The Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jan 19, 1951

92 N.L.R.B. 1411 (N.L.R.B. 1951)

In the Matter of THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE PUBLISHING COMPANY .
AND TELEGRAM PUBLISHING COMPANY, EMPLOYER 1 and AMERICAN
NEWSPAPER GUILD , C. I. 0., PETITIONER
Case No. 20-RC-1131.-Decided January 19,1951
DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION
.Upon a petition duly filed under Section 9 (c) of the National
Labor Relations Act, a hearing was held before David Karasick,
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 Act, the Board
has delegated its .powers in connection with this case to a three-member
panel [Chairman Herzog and Members Houston and Reynolds].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the Act.
2. The labor organization involved claims to represent certain em-
ployees of the Employer.
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section
9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. The Employer, The Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Company and
Telegram Publishing Company, publishes The Salt Lake Tribune,
a morning newspaper appearing daily including Sunday, and The
Salt Lake Telegram, an evening newspaper, which appears 6 days
a week excluding Sunday?
There is no history of collective bargaining except as to the em-
ployees of the lnechanical departments, who are represented by
various craft unions.
The Petitioner seeks to represent a single unit comprising all em-
ployees in the news-editorial department (except those in the branch
offices outside Salt Lake City), the community service department,
and the circulation department. The Employer takes the position
that a separate unit for each of the three departments would be appro-
The Employer 's name appears in the caption as corrected at the hearing.
The Telegram Publishing Company is wholly owned by The Salt Lake Tribune Publish-
ing Company. All persons working on either or both of the newspapers are carried on
the payroll of The Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Company.
92 NLRB No . 221. 1411
1412 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
priate, but lack of community of interest between the employees of
the three makes the unit sought inappropriate. The Petitioner con-
cedes that separate units for each of the three departments would also
be appropriate, and further asserts that a combination of any two
would be appropriate. In the event that the Board finds a single
unit for all three inappropriate,- the Petitioner asks that it consider
these alternatives.
Inappropriateness of Unit Sought
The multidepartment unit sought by the Petitioner does not com-
prise all departments other than the mechanical departments. Thus,.
out of 3 commercial departments-advertising, with approximately
42 employees, the business office, with approximately 55,3 and cir-
culation, with approximately 61-the proposed unit covers only
circulation. Likewise not sought to be included are the maintenance
department, with 17 employees,4 and the executive office .-5
The functions of the three departments constituting the proposed
unit are widely divergent. The circulation department is concerned
with the sale and physical distribution of the newspapers. Its em-
ployees fall into three main groups : Salesmen, those who perform
clerical duties, and route drivers. None of these jobs require the
same type of ability and training as that required for performing the
primary functions of the news-editorial department, gathering,
presenting, and interpreting news. Below the level of the general
manager, who has general responsibility for all departments, there
is no common supervision of all three departments and there has been
no interchange or transfer of employees.
The community service department, consisting of a director and
17 employees, combines promotional functions with the maintenance
of the library or "morgue." Most of its employees perform both:
functions. The community service department and the news-editorial
department are both under the general supervision of the executive
editor.
Both before and since the 1947 amendments to the Act, the Board
has recognized that a single major department of a newspaper may
constitute an appropriate units We have also recognized as appro-,
3 The employees in the business office keep the books and other records , do the billing
for both the circulation and advertising departments , and some collection work.
4 These are under the direction of the Employer 's auditor , who is also the head of the
business office.
5 This comprises only the gene' al mane 'er and his two secretaries who, both parties agree,
should be excluded from any unit deemed appropriate.
6 Chicago Journal of Commerce, Inc., 85 NLRB 482; A. S. Abell Company, 81 NLRB 82 ;'-
Constitution Publishing Company , 81 NLRB 61 . 4 : George W. Prescott Publishing Com-
pany, Inc., 64 NLRB 1390 ; Journal of Commerce Corporation, 74 NLRB 1376.
THE. SALT LAKE TRIBUNE PUBLISHING COMPANY 1413
priate a multidepartment unit comprising all nonmechanical depart-
ments 7 and have characterized such a grouping as the optimum unit.'
