The Kansas City Star Co.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Feb 8, 1943

47 N.L.R.B. 386 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

J
In the Matter of THE KANSAS CITY STAR COM PANY and GREATER
KANSAS CITY NEWSPAPER GUILD, LOCAL 36, CHARTERED BY AMERICAN
NEWSPAPER GUILD, AFFILIATED WITH THE C. I. O.
Case No. R-41714.-Decided February 8, 1943
Jurisdiction : newspaper publishing industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question : recog-
'riition refused on ground that unit sought-was inappropriate; consent elee-
-tion held less than five months before in which two-thirds of votes cast were
against the union held not to preclude present petition when union presented
a substantial number of authorizations; election necessary
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all employees of company's radio sta-
tion, with specified inclusions and exclusions, held an appropriate unit, not-
withstanding' prior consent election agreement that a unit of editorial depart-,
ment and radio station employees was appropriate.
Mr. Carl E. Enggas, of Kansas City, Mo., for the Company.
'Mr. Harry C. Clark and Mr. Kenneth H. Clark, of Kansas City,.
Mo., for the Union.
Mr. Louis Cokin, of counsel to the, Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by Greater Kansas City Newspaper Guild,,
Local 36, chartered by American Newspaper Guild, affiliated With the
C. I. 0., herein called the Union , alleging that a question affecting
commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of
The Kansas City Star Company, Kansas City, Missouri , herein called
the Company , the National Labor Relations Board provided for an,
appropriate hearing upon due notice before Eugene R. Melson, Trial
Examiner . Said hearing was held at Kansas City , Missouri, on De-
cember 30 and 31, 1942 ., The Company and the Union appeared,
participated , and Were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to,
examine and cross-examine witnesses , and to introduce evidence bear-'
,in-g on the issues. At various stages of the hearing , counsel for the.
Company moved to dismiss the petition . The Trial- Examiner re-
47 N. L. R. B., No. 50.
386
THE KANSAS CITY STAR COMPANY 387
served rulings . The motions are hereby denied. The Trial Exam-
iner's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and
are hereby affirmed.
On January 14 and 15, 1943, respectively, the Company and the
Union filed briefs which the Board has considered.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
The Kansas City Star Company is a Missouri corporation with its
principal place of business at Kansas City, Missouri , where it is en-
gaged in the business 'of publishing morning, evening, and weekly
newspapers and operating a radio station known as IVDAF. During
the 12-month period, preceding October 1, 1942, the monthly average
daily circulation for the newspapers published, by the Company
amounted to approximately 1,400,000 copies. The Company distrib-
utes its newspapers principally in the States of Missouri and Kansas.
Station AVDAF broadcasts 'Programs which are heard in the States
of Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The
Company admits that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning
of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED
Greater Kansas City Newspaper Guild, Local 36, chartered by
American. Newspaper Guild, is a labor organization affiliated with the
Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to membership em-
ployees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
On October 10, 1942, the Union requested thesCompany to recog-
nize it as exclusive representative of certain of the Company's em-
ployees. The Company refused this request on the ground that the
employees claimed ' by the Union do not constitute an appropriate
bargaining unit.
On April 6, 1942; the Company and the Union entered into a con-
sent election agreement . Pursuant thereto an election was held re-
sulting in a vote of 115 against the Union and 68 for the Union.
On August 28, 1942, the Union filed its petition herein. The Com-
pany contends that because of the short interval since the consent
election , the Board should not now entertain a second petition filed
by the same union. The record in this proceeding indicates that the
Union has at tl present time secured authorizations of a substantial
388 . DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
number of the Company's employees 1 in the unit which we find to
be appropriate hereinafter. For reasons appearing hereafter, we be-
lieve that the policies of the Act will best be effectuated by holding
an election without further delay in order that employees of the Com-
pany may, if they so desire,, designate the Union as their epresenta-
tive for purposes of collective bargaining.
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company, within the meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act.
Iv. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Union contends that all employees of Radio Station WDAF
of the Company, excluding the radio station manager, assistant man-
ager, sales manager, technicians, musicians, and persons appearing on
WDAF programs, constitute an appropriate unit., The Company con-
tends that all the editorial department employees of the Company
and employees of Radio Station WDAF constitute a single appropri-
ate bargaining unit. In any event, the Company contends that the
assistant manager and sales manager of Station WDAF should be
included in any unit that might be found appropriate.
