Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

May 16, 1958

120 N.L.R.B. 1030 (N.L.R.B. 1958)

1030 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Columbia (LP) Record Club , Columbia Records, a division 'off
Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc. and United Electrical,-
- Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE)-(Independent),
Petitioner . Case No. 21-RC-4934. May 16,1958 '
DECISION, ORDER, AND DIRECTION OF SECOND
ELECTION
Pursuant to a Stipulation for Certification Upon Consent Election
executed on October 24, 1957, an election by secret ballot was con-
ducted on November 6, 1957, under the direction and supervision of,
the Regional Director for the Twenty-first Region among the em-
ployees in the agreed-upon unit. Following the election, the Regional
Director served upon the parties a tally of ballots which showed that
of approximately 30 eligible voters, 29 cast ballots, of which 9 were
for, and 20 were against, the Petitioner. There were no challenged_
or void ballots.
On November 13, 1957, the Petitioner filed timely objections to
conduct affecting the results of the election. The Regional Director
investigated the objections and, on January 20, 1958, issued and duly
served upon the parties his report on objections in which he recom-
mended that objection 7 be sustained and that the election be set,
aside. He further recommended that the remaining objections be,
overruled. Thereafter, the Employer filed timely exceptions to the
Regional Director's report and a supporting brief.
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 Petitioner is a labor organization claiming to represent
certain employees of the Employer.
3. A question affecting commerce exists concerning the representa-
tion of employees of the Employer within the meaning of Section
9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
4. All warehouse employees at the Employer's establishment in
Santa Barbara, California, including lead personnel, but excluding
office clerical employees, watchmen, guards, professional employees,
and all supervisors as defined in the Act, constitute a unit appropriate
for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of
Section 9 (b) of the Act.
5. In objection 7, the Petitioner alleged that Plant Manager Squires
read a speech to the employees 2 days before the election in which he
threatened that certain economic benefits would be withheld if the
120 NLRB No. 126.
COLUMBIA (LP) RECORD CLUB 1031
Petitioner won the election, and that this conduct interfered with a
free and uncoerced election. The' Regional Director's investigation
disclosed that, shortly before quitting time on November 4, Squires
delivered a prepared speech to the assembled employees. In the course
of this speech, Squires repeated statements made to the employees
by another company official to the effect that it was "Company policy",
that "all non-Union hourly employees were eligible for the Christmas
bonus." In this connection, Squires referred to the Company's Terre
Haute plant where employees had rejected union representation, and
reminded employees that "Mr. Petty told you that since you fell in
the category of non-Union employees you would be included in the,
same policy as Terre Haute has. . . ."
In, our opinion, the above statements of Plant Manager Squires
clearly conveyed to the employees the promise that, as nonunion em-
ployees, they would receive a Christmas bonus, but that, if they
became unionized as a result of the forthcoming election, they would
no longer be eligible under the Company's policy for such a Christmas
bonus. Accordingly, we find that the Employer, by the foregoing
conduct, interferred with the employees' free choice of bargaining
representatives. In his report, the Regional Director called attention
particularly to another statement of Squires in which he pointed out
that employees at another plant in the area which had been unionized
no longer received the benefits afforded them when they were unor-
ganized. Squires prefaced such remarks with the statement "this will
give you an idea of what you can expect." We find it unnecessary to
decide whether the remarks quoted by the Regional Director would
be, sufficient, standing alone, to warrant setting aside the election.
We agree, however, with his conclusion that the text of the speech
"was calculated and reasonably tended to interfere with the em-
ployees' free choice in the election."
Accordingly, as we find that the Employer, by the foregoing con-
duct, interfered with its employees' free choice of bargaining repre-
sentatives, we shall sustain Petitioner's objection 7, set the election
aside, and order that a second election be conducted. The Employer's,
exceptions to the Regional Director's recommendation that objection 7
be sustained are therefore overruled.
[The Board set aside the election held on November 6, 1957.]
[Text of Direction of Second Election omitted from publication.]
MEMBER RODGERS took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision, Order, and Direction of Second Election.