CBS, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jul 30, 1975

219 N.L.R.B. 831 (N.L.R.B. 1975)

CBS, INC. 831
CBS, Inc. and Writers Guild of America, East, Inc.,
Petitioner . Case 5-RC-9238
July 30, 1975
DECISION ON REVIEW AND ORDER
BY MEMBERS FANNING, KENNEDY, AND PENELLO
On March 26, 1975, the Regional Director for Re-
gion 5 issued a Decision and Direction of Election in
the above-entitled proceeding in which he found ap-
propriate the Petitioner's requested unit of all re-
searchers employed by the Employer in its Washing-
ton, D.C., News Bureau. Thereafter, in accordance
with Section 102.67 of the National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations, Series 8, as amended,
the Employer filed a timely request for review of the
Regional Director's decision on the grounds, inter
alia, that in finding the petitioned-for unit appropri-
ate he made erroneous findings as to substantial fac-
tual issues and departed from officially reported pre-
cedent. Therefore, Petitioner filed a statement in
opposition thereto.
The National Labor Relations Board, by tele-
graphic order dated April 24, 1975, granted the re-
quest for review and stayed the election pending de-
cision 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
proceeding with respect to the issues under review
and makes the following findings:
The Employer is a corporation engaged in the
transmission of news programs among others. The
Petitioner seeks to represent a unit of four employees
who are classified as "researchers" at the Employer's
Washington, D.C., facility. The Regional Director
found the requested unit to be appropriate. The Em-
ployer asserts that it employs only one bona fide re-
searcher, Susan Zirinski, and that there is no commu-
nity of interest sufficient to constitute an appropriate
unit among the four employees involved herein. For
the reasons discussed below, we agree with the Em-
ployer that the four employees involved herein do
not share a sufficient community of interest to con-
stitute an appropriate unit.
Zirinski is supervised by the Employer's director of
administration who in turn reports to the Washing-
ton bureau chief. She works on the second floor of
the building in which the Employer's Washington
operations are principally carried on, in the library
area. Her duties are to maintain and update the li-
brary for the entire bureau. She reads publications,
clips any pertinent items, and properly classifies and
files them. She also purchases any necessary books.
On occasion, she might be asked to type if the bureau
is short of a secretary. Both Employer and Petitioner
agree that Zirinski is a researcher.
Employee Cathryn Chodorow works exclusively
for correspondent Eric Sevareid and has an office
next to his at a separate location on the second floor.
Chodorow researches various newspapers and other
domestic and foreign publications. She clips out arti-
cles and prepares abstracts of articles that might be
of interest to Sevareid. She also maintains research
files for possible future reference. On occasion she
goes to lunch with Sevareid in order to discuss an
idea for his commentaries. Chodorow researches spe-
cific topics at Sevareid's request in preparation for
his commentary. Once or twice a month she attends
congressional hearings in order to report back to him
on them. In addition, Chodorow spends a substantial
portion of her time performing clerical duties exclu-
sively for Sevareid. She screens his mail, makes and
receives telephone calls, prepares his expense reports,
schedules his travel, and does typing for him.
Employee Mary Green is supervised by the
Employer's executive editor. The executive editor's
immediate supervisor is the assistant news director
who in turn reports to the Washington bureau chief.
Green's primary assignment is the Senate Radio and
TV gallery of the U.S. Capitol where she works on a
daily basis. She comes into her office at the
Employer's Washington facility about once a week.
Her general duties are to find out important actions
being taken on Capitol Hill so that the executive edi-
tor can decide whether it is desirable to send a crew
to film or perhaps a correspondent to cover a partic-
ular story. On occasion Green interviews Congress-
men or Senators. In addition to the primary assign-
ments given her by her supervisor, she maintains a
research and clipping file, fills research requests by
correspondents covering the House and the Senate,
and writes up reports on the progress of legislation
for producers and correspondents.
Employee Vivian Silverstein Plesser reports to the
Employer's Washington-based producers of "Sixty
Minutes," a CBS program. The Washington produc-
ers of "Sixty Minutes" in turn report to the executive
producer in New York City, where the programs are
edited and ultimately produced. Plesser works in an
office on the third floor of the Employer's Washing-
ton facility. Her main duty is to research all aspects
of program ideas for producers assigned to "Sixty
Minutes" who are located in Washington, London,
and New York. In doing her job she maintains re-
search files and personal source contacts. She writes
219 NLRB No. 151
832 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
reports and summaries of the work she does. When
Plesser was hired she was told that she was going to
be more than a mere researcher, that she would be
called upon to introduce new program ideas. As an
example of her work in this capacity, she suggested a
program on "bugging" which was actually produced.
Since it was her idea, she not only did the general
research work but also went out with the producer
and interviewed people.
It is clear from the foregoing that the four request-
ed employees lack the cohesiveness and homogeneity
necessary to constitute an appropriate unit. In our
opinion, they do not constitute a clearly identifiable
group which has a sufficient community of interest
separate from that of other unrepresented employees
to warrant its establishment as a separate, appropri-
ate unit for collective-bargaining purposes.' The job
functions of the four employees involved herein are
basically dissimilar . Zirinski is a general researcher
who maintains the library and fills research requests
from many directions. Chodorow is more like a "Girl
Friday" or general assistant to Sevareid. There is a
one-to-one working relationship between her and
Sevareid which sets her apart from other employees.
Green likewise has varied responsibilities, including
the filling of research requests from many directions,
but she works out of Capitol Hill and her efforts are
all concentrated on Congress. Finally, Plesser too
is more than a mere researcher. As indicated, she is
expected not only to fulfill the research requests of
the producers of "Sixty Minutes," but to act as an
assistant to the local producers of "Sixty Minutes,"
and to think of original ideas for the show. It is also
significant that "Sixty Minutes" is primarily based in
New York, that the Washington-based producers
who supervise Plesser report to the executive pro-
ducer in New York, and that, for budget purposes,
"Sixty Minutes" "rents" space from the CBS Wash-
ington office. The four employees in question do not
share common immediate supervision, have a com-
mon work area, or share a common work schedule.
Although they do sometimes attempt to fill research
requests for one another, there is normally no work
contact among them, and they never interchange
jobs.
The record shows that there are 150 employees in
the Employer's Washington News Bureau. Of these,
22 are correspondents and about 12 are office cleri-
cal and secretarial employees. The Petitioner repre-
sents six news assignment employees in the News Bu-
reau. It has not indicated that the four requested
employees are residual, unrepresented employees. In
view of this fact and because of their insufficient
community of interest apart from other employees,
we find that they do not constitute a separate, appro-
priate unit. Accordingly, we shall dismiss the peti-
tion.
ORDER
It is hereby ordered that the petition filed herein
' Cf. National Broadcasting Company, Inc., 214 NLRB No. 107 (1974) ; be, and it hereby is, dismissed.
and American Broadcasting Company, 210 NLRB 654 (1974).