Bogus Basin Recreation Association

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Aug 12, 1974

212 N.L.R.B. 833 (N.L.R.B. 1974)

BOGUS BASIN RECREATION ASSOCIATION 833
Bogus Basin Recreation Association and Service Em-
ployees International Union , Local No. 49, AFL-
CIO, Petitioner . Case 19-RC-7039
August 12, 1974
DECISION ON REVIEW
BY MEMBERS FANNING, KENNEDY.
AND PENELLO
On May 20, 1974, the Regional Director for Region
19 issued a Decision and Direction of Election in the
above-entitled proceeding and indicated therein that
he would "entertain a request from Petitioner for the
direction of an immediate election" and that he would
consider those employees who were regularly em-
ployed during the payroll period immediately preced-
ing the date of the hearing held herein to be
temporarily laid-off employees and therefore eligible
to vote in the representation election. Thereafter, in
accordance with Section 102.67 of the Board's Rules
and Regulations, Series 8, as amended, the Employer
filed a timely request for review of the Regional
Director's decision on the grounds that his decision
on a substantial factual issue is clearly erroneous on
the record and such error prejudicially affects the
Employer's rights.
On June 18, 1974, the Board, by telegraphic order,
granted the request for review and stayed the election
pending decision on review. The Employer thereafter
filed a brief on review.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the
National Labor Relations Act, as amended, the Na-
tional Labor Relations Board has delegated its au-
thority in this proceeding to a three-member panel.
The Board has considered the entire record in this
case with respect to the issues under review and makes
the following findings:
The Employer contends that the Regional
Director's indication that he would entertain a request
for an immediate election and that he would consider
those employees employed in the payroll period prior
to the date of the hearing to be temporarily laid-off
employees is erroneous. The Employer requests that
the Board dismiss the instant petition and direct an
election only''-if, after the start of the next season, a
petition is submitted with an adequate showing of
interest among employees then in the unit. We agree
that the Regional Director erred concerning the prop-
er date of the election, but we do not agree with the
Employer's assertion that the petition should be dis-
missed.
The Employer operates a recreation area (skiing) at
Bogus Basin, Idaho, and its operations are seasonal in
nature. The Employer opens its skiing facilities to the
public when the autumn snow is deep enough to allow
skiing, usually between mid-November and early De-
cember. The season ends in mid-April, at which time
the Employer closes down its operations and termi-
nates the employment status of all seasonal employ-
ees. All employees in the unit found appropriate by
the Regional Director are seasonal employees.'
The petition giving rise to this proceeding was filed
on March 12, 1974, and a hearing was held on April
3, 1974, near the end of the skiing season. We believe
that the Regional Director's reliance on Aspen Skiing
Corporation2 for his statement that he would be recep-
tive to a request for an immediate election is mis-
placed. The facts in Aspen Skiing reveal that in a unit
of approximately 50 employees, 47 lived in or near the
Aspen area, where the employer was located; of the
50 employees, some 20 had worked each winter for the
employer for over 5 years. The employer also main-
tained a staff of approximately 14 employees who
were, in the main, recruited from among the winter
season employees. The Board granted the petitioning
union's request for an immediate election on the basis
of the facts recited above and also because the em-
ployer did not oppose the union's request. Here, how-
ever, we do not know the precise labor market from
which the employees in the unit are drawn, and we
note the unit is comprised solely of seasonal employ-
ees; there are no seasonal employees employed at the
present time. The Employer opposes an immediate
election. In light of these facts, we shall defer the
election until a time deemed appropriate by the Re-
gional Director, at or near the peak of the next skiing
season.3
We reject the Employer's request that the petition
be dismissed and that Petitioner be required to file
another petition with adequate showing of interest
after the start of the next skiing season. Because the
Regional Director found, and the record fully sup-
ports his finding, that there is a significant rate of
reemployment of the seasonal employees in the unit
found appropriate, the showing of interest for the 1973
-74 season is sufficient to support the petition here-
in 4 No new showing of interest is required as it is the
i The unit determined by the Regional Director consists of. "all ski lift
employees of the Employer at its Bogus Basin, Idaho, location, including full
and part-time lift operators, ski patrol persons, and ticket checkers located
at the lifts, but excluding ticket sellers, ticket checkers not located at the lifts,
office clerical employees, ski instructors, maintenance mechanics, guards, all
other employees, and supervisors as defined in the Act "
2 143 NLRB 707 (1963)
3 Mdlbrook, Inc, 204 NLRB 1148 (1973), of The Baugh Chemical Compa-
ny, 150 NLRB 1034 (1965), California Vegetable Concentrates, Inc, 137
NLRB 1779 (1962)
4 Out of the approximately 40 employees in the unit found appropriate,
approximately 8 had been employed by the Employer in one or more seasons
prior to the 1973-74 season
212 NLRB No. 122
834 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Board's policy, in cases involving seasonal industries,
to require a showing of interest only among those
employees employed in the unit at the time the peti-
tion is filed.'
Accordingly, we shall remand the case to the Re-
gional Director for the purpose of conducting an elec-
tion pursuant to his Decision and Direction of
Election except that the election shall be held at or
near the peak of the Employer's season, at a time
when there is employed a maximum or near maxi-
5 Sebastopol Cooperative Cannery, 111 NLRB 530, 532 (1955), and cases
cited therein ; cf. Grower-Shipper Vegetable Association of Central California,
112 NLRB 807 (1955); and Camp & Felder Compress Company, 121 NLRB
871 (1958), where, as in the instant case, a petition was filed at the end of
one season and the date of election was set for the peak of the next season,
without the requirement of a new showing of interest.
mum representative complement of employees, to be
determined by the Regional Director for Region 19,
and the eligibility date for the election shall be the
payroll period immediately preceding the date of is-
suance by the Regional Director of his notice of elec-
tion.6
6 In order to assure that all eligible voters may have the opportunity to be
informed of the issues in the exercise of their statutory right to vote, all parties
to the election should have access to a list of voters and their addresses which
may be used to communicate with them Excelsior Underwear Inc, 156
NLRB 1236 (1966), N L.RB v. Wyman-Gordon Co., 394 U.S. 759 (1969)
Accordingly, it is hereby directed that a corrected election eligibility list,
containing the names and addresses of all the eligible voters, must be filed
by the Employer with the Regional Director for Region 19 within 7 days after
the date of issuance of the Notice of Election by the Regional Director. The
Regional Director shall make the list available to all parties to the election
No extension of time to file this list shall be granted by the Regional Director
except in extraordinary circumstances Failure to comply with this require-
ment shall be grounds for setting aside the election whenever proper objec-
tions are filed