Columbia Pictures Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 31, 1940

28 N.L.R.B. 841 (N.L.R.B. 1940)

In the Matter of COLUMBIA PICTURES CORPORATION and THE COLUMBIA
PICTURES' MAINTENANCE ASSOCIATION
Case No. R-0182.-Decided December 31, 1940
Jurisdiction : motion picture industry.
Practice and Procedure : petition dismissed where no appropriate unit within
scope of petition.
Mr. William D. Behnke, of Los Angeles, Calif., for the Company.
Mr. George D. Kramer, of Van Nuys, Calif., and Mr. Harry E.
Hertzog, of Burbank, Calif., for the Association.
Entenza & Gramer, by Mrs. A. E. Gramer, of Los Angeles. Calif.,
and Mr. John J. Mahoney, of Los Angeles, Calif., for the Interna-
tional.
Mr. Louis Cokin, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
ORDER
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On September 20, 1940, The Columbia Pictures' Maintenance As-
sociatioi%, herein called the Association, filed with the Regional Direc-
tor for the Twenty-first Region (Los Angeles, California) a petition
alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning
the representation of employees of Columbia Pictures Corporation,
Hollywood, California, herein called the Company, and requesting
an investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to Sec-
tion 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein
called the Act. On November 5, 1940, the National Labor Relations
Board, herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c)
of the At and Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, ordered an
investigation and authoriked the Regional Director to conduct it and
to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice.
On November 8, 1940, the Regional Director issued a notice of
hearing, copies- of which were duly served upon the Company, the
Association and Building Service Employees' International Union,
28 N. L. R. B., No. 130.
841
842 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Local No. 72, herein called the International, a labor organization
claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investiga-
tion. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on November 18 and 27
and December 2, 1940, at Los Angeles, California, before W. G. Stuart
Sherman, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. The
Company and the International were represented by counsel, and the
Association ' by its representatives; all participated in the hearing.
Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine wit-
nesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded
all parties. During the course of the hearing, the Trial Examiner
made several rulings on motions and on objections to the admission
pf evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Exam-
iner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committed. The rulings
are hereby affirmedh
Upon the entire, record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Columbia Pictures Corporation is a California corporation. The
Company purchases approximately 95,000,000 feet of film annually
from distributors located in Los Angeles, California. The Company
spends approximately,$8,000,000 annually in the production of motion
pictures and produces approximately 47 feature length pictures and
40 short subjects. Approximately 11,000 prints and negatives of the,
,feature length pictures and approximately 7,000 prints and negatives
of the short subjects are shipped by the Company annually to points
outside the State of California. -
H. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
The Columbia Pictures' Maintenance Association is an unaffiliated
labor organization admitting to membership all janitors and matrons
employed by the Company.
Building Service Employees' International Union, Local No. 72,
is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of
Labor. It admits to membership all matrons, janitors, window
cleaners, watchmen, and gatemen in the buildings, lavatories, stages,
and lots of the Company. -
III. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Association urges that all janitors and matrons employed-by
the Company constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of
COLUMBIA- PICTURES CORPORATION - - - 843 ,
collective bargaining . The International contends that all matrons,
janitors, window cleaners, watchmen, and gatemen of the Company
constitute an appropriate bargaining unit, and that the petition
should be dismissed because. it asks for a bargaining unit which is
not appropriate , for the purposes of collective bargaining.
There are approximately 23 employees in the unit urged by the'
Association and 42 employees in_ the unit urged by the International.
A statement of the Regional Director introduced in evidence 'shows
that 13 employees whose names appear on the Company's pay roll'
of September 21, 1940, have authorized the Association to represent
them and that five employees in the unit urged by the Association
Whose names appear on this pay roll have signed application cards
in the International.
In February 1939 the Regional Director, after a check of the
membership cards of the International against a pay roll of the Com-
pany, informed the parties that the International represented a
majority-of the matrons, janitors, window cleaners, watchmen, and
gatemen of the Company . Thereafter , the International and the
Company entered into collective bargaining conferences. Although
no written contract between the International and the Company had
been signed at the time of the hearing in this proceeding , negotia-
tions between the International and the Company on behalf of the
employees in the unit urged by the International were in progress.
A representative of the International testified that its contracts with
other companies in the motion picture industry cover all the employ-
ees in the unit urged by it. Under these circumstances , we believe
that the unit urged by the Association is inappropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining and we so find.
IV. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
Since the bargaining unit sought to be established by the petition
is not appropriate , as stated in Section III above , we find that no
question has been raised concerning the representation of employees
of the Company in an appropriate bargaining unit.
Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the .entire
record in the case, the Board makes the following :
CONCLUSION OF LAW
No question -concerning representation of employees of Columbia
Pictures Corporation, Hollywood, California, in a unit which is ap-
propriate for the purposes of collective bargaining has arisen , Within
the meaning of Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act.
844 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
ORDER
Upon the basis of the foregoing findings of fact and conclusion of
law, the National Labor Relations Board hereby orders that the
petition for investigation and certification filed by The Columbia
Pictures' Maintenance Association be, and it hereby is, dismissed.
CHAIRMAN HARRY A. MILISs took no part in the consideration of
-the above Decision and Order.