United World Films, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 17, 1951

94 N.L.R.B. 644 (N.L.R.B. 1951)

644 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
UNITED WORLD FILMS, INC. and UNITED OFFICE AND PROFESSIONAL
WORKERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL 253, ET AL., PETITIONER. Case No.
21-RC-1768. May 17, 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 George H. O'Brien, 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 [Members Houston, Murdock, and Styles] .
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 organizations involved claim to represent certain
employees of the Employer.
3. The question concerning representation
The Employer and the Intervenor, International Alliance of Theat-
rical Stage Employees and Motion Picture Machine Operators of the
United States and Canada, hereinafter called I. A. T. S. E., claims that
a contract between Universal Pictures Company, Inc., the Employer's
parent organization, and I. A. T. S. E. Local H-63, is a bar to a current
determination of representatives. The Petitioner contends that this
agreement, which was executed in New York City, does not cover the
employees of the Employer, which is located in Los Angeles, Cali-
fornia. The contract in question contains a union-security clause. As
no union-shop election has ever been held among the employees of
the Employer,' we find it unnecessary to determine whether or not
the contract is applicable to these employees as in any event it cannot
constitute a bar to a current determination of representatives.'
Accordingly, we find that a question affecting commerce exists con-
cerning the representation of the employees of the Employer within
the meaning of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the
Act.
4. The appropriate unit :
The Petitioner seeks a unit consisting of all the clerical employees
of the Employer. The Employer and the Intervenor wish to include
the shipping clerk and inspectors in the unit. The Petitioner would
exclude these employees but is willing to represent them if the Board
includes them.
1 On July 29 , 1948 , I A. T. S. E. Local H-63 was successful in a union -shop election
(2-UA-3501) conducted among the New York employees of Universal Pictures Company,
Inc.
2 C Hager & Sons Hinge Manufacturing Company, 80 NLRB 163
94 NLRB No. 101.
UNITED WORLD FILMS, INC. 645
The Employer is engaged in the business of renting films. Its office
space is divided into a front office and a back room. The 10 front-office
employees book the Employer's film and do the clerical and book-
keeping work attendant upon the rental operations. There are 1
shipping clerk and 2 inspectors who work in the back room, inspecting,
shipping, and unpacking film. The shipping clerk works in close
cooperation with the head booker in the front office, and her main files
are kept in the front office. Films are delivered to the front office,
where they have to be picked up by,the back room employees for
-unpacking.
While there has been no permanent transfer between the employees
in the front office and the back room, back room employees occasionally
assist on Saturdays in, booking films, and, during busy periods, front
office employees may attend to the unpacking and packing of film.
The office manager is the ultimate supervisor for both groups. The
head booker supervises all the employees in the office manager's absence
,and assists hiim in the- supervision of the- front office when, he is there.
Under these circumstances, we find, in view of the close integration of
the work of the front office and back room employees; their common
supervision, and the lack of special skills in either group, that the
back room employees should be included in the appropriate unit.
The Petitioner wishes to include, and the Employer and the Inter-
venor to exclude, the cashier on the ground that she supervises the
billing clerk. As the cashier, however, is.merely instructing the billing
clerk, a new employee, in her work, and exercises no supervisory au-
thority within the meaning of the Act, over the billing clerk or any
other employee, we shall include her in the unit.
The Petitioner wishes to include, and the Employer and the Inter-
venor to exclude, the secretary to the office manager as a confidential
employee. This employee is under instructions, however, not to open
-confidential mail, which is handled by-the manager himself. As this
employee does not act in a confidential capacity to any company official
engaged in formulating or executing the Employer's general labor
policy, we shall include her in the unit 3
Accordingly, we find that a unit consisting of all the clerical em-
ployees at the Employer's Los Angeles, California, office, including
the shipping clerks and inspectors, the cashier, and the secretary to the
office manager, but excluding salesmen, the office manager, the head
booker, and all other supervisors, constitute a unit appropriate for the
purpose of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b)
of the Act.
[Text of Direction of Election omitted from publication in this
volume.]
3 Phillips Chemical Company , 91 NLRB 568.