Before the 1947 amendments, the Board occasionally recognized as
appropriate a combination of two or more departments which did not
comprise all the nonmechanical departments. In many of these cases,
however, the departments constituting such units performed closely
related functions calling for similar skills on the part of the employees,
such as a combination of the business department and the advertising
department.' In at least one instance 10 the unit found appropriate,
consisting of the editorial and circulation departments, closely re-
sembles the unit the Petitioner here seeks. However, in that case there
was a previous history of bargaining on behalf of the employees in
these dissimilar departments. In a later case," the Board specifically
held that because of substantial difference in the work performed by
employees of news-editorial and circulation departments, such a unit
could not be found appropriate in the absence of a compelling history
of collective bargaining on such a basis. In other cases of combi-
nation of two unrelated departments, extent of organization was the
controlling factor.
We find that the unit sought is not appropriate, because there is a
lack of mutual interest and a disparity of functions among the em-
ployees whom the Petitioner seeks to represent, and because such unit
fails to correspond to any administrative grouping within the Em-
ployer's organization.1o
Alternative Unit Suggestions
In suggesting the possible appropriateness of a unit comprising the
news-editorial plus the community service department, the Petitioner
.calls attention to the fact that in 1942 the Board found appropriate
a unit combining the news-editorial department and the library-
promotion department, as the community service department was then
called. In its initial determination in that case,13 the Board found
7 Record Publishing Company, 91 NLRB No . 215; Journal of Commerce Corporation,
.74 NLRB 1376.
8 Globe Newspaper Company , 31 NLRB 916.
Bethlehems ' Globe Publishing Company , 74 NLRB 392.
10 Sacramento Publishing Company, Ltd., 57 NLRB 1636.
11 George W. Prescott Publishing Company , 57 NLRB 1636.
12 The Petitioner cites only one case since the 1947 amendments in which a multidepart-
-ment unit comprising less than all the nonmechanical departments was found to be
:appropriate . In. this unpublished case, Milwaukee Sentinel, Case No. 13-RC-965 , the Board
approved a stipulated unit comprising all the employees in the business and advertising
.departments , all regular employees of the promotion and service departments , and all
regular inside employees of the circulation department . It is plain that there is a far
greater similarity in function and skill among the employees constituting such a unit
than among the employees -whom the Petitioner here seeks to represent.
13 The Telegram Publishing Company and The Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Company,
-41 NLRB 662.
1414 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
that the work of the library-promotion employees was not related to
that of the editorial employees, and that the two departments were
functionally distinct and separate. It therefore limited the unit to
employees of the news-editorial department, and excluded all employ
ees of library-promotion: At the time of this initial determination, the
duties of the employees in library-promotion were virtually the same
as they are today. They maintained files of clippings, photographs,.
and other information, answered telephone inquiries from the general
public, and engaged in promotional activities, such as conducting vari-
ous types of contests to enlist public interest. On a motion for rehear-
ing,14 it was found that after the previous determination there had
been a reduction of their promotional activities, and for this reason,
and because there had been transfers between the library-promotion
department and the news-editorial department, the Board found ap-
propriate a unit including the employees of both. In the present case,
however, the record shows that there have been no transfers whatever
between the two departments since the time of that decision, and that
more of the employees' time is now spent on activities intended to
promote public interest and build up good will for the purposes of in-
creasing circulation than on merely maintaining the library. Ac-
cordingly, we find that a unit comprising the editorial news and com-
munity service departments is inappropriate.
Although the functions of the community service employees are
related to those of some of the employees in the circulation depart-
ment who also engage in promotional activities, the greater part of
the circulation employees are engaged solely in the physical distribu-
tion of the papers. Accordingly, we also find that a unit limited to
the employees of the circulation department and the community serv-
ice department is not appropriate.
In view of the entire record, we find that separate -Units composed
respectively of employees of the news-editorial, the circulation, and
the community service departments, may be appropriate. However,
as the Petitioner has failed to make a sufficient showing of interest
among the employees of the community service department, we shall
not direct an election among the employees of that department.
Scope of News-Editorial Unit
There remains for consideration the question of the inclusion of
news -editorial employees in the branch offices in the news-editorial
unit. There are seven branch offices in communities from 35 miles to
240 miles distant from Salt Lake City. Except for two employees in
24 44 NLRB 469.
THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE PUBLISHING COMPANY 1415
one branch office who are engaged in soliciting advertising, or in
other work not related to the news-editorial department, the branch
staffs consist of one "reporter" at each branch office and one or two
"regional reporters." Those classified as reporters are experienced
men, most of whom have previously worked in the Salt Lake City
office and whose salaries are comparable to experienced reporters there,
The regional reporters are usually comparatively inexperienced as
reporters, and most of them work only part time although they are,
regular employees 15 Both reporters and regional reporters are under
the supervision of the executive editor, as are all news-editorial de-
partment employees. Their material is filed with the head of the
regional news desk in the Salt Lake City office, with whom they are in
communication by teletype and telephone. Although it is not con,
tended by either party, and the record does not indicate, that the re-
porters are supervisors, they are regarded as "branch chiefs" and,
not infrequently come to Salt Lake City to discuss problems with the,
head of the regional desk and the executive editor.
The Employer testified that there have been about 30 transfers in;
the past 10 years between the branches and the Salt Lake City office
or from the Salt Lake City office to the branches. The latter type of
transfer has been confined almost exclusively to reporters who were.
transferred to branches as branch chiefs, the only exceptions being
transfers requested by one or two individuals for purely personal
reasons. Under these circumstances, we find that the work and in-
terests of the news-editorial employees in the branch offices are so.
aligned with those of the news-editorial department employees in the
main office that they should be included in the news-editorial unit.
Categories Alleged by the Employer to be Supervisory
The parties disagree as to the supervisory status of the heads of
the -customary subdivisions of the news-editorial department: The
city desk, the news desk, the regional desk, the sports department, the
editorial page, the society department, and the photographic depart-
ment.16 The Petitioner asserts that all the heads of these subdepart-
ments are supervisors. The Employer's position is that the only
supervisor in the news-editorial department, comprising 132 persons,
is the executive editor. The parties are also in disagreement as to
the supervisory status of the head of the public service department
"The Petitioner does not seek to include in the unit the "string correspondents" who,
unlike the "regional reporters ," do not have regular working hours and are not paid on a
salary basis.
'S Both the Tribune and the Telegram have their own city desks and news desks, each
of which has Its own head. Each of the other subdepartment heads is In charge of a consols
idated subdepartment serving both newspapers.
1416 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
and of the holder of a position in the circulation department described
as "checker of racks and stands." 17
It is the Employer's contention that ever since the present general
manager assumed his functions in 1947, he has been gradually cutting
down the authority of subdepartment heads as part of a program of
eventual complete centralization of authority. As a step in this pro-
gram late in the spring of 1950, he eliminated the positions of man-
aging editor of the Tribune, executive editor of the Tribune, and
managing editor of the Telegram. (There had never been an execu-
tive editor of the Telegram.) A single new position of executive edi-
tor of both newspapers was created and the former managing editor
of the Telegram appointed to it. The Employer asserts that the gen-
eral manager orally made clear to the subdepartment heads, at the
time of this appointment, that they no longer had power to interview
applicants for employment, make recommendations as to hiring, rec-
ommend promotion or salary increases for their subordinates, or even
to take such minor personnel action as changing time off at a subordi-
nate's request."' However, we believe that the general manager's
testimony in this respect establishes nothing more than that the sub-
department heads were informed that general authority was to be con-
centrated in the hands of the new executive editor,19 and that there
would be further consolidation of the staffs of the two papers.
Although the Employer concedes that the executive editor may con-
sult a subdepartment head before taking a personnel action with regard
to one of the latter's subordinates, it contends that such consultation
is to develop factual matters only and not to ascertain the department
head's evaluation of his subordinate's work performance.
City editor: It is conceded that the city editor on each paper makes
all coverage assignments to reporters handling local news and sets
up their weekly work schedules subject to the approval of the execu-
tive editor. The Employer contends that in doing so, the city editor
follows patterns so clearly defined by the executive news editor that
he is merely performing a routine, almost mechanical, function. In
fact the Employer contends that for the same reason all direction
'given by any subdepartment head to his subordinates is routine in
nature. It is clear that the city editor criticizes the work of the news
reporters. He can, and does, make suggestions for changes in their
' 7 The parties agree that the director of the circulation department and the supervisor
of country circulation should be excluded from the unit as supervisors.
Is The Employer does not assert that the subdepartment heads were first deprived of
these powers at this time , but rather , that the general manager was thus officially reminding
them of something that had long been an.accomplished fact.
'° Final authorization for hiring, promotion , discharge , etc., is made by the general
manager alone and on the recommendation of the executive editor alone.
Salary checks are paid only when time slips are approved by the executive editor, but they
must first be approved by the appropriate subdepartment head.
THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE PUBLISHING COMPANY 1417
copy which must be submitted to him , or he may make corrections
himself or cut out a story altogether . All suggestions made by the
city editor are regarded by his subordinates as orders which must be
complied with. Although the city editor has no disciplinary powers,
the Employer admits that he would be expected to report to the
executive editor any refusal to carry out his directions and such refusal
would be regarded as a ground for discharge.
News deskman : The Employer so designates the position more com-
monly referred to as news editor and head of the copy desk . All copy
approved by the city editor flows to the news desk and all wire news is
received there. Subject to the approval of the executive editor, the
news deskman on each paper lays out the newspaper , thus determining
the relative "play" of all stories. In determining the relative im-
portance of wire news , he has the assistance of one man who receives
all wire news.
The news deskman determines the type of head and length of all
stories. The copy readers write the heads and trim the stories in
accordance with his directions relayed to them through the slot man.
The news deskman is thus the head of a group of employees consisting
of the wire man, the slot man, and the copy readers . He makes up
their work schedules , directs their work, and approves their time slips.
He frequently requires copy readers to rewrite heads which do not.
satisfy him . All his suggestions to the copy readers are regarded as
orders and complied with.
In the absence of the executive editor, matters that would ordinarily
be determined by him are referred to the news deskman.
Top man on the regional desk : There are seven men who work at
the regional desk. Carver, the one whom the Employer describes as
"top man," receives a salary 30 percent higher than the next highest
paid regional desk man. He makes up the work schedules and ap-
proves the time slips of the other regional desk men , reads some, but
not all, of their copy and copy from the branch offices . The Employer
contends that the other regional desk men are not Carver's subordi-
nates, although Carver as the most experienced man is regarded as the
head of the group and the Employer concedes that he might properly
be described as regional news editor.
Carver receives - the dummies for the regional news pages, selects
copy which he may correct himself or have rewritten by other re-
gional desk men. The Employer testified that to some extent these
functions are also performed by the two men charged with special
responsibility for Utah and Idaho news respectively . However, it
is Carver who instructs new men on the regional desk. He is in
constant touch with the branch offices and occasionally visits all of
929979-51-vol. 92-91
1418 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
them. On such trips he is expected to be on the alert to locate persons
who might be interested in jobs as regional reporters or string cor-
respondents, to talk with them and to advise the executive editor as
to their suitability for future employment.
Executive sports editors: Until recently the sports staff of the
Tribune and the Telegram functioned more or less separately. Each
paper had its own sports editor who made coverage assignments and
prepared work schedules for his own staff. About 4 months before
the hearing the sports editor of the Telegram was designated as ex-
ecutive sports editor. Since then the executive sports editor has
handled all such matters with regard to both Tribune and Telegram
sports writers, despite the fact that the former sports editor of the
Tribune retains his old title. A reporter on the Tribune testified
that since the creation of the post of executive sports editor, he had
received commendation, criticism, and suggestion directly from the
person holding this position. The same reporter testified that he
had made a request for an increase in his salary directly to the execu-
tive sports editor. Three or four days later, having received no
intimation that his request had been considered, he asked the executive
sports editor whether he might speak directly to the executive news
editor about it. He was told that the executive news editor preferred
to have such requests presented through the executive sports editor
and that sports reporters should take up such matters with the execu-
tive news editor only if dissatisfied with the executive sports editor's
presentation of their requests.
Society editor: The society editor personally writes more copy than
most subdepartment heads, but she too makes coverage assignments
and prepares the work schedule for her department subject to the
approval of the executive editor. A society reporter testified that
she and the other society reporters were closely directed in all phases
of their work by the society editor.
Chief photographer: The record establishes and the Petitioner con-
cedes, that the executive editor exercises a very close supervision
over the photographic department. Individual photographers fre-
quently receive criticism and comment directly from the executive
editor. The photographers are not required to submit their photo-
graphs to the chief photographer for approval before publication.
Although the chief photographer has occasionally criticized the work
of individual photographers his comments and suggestions seem to
have been regarded as a reflection of the views of the executive
editor. The chief photographer takes many photographs himself
and is the only subdepartment head who receives overtime pay. The
differential between his salary and that of the next most highly
THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE PUBLISHING COMPANY 1419
paid photographer is much less than the differential prevailing in
other subdepartments.
