Radio Station WLAV

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 30, 1949

87 N.L.R.B. 1570 (N.L.R.B. 1949)

In the Matter of RADIO STATION WLAV, WLAV-FM AND WLAV-TV,
EMPLOYER and CHICAGO CHAPTER, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF
BROADCAST ENGINEERS AND TECHNICIANS , PETITIONER
Case No. 7-RC-595.-Decided December 30, 194.9
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before Francis E.
Burger, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the
hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the National Labor
Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with
this case to a three-member panel [Chairman Herzog and Members
Reynolds and Murdock].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the National Labor Relations Act.
2. The Petitioner, the Intervenor, International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers, AFL, Local No. 1295, herein called IBEW,
and the Intervenor, International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Em-
ployees and Moving Picture Machine Operators of the U. S. and
Canada, AFL, Local. No. 291, herein called IATSE, are labor organ-
izations claiming to represent employees of the Employer.
3. The IBEW urges as a bar to this proceeding a contract with
the employer covering the employees involved herein and expiring
on October 31, 1949. This contract contains an unauthorized union-
shop provision. In view of well settled Board policy regarding un-
authorized union-shop contracts 1 and the fact that the expiration
date of this contract has passed, we find that it cannot operate as
a bar to this proceeding. Accordingly, we find that a question affect-
ing commerce exists concerning the representation of employees of
the Employer within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6)
and (7) of the Act.
' See C. Hager cG Sons Hinge Manufacturing Company, 80 NLRB 163.
87 NLRB No. 154.
1570
RADIO STATION WLAV, WLAV-FM AND WLAV-TV 1571
4. The appropriate unit :
The Petitioner, in agreement with the Employer, seeks a unit of all
radio engineers and technicians who operate those facilities of the
Engineering Department of the Employer used in transmitting, con-
verting and/or conducting audio, FM, video and/or radio frequencies
for use in broadcast, rebroadcast, audition, rehearsal, recording and/or
"on the air" playback, excluding all other employees. Despite the
fact that the requested unit is substantially identical with the unit
covered by their most recent contract with the Employer, the IBEW
questions the appropriateness of the unit because of an alleged dis-
tinction between the operations of AM and FM broadcasting and the
operations of telecasting. However, the IBEW declined to present
any evidence to support its objection.
The record discloses that all employees in the category of engineers
and technicians maintain and operate the technical facilities of
WLAV, WLAV-FM, and WLAV-TV and the micro-wave system of
the Employer. Although not all are licensed engineers, all perform
practically the same duties. With the exception of one engineer per-
manently assigned to television, they are not assigned to a particular
station or operation, but work interchangeably on AM, FM, or TV
in accordance with a schedule prepared by the chief engineer. All
engineers and technicians work out from one central office and are
subject to assignment to any of the operations. The engineer per-
manently assigned to television works with each of the engineers and
technicians during such periods as they are assigned to the television
operations.
In view of the foregoing, and without determining whether radio
and television technicians may constitute separate units, we find, upon
the basis of the present case, including the interchange of employees
engaged in radio and television operations, that the unit may properly
include both radio and television engineers and technicians.
A further objection to the proposed unit is that made by IATSE
upon the ground that the unit does not specifically exclude projection-
ists. IATSE takes the position that, although the Employer does
not presently have any employees who exclusively operate motion
picture projectors due to the fact that its telecasting station was only
recently placed in operation on August 15, 1949, the Employer will,
.of necessity, hire projectionists in the near future. Thus, on the basis
of its claim of jurisdiction over projectionists 2 and its claim that
2 IATSE admits that in effect it is requesting the Board to award to it jurisdiction
over any projectionists which the Employer may hire in the future. As the question of
jurisdiction over a particular operation is not proper for consideration in a representa-
tion proceeding but may he raised only under a proper 10 (k) proceeding, we find this
position taken by IATSE is without merit. Furthermore, we find that Section 9 (b) (2)
17359-50-vol. 87--101
1572 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
projectionists are a distinct craft, IATSE. requests that projectionists
be specifically excluded from the unit. The Employer states that it
does not intend to employ any projectionists in the future because the
motion picture projector is operated for only about 1 hour per day
and also because the regular engineers and technicians, all of whom
.are capable of operating projectors, are satisfactorily operating such
machines along with their other duties. As the Employer does not
presently have on its pay roll any employees falling within the classi-
fication of projectionist, we shall not determine the unit placement
of such classification at this time.3 However, our action shall in no
wise prejudice or preclude consideration of the proper unit placement
of projectionists at such time as the issue is properly before the Board.
We find that all radio engineers and technicians of Radio Station
WLAV, WLAV-FM, and WLAV-TV, who operate those facilities
of the engineering department used in transmitting, converting and/or
conducting audio, FM, video and/or radio frequencies for use in broad-
cast, rebroadcast, audition, rehearsal, recording and/or "on the air"
playback including part-time engineers and technicians ,4 but exclud-
ing all supervisors as defined by the Act,' and all other employees of
the Employer, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of col-
lective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION e
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with the Employer, an election by
.secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later
than 30 days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and
of the Act does not, as urged by TATSE , require the exclusion of employees in a craft
group from a broader unit to pave the way for their representation in a separate unit
when they are hired . See National Tube Company, 76 NLRB 1199, 1202.
3 See Fall River Gas Works Co., 82 NLRB 962.
4 The two part -time engineers and technicians perform the same duties as full-time
engineers and technicians . There is no question as to their qualifications as engineers.
They regularly work approximately 12 and 15 hours a week respectively . The Employer
anticipates that one will be placed on full -time operation and that the other will continue
to work part time indefinitely. The Petitioner would include them in the unit only if
there is a reasonable prospect of their becoming full -time engineers and technicians.
Because their duties and conditions of employment are similar to those of other engineers
and technicians , the part -time engineers and technicians are included in the unit. As
they regularly work a specified number of hours each week and their employment has a
reasonable probability of being continuous , we shall permit the part-time engineers and
technicians to vote in this election . See Sunshine Broadcasting Company, et al., 83 NLRB
1244.
5 The engineer permanently assigned to television whom the Employer has indicated
is a leadman or working supervisor is included in the unit as the record reveals, and we
find, that he is not a supervisor within the meaning of the Act. See Wodaam Corporation
( Radio Station WOV), 83 NLRB 335; Fort Industry Company, 77 NLRB . 1287, ,1298.
9 Any participant in the election directed herein may , ' upon ' its prompt request . to, and
approval thereof by , the Regional Director , have its name removed from the ballot.
RADIO STATION WLAV, WLAV-FM AND WLAV-TV 1573
supervision of the Regional Director for the Region in which this
case was heard, and subject to Sections 203.61 and 203.62 of National
Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations, among the employees
in the unit found appropriate in paragraph numbered 4, above, who
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the
date of this Direction of Election, including employees who did not
work during said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation
or temporarily laid off, but excluding those employees who have since
quit or been discharged for cause and have not been rehired or rein-
stated prior to the date of the election, and also excluding employees
on strike who are not entitled to reinstatement, to determine whether
they desire to be represented,. for purposes of collective bargaining,
by Chicago Chapter, National Association of Broadcast Engineers and
Technicians, or by International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers,
AFL, Local No. 1295, or by International Alliance of Theatrical Stage
Employees and Moving Picture Machine Operators of the U. S. and
Canada, AFL, Local No. 291,7 or by none.
7 The compliance status of the Intervenor has lapsed since the hearing in the matter.
In the event it fails to renew its compliance with Section 9 (f), (g), and ( h) of the Act
within 2 weeks from the date of this Direction , the Regional Director shall remove the
name of Local No. 291 from the ballot.