Opinion ID: 471757
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Inclusion of Dominican Priests in the Bargaining Unit

Text: 29 The University contends that the Board improperly included four or five Dominican priests in the unit of all full-time faculty members. The University urges that the priests have a community of interest with their employer that diverge from those of other employees, and that inclusion of the priests in the bargaining unit would subject them to a conflict of loyalties. It notes that, in similar cases, the Board has excluded members of a religious order from a bargaining unit. Carroll Manor Nursing Home, 202 N.L.R.B. 67, 68 (1973); Seton Hill College, 201 N.L.R.B. 1026, 1027 (1973). 30 We need not decide whether, not having raised this objection in the representation proceeding, the University may raise it now, or whether the priests actually have a community of interest with the University that is distinct from that of the other employees. An employer cannot avoid an obligation to bargain with respect to an entire unit of employees by arguing that some employees were improperly included, unless the inclusion of the contested employees would affect the unit's majority status. See Walla Walla Union-Bulletin v. NLRB, 631 F.2d 609, 614-15 (9th Cir.1980); Glen Manor Home for Jewish Aged v. NLRB, 474 F.2d 1145, 1150 (6th Cir.), cert. denied, 414 U.S. 826, 94 S.Ct. 130, 38 L.Ed.2d 59 (1973). Here, it appears that, at most, five priests were included in the unit. Because the union won by a vote of 41-9, we cannot find that the inclusion of those priests had an effect on the election outcome. The University is free to seek a unit clarification, pursuant to 29 C.F.R. Sec. 102.60 (b), or may refuse to bargain over the rights of the contested employees so as to bring that particular question before the court. See Walla-Walla Union Bulletin, 631 F.2d at 615.