'Editorial division: The Employer takes the position that there is
no head of this division. The personnel consists of three editorial
writers on the Tribune, one 'on the Telegram, and a Mr. Heal, who
was formerly both managing editor and editor of the Tribune and
still is designated in the published statement of ownership as editor.
Mr. Heal occasionally writes editorials. He decides which of the
syndicated material to which the Employer subscribes shall be used
each day, making his decision in accordance with the policy laid;
down by the publisher, and with the space available. He also de-
cides what letters to the editor shall be printed.
Daily conferences. of the editorial writers are held in his officer
to discuss what editorials shall be written. Although Mr. Heal pre-
sides over these conferences, it. is not clear that he actually directs
any editorial writer to prepare an editorial on a specific subject.20
After editorials have been prepared in accordance with the decisions
reached in the .daily conference, they are not submitted to Mr. Heal
but to one of the other editorial writers on the Tribune'21 who deter-
mines which shall be used that day and what adjustments made, it
any are needed, to fit the available space.. In making selections, the
latter uses his own discretion unless Mr. Heal has given a definite
indication of the desirability of covering a particular subject that
day.. When he has prepared this schedule of the editorial page he
leaves it on Mr. Heal's desk.
Mr. Heal has no knowledge of the salaries of the other editorial
writers and does not have any control of their hours or work.
Conclusions as to News-Editorial Unit
The Board has customarily excluded from news-editorial units, as
supervisors, city editors,"' news editors,23 sports editors,24 and society
editors.25 In many of the cases cited, these subdepartment heads have
had the authority to hire and discharge, and in virtually all have had
the power effectively to recommend changes in the personnel status
20 Although editorial writers are charged with responsibility for avoiding matter that is
libelous , in poor taste , or not in accord with the publisher's policy, any doubt on these
.matters is apparently discussed at the conference with Mr. Heal. In turn, if he is in^
doubt, Mr. Heal refers the question to the publisher.
21 All scheduling on the Telegram apparently is done by its single editorial writer
although this is not entirely clear in the record.
22 Arizona Times, Inc., 85 NLRB 230 ; A. S. Abell Company, 81 NLRB 82 ; The Telegram
Publishing Company and The Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Company, 41 NLRB 662, 44
NLRB 469.
23 A. S. Abell Company, supra, footnote 22; Waukegan News Sun, 85 NLRB 157.
24 Arizona Times, Inc., supra, footnote 22 ; Waukegan News Sun, supra, footnote 23.
26 Waukegan News Sun, supra, footnote 23.
1420 . DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
of their subordinates. It is clear that none of the subdepartment
heads of the news-editorial department of the Salt Lake Tribune
and Telegram has the power to hire and fire. The record throws
some doubt, however, on the contention of the Employer that they
possess no power of effective recommendation. It is not necessary
to resolve this question, however, as we find that the record clearly
establishes, as to the city editors, news editors, regional editor, execu-
tive sports editor, and society editor, that they responsibly direct
the personnel of their subdepartments. This power alone is sufficient
to constitute them supervisors within the meaning of the Act. Ac-
cordingly, we shall exclude them from the unit.
It is difficult to determine from the somewhat confusing testimony
to what extent Mr. Heal responsibly directs the editorial writers.
However, as the Employer represents to the public that he is its
"Editor" and pays him on that basis, we find that his interests are so
closely identified with management as to preclude his inclusion in the
unit. We shall exclude him.
We find that the following employees of the Employer constitute
units appropriate for collective bargaining.26
1. All employees of the news-editorial department, including the
chief photographer and all reporters and regional reporters in the
branch offices, but excluding the general manager, executive editor,
editor of the Tribune,27 city editors, news desk men, head of the regional
news desk, executive sports editor, society editor, and all other super-
visors as defined in the Act.
2. All employees of the circulation department, including the
checker of racks and stands,28 but excluding the director, the supervisor
of city circulation, the supervisor of country circulation, and all other
supervisors as defined in the Act.
[Text of Direction of. Election omitted from publication in this
volume.]
28 As no election is herein directed among the employees of the community service depart-
ment because the Petitioner has failed to make a sufficient showing of interest in that
department , we shall make no finding as to the specific inclusions within, or exclusions
from , such a unit.
27 G. B. Heal , also described as editor of the editorial page.
28 At the bearing the Petitioner asserted that this employee was a supervisor. We find
that he is a working group leader whose direction of other employees is routine in character
and accordingly we include him in the unit.