The Associated Press

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Apr 16, 1945

61 N.L.R.B. 574 (N.L.R.B. 1945)

In the Matter of THE AssoCIATED PRESS and AMERICAN NEWSPAPER
GUILD, CIO
Case No. 17-R-1042.-Decided April 16,1945
Mr. Bob Cavagnaro , of Denver , Colo., for the Company.
Messrs. Graham cQ Scheunemann , by Mr. Charles A. Graham, of
Denver, Colo ., and Miss Edna H. Berger, of New York City , for the
Union. _
Miss Melvern R. Krelow, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIIECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon a petition duly. filed by American Newspaper Guild, CIO,
herein called the Union, alleging that a question affecting commerce
had arisen concerning the representation of employees of The Associ-
ated Press, Denver, Colorado, herein called the Company, the National,
Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due
notice before Robert S. Fousek, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was
held at Denver, Colorado, on February 15 and 17,1945. The Company
and the Union appeared and participated. All parties were afforded
full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses,
and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues. The Trial Exam-
iner's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and
are hereby affirmed. All parties were afforded an opportunity to file
briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
' The Associated Press is a cooperative, non-profit membership cor-
poration organized and existing under the laws of the State of New
York with its principal office in New York City. The Company's
members own or represent newspapers, practically all of which are
conducted for profit, and the Company is engaged in the gathering and
collection of news, information, and intelligence by its own instrumen-
61 N. L. R. B., No. 80.
574
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 575
talities, by exchange with its members, and by other appropriate means
for the use and benefit of its members, and in furnishing and supplying
the said news, information, and intelligence to its members for publi-
cation in the newspapers owned or represented by its members. Press'
Association, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, and is
engaged in the gathering of news, information, and intelligence and
the preparation and distribution of news reports for radio broadcast.
During 1944, the Company received from its members, by way of
assessment, approximately $12,000,000. The Company has at the
present time about 2,000 employees. The Company operates through
bureau offices located at various points within and without the United
States, including the District of Columbia; the six divisional bureau
news offices within the United States are located in New York City,
Atlanta, Chicago, Kansas City, Denver, and San Francisco. The
Company's foreign service is handled through and from its New York
office. In the transmission of news, information, and intelligence the
Company utilizes available forms of communication, including tele-
phone, telegraph, radio and mail, all of which involve or may involve
interstate operations. This proceeding involves employees of the
Company located in Denver, Colorado, Cheyenne, Wyoming, and
Helena, Montana.
The Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
American Newspaper Guild, affiliated with the Congress of Indus-
trial Organizations, is a labor organization admitting to membership
employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company has refused to grant recognition to the Union as the
exclusive bargaining representative of its employees in Denver, Chey-
enne, and Helena , on the ground that the employees so claimed do not
constitute an appropriate unit , and requested proof of the Union's
claim to a majority.
A statement of a Board agent, introduced into evidence at the hear-
ing, indicates that the Union represents a substantial number of the
employees in the unit hereinafter found to be appropriate.,,
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees o t the Company, within the meaning
of Section 9-(c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
1 The Field Examiner reported that the Union submitted 13 membership applications all
dated in September 1944; that the names of 12 persons appearing on the applications were
listed on the Company's pay roll of December 20 , 1944, which contained the names of 18
employees in the appropriate unit.
576 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union urges that all employees of the Company and its -wholly
owned American subsidiaries regularly employed in the Denver, Chey-
enne, and Helena bureaus, excluding the news editor, business repre-
sentative, traffic chief of bureau, confidential secretary, Press As-
sociation chief of bureau at Denver, and traffic employees 2 constitute
an appropriate bargaining unit. The Company contends that the
Denver, Cheyenne, and Helena bureaus should constitute separate
appropriate units, and that the correspondents, employed in Helena
and Cheyenne, are both supervisory and confidential representatives
of management, and should therefore be excluded.
The Denver Bureau is the divisional headquarters for the Rocky
Mountain Division. The bureaus under the News Editor of the Den-
ver bureau, who is in charge of the Rocky Mountain Division, are
Denver, Helena, Cheyenne, Alburquerque and Santa Fe. Denver,
Helena, and Cheyenne are on a regional circuit which is connected to
the trunk wires through Denver. Checks and expense accounts from
these bureaus are first sent to Denver where they are countersigned or
approved by the News Editor in Denver before being forwarded to New
York for payment. Any recommendation with respect to personnel
at Helena and Cheyenne is approved or an additional recommendation
is made by the News Editor in Denver before it is forwarded to New
York. Transfers of employees occur between Denver and Helena.
A similar relationship exists between Santa Fe and Albuquerque, but
does not exist between Santa Fe, Albuquerque, and Denver. In view
of the foregoing, we are of the opinion that the Denver, Helena, and
Cheyenne bureaus together constitute an appropriate bargaining unit.
The correspondents at Helena and Cheyenne, whom the Company
would exclude, gather, write, edit, and file the news and punch copy.
While the work of both correspondents is similar, the Helena corre-
spondent is able to divide the work among the three employees in the
bureau whereas the correspondent at Cheyenne, since he is the only
employee in that bureau, performs all of such work himself. The cor-
respondents have no authority to hire or discharge; applications for
employment must be made through the News Editor in Denver and
must have this approval before such applications are forwarded to
New York. Recommendations with respect to other personnel mat-
ters and office procedures generally exercised must be approved by the
News Editor in Denver. We are of the opinion that the correspond-
ents are neither confidential representatives of management nor super-
visory employees, and we shall include them in the unit.'
We find that all employees of the Company and its wholly owned
American subsidiaries regularly employed in the Denver, Cheyenne,
2 These employees are currently represented under contract by the Commercial Teleg-
raphers Union.
3 See Matter of The Associated Press , 42 N. L . R B 1334.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 577
and Helena bureaus, including correspondents , but excluding the con-
fidential secretary , the business representative , Press Association chief
of bureau at Denver , traffic employees, traffic chief of bureau, news
editor, and all other supervisory employees with authority to hire,
promote, discharge , discipline , or otherwise effect such changes in the
status of employees , or effectively recommend such action , constitute
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
Direction.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National Labor
Relations Board by Section 9 ( c) of the National Labor Relations Act,
and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, as amended, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with The Associated
Press, Denver, Colorado , 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 Seventeenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for
the National Labor Relations, Board , and subject to Article III, Sec-
tions 10 and 11, 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 employees who did not work during said pay-roll
period because they were ill or on vacation or temporarily laid off,
and including employees in the armed forces of the United States who
present themselves in person at the polls , but excluding those em-
ployees who have since quit or been discharged for cause and have not
been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of the election , to determine
whether or not they desire to be represented by American Newspaper
Guild, CIO , for the purposes of collective bargaining.
CHAIRMAN MILLTS took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision and Direction of Election.