said Rules and Regulations, among the employees in the unit found
appropriate in -Section IV, above, who -were. employed. during the
pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction,
including any such employees who, did not work during said pay-roll
period because they were ill or on vacation or in the active military
service or training of the-United States, or temporarily, laid off, but
excluding any who have since quit or,been discharged for cause, to
determine whether or not they desire to be represented by - United
Textile Workers of America, affiliated. with the American Federation
of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining'
MR. War. M. LEISERSON took no part in the consideration of the
above Decision and Direction of Election. . ,