As stated above, on April 6, 1942, the Company and the Union
entered into a consent election agreement. The parties there agreed
that all employees of the Company working in its editorial depart-
ment and Radio Station WDAF, with specified exclusions, constituted
an appropriate bargaining unit. The Company contends that such
agreement is binding upon all parties at the present time and that the
petition should be dismissed because the unit requested by the Union
in the instant proceeding is therefore inappropriate.
Radio Station WDAF is operated as a separate department of
the Company and, although the employees of the radio station are
carried on the same pay roll as the editorial employees, there is no
interchange of personnel between the departments. The record in-
dicates that the work of the employees of the editorial and radio de-
partments is dissimilar. The commercial department employees of
the Company, who are not involved herein, have more in common with
the radio station employees than does the editorial department
personnel:
We are not convinced that the prior agreement of the parties
upon a unit of editorial department and radio station employees
precludes the Board from now finding that a unit confined to radio
1 A statement of it Field Examiner of the Board, introduced into evidence at the hearing,
shows that the Union presented 8 membership application cards bearing apparently genuine
signatures of persons whose ' names appear on the Company 's pay roll of October 1, 1942.
There are approximately 18 employees in the appropriate unit.
THE KANSAS CITY STAR COMPANY 389
station employees is appropriate. In order to make collective bargain-
ing an immediate possibility and thereby effectuate the policies of the
Act, we have frequently found that an appropriate unit may consist
of employees in an identifiable group beyond which effective self-
organization has not yet extended, without thereby precluding a later
finding of a broader unit coextensive with subsequent organization.
In the present case, it is clear that the radio station employees are
an identifiable group with many interests in common. They have
indicated their desire to have the Union represent them for purposes
of collective bargaining. So far as appears, the Union' does not
now have a substantial representation among the editorial department
employees. Under these circumstances no hood purpose would be'
served by requiring the radio station employees to forego their right
to self-organization and collective bargaining through the Union
merely because the Union at one time sought to include them with
editorial department employees. We find that a unit limited to radio
department employees of the Company is appropriate at this time.
As stated above, the Union contends that the assistant manager
and sales manager of the radio station should be excluded from the
unit and the Company urges that they be included. The record in-
dicates that neither the assistant manager not time sales manager
exercise any supervisory authority and were included among the em-
ployees eligible to vote in the election held pursuant to the consent
'election agreement. We find that the assistant manager and sales
manager should be included in the unit.
We find that all employees of Radio Station WDAF of the Com-
pany, including the assistant manager and sales manager, but exclud-
ing the manager, technicians, musicians, and all persons appearing
on WDAF programs, constitute a unit for the purposes of collective
bargaining, within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
V. TIIE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We find that the question concerning representation can best be
resolved by means of an election by secret ballot. The Union contends
that eligibility to vote should be determined by the pay roll imme-
diately preceding August 28, 1942, the date of its petition. The Com-
pany urges that a current pay roll be used for that, purpose. Inas-
much as no reason appears why we should depart from our usual
practice, we shall direct that the employees eligible to vote shall be-
those within the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-
roll period immediately preceding the date of the Direction of Elec-
tion herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the
Direction.
390 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National Labor
Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act,
and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended , it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with The Kansas City
Star Company, Kansas City, Missouri, an election by secret ballot
shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later than thirty (30)
days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and super-
vision of the Regional Director for the Seventeenth Region, acting
,in,this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and
subject to Article III, Section 10, of said Rules and Regulations, among
the employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV, above,
who were employed during the pay-roll,period immediately preceding
the date of this Direction, including any such employees who did not
work during said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation
or temporarily laid off, and including employees in the armed forces
of the United States who present themselves in person at the polls,.
but excluding any who have since quit or been discharged-for cause,
to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by Greater
Kansas City Newspaper Guild, Local 36, chartered by American News-
paper Guild, affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations,
for the purposes of collective bargaining.
MR. Wm. Al. LEISEI SON took no part in the consideration of the above
Decision and Direction of Election.