Broadcast Employees Nabet Local 11 (National Broadcasting)

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Mar 30, 1987

283 N.L.R.B. 417 (N.L.R.B. 1987)

BROADCAST EMPLOYEES NABET LOCAL 11 (NATIONAL BROADCASTING)
Local 11, National Association of Broadcast Em-
ployees and Technicians , AFL-CIO and Nation-
al Broadcasting Company, Inc. and Local 23,
International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Em-
ployees, AFL-CIO. Case 1-CD-782
30 March 1987
DECISION AND ORDER QUASHING
NOTICE OF HEARING
BY MEMBERS BABSON, STEPHENS, AND
CRACRAFr
The charge in this Section 10(k) proceeding was
filed 3 June 1986 by the National Broadcasting
Company, Inc. (the Employer or NBC) alleging
that ]Local 11, National Association of Broadcast
Employees and Technicians, AFL-CIO (Local 11)
violated Section 8(b)(4)(D) of the National Labor
Relations Act by engaging in proscribed activity
with an object of forcing the Employer to assign
certain work to employees it represents rather than
to employees represented by Local 23, Internation-
al Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, AFL-
CIO (IATSE). The hearing was held 13 November
1986 before Hearing Officer John T. Downs.
The National Labor Relations Board has delegat-
ed its authority in this proceeding to a three-
member panel.
The Board affirms the hearing officer's rulings,
finding them free from prejudicial error. On the
entire record, the Board makes the following find-
ings.
I. JURISDICTION
NBC, a Delaware corporation, owns a radio sta-
tion in Boston, Massachusetts, where it annually
has gross revenues in excess of $100,000 and makes
purchases in excess of $50,000 directly across state
lines. The parties stipulated, and we fmd, that the
Employer is engaged in commerce within the
meaning of Section 2(6) and (7) of the Act and that
both Local 11 and the IATSE are labor organiza-
tions within the meaning of Section 2(5) of the
Act.
II. THE DISPUTE
A. Background and Facts of Dispute
The Employer has a collective -bargaining agree-
ment with Local 11 whose members travel with
NBC-owned and leased equipment for remote
broadcasts . NBC contracted with boxing promoter
Dave Duma to televise a boxing match from the
Providence Civic Center on 18 May 1986. NBC's
director of staff labor relations David Heiser testi-
fied that on 7 May 1986 he received a copy of a
collective -bargaining agreement between the Provi-
417
deuce Civic Center Authority (PCC) and IATSE.
He testified that Ernie De Rosa, NBC's technical
manager of sports, obtained the contract at Heiser's
request after De Rosa told him there might be a
problem concerning who should perform the load-
ing and unloading of NBC's technical equipment.
According to unsworn statements on the record by
Local 11's counsel, on 8 May 1986 Heiser received
a phone call from PCC representative Robert
Casey, who insisted that, pursuant to PCC's con-
tract with IATSE, the work of loading and unload-
ing NBC-owned technical equipment used for the
boxing match must be given to IATSE. Local 11
and the Employer stipulated that some time around
8 May 1986 Local 11 Business Representative John
Clark contacted Heiser and threatened to withhold
all services if his members did not load and unload
the equipment. De Rosa testified that the work was
assigned to and performed by members of Local 11
on 18 May 1986.
B. Work in Dispute
The work in dispute is the loading and unloading
of NBC-owned and leased technical equipment and
NBC-owned lighting equipment for televised
events at the Providence Civic Center.
C. Contentions of the Parties
NBC and Local 11 claim that whenever NBC is
present at the Providence Civic Center the work in
dispute should be awarded to employees represent-
ed by Local 11 based on their collective-bargaining
agreement, the skills and experience of employees
Local 11 represents, industry practice, efficiency of
operation, employer preference, and Board prece-
dent. Neither NBC nor Local 11 filed a brief. PCC
and IATSE did not appear at the hearing, nor did
they file briefs.
D. Applicability of the Statute
We find that the record in this case is insufficient
to establish a jurisdictional dispute cognizable
under Section 10(k) of the Act.
There is little or no evidence that NBC is faced
with two or more competing employee groups
claiming the work disputed above. No evidence
was adduced at the hearing that IATSE contacted
NBC or PCC about the work. Neither party
present at the hearing alluded to this omission or
lack of evidence concerning two employee group
claims. At most, the parties have shown that NBC
obtained a copy of a PCC-IATSE contract that
purports to cover the work in dispute, and that an
NBC representative speculated there might be a
283 NLRB No. 70
418 DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
problem about what employees should perform the faced with competing employee group claims. We
work.' further conclude that there is no jurisdictional dis-
Accordingly, we conclude there is insufficient pute within the meaning of Sections 8(b)(4)(D) and
evidence to support a finding that the Employer is 10(k) of the Act. We shall therefore quash the
notice of hearing.
i Further, even if we were to consider as evidence the unworn repre- ORDER
sentation `of counsel for Local l i regarding the Heiser-Casey phone con-
versation, we would still find the record insufficient to support a fording The notice of hearing is quashed.
that the Employer is faced with competing employee group claims.