W.C.A.U., Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Jan 12, 1950

88 N.L.R.B. 68 (N.L.R.B. 1950)

In the Matter of W. C. A. U., INCORPORATED, EMPLOYEE and INTER-
NATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS , A. F. OF L.,
PETITIONER
Case No.4-RC-554.-Decided January 12, 1950
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
Upon a petition duly filed, a hearing was held before John H.
Garver, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the
hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.,
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3 (b) of the National Labor
Relations Act, the Board has delegated its powers in connection with
this case to a three-member panel [Chairman Herzog and Members
Houston and Murdock].
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board finds :
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the National Labor Relations Act.
2. The labor organizations involved claim 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. The Petitioner contends that technical employees engaged in
the operation, maintenance, and repair of the Employer's technical
equipment (including those facilities used in transmitting, convert-
ing, and,/or conducting audio, video, F. M., Facsimile, and/or radio
frequencies for use in broadcast, rebroadcast, audition, rehearsal, any
type of recording, or any of the technical equipment used in connec-
tion with the same) at the Employer's radio and television station
located at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but excluding office and clerical
employees, engineers,2 and other supervisors within the meaning of
1 The petition and other papers were amended at the hearing to show the correct name
of the Employer.
The parties agree that engineers should be excluded from the unit as supervisors.
88 NLRB No. 17.
68
W. C. A. U., INCORPORATED 69
the Act, constitute an appropriate bargaining unit. The Employer
and the Intervenor,3 who represents these employees under contract
with the Employer, generally agree that the proposed unit is appro-
priate. The parties, however, disagree as to the unit placement of
dolly-men, the stock boy, and assistant directors.
Dolly-men: The Employer would exclude and the Petitioner and
the Intervenor would include, the dolly-men. The two dolly-men
drive the Employer's vehicles and move equipment and adjust lights
under the direction of a technician. On field crews made up of four
technicians, the technicians and the dolly-man assigned to the crew
work under the immediate charge of a technician "supervisor." 4
Both the technicians and the dolly-men are hired and work under the
supervision of engineers, who the parties agree are supervisors within
the meaning of the Act. The Employer prefers to hire dolly-men
who have had some technical training. The Employer has promoted
experienced dolly-men to the classification of technician. Dolly-men
were not included in the bargaining contract between the Employer
and the Intervenor. It, however, appears that the dolly-men work in
close association with the technicians, and their interests appear to
lie most closely with those of the technicians. On the basis of these
facts, we shall include them in the unit.
Stock boy: The Employer would exclude and the Intervenor would
include the stock boy. The Petitioner takes no position with regard
to this employee. The stock boy receives and stores materials and
equipment, the greater part of which is engineering equipment used
by the Employer's technicians. The stock boy distributes this equip-
ment to technicians on request. His work was formerly handled
entirely by the technicians. The stock boy, like the dolly-men, was
hired by and is under the direct supervision of an engineer. The
interests of the stock boy, like those of dolly-men, appear to lie with
those of the technicians, and we shall therefore include him in the unit.
Assistant directors: The Employer and the Petitioner would ex-
clude, and the Intervenor would include, the assistant directors. The
assistant directors assist the producer-directors in the formation and
organization of television shows. They spend 75 percent of their
time working on the set with the actors and the light and camera men.
They move scenery, handle the title cards, props, and sound effects,
and are in training to become producer-directors. Three of the six
8 American Communications Association , CIO, Broadcast District Local No. 1, was allowed
to intervene on the basis of its present contract which expires December 31, 1949.
4 The parties agree that the five technicians with the classification of "supervisor" are
not supervisors within the meaning of the Act and should be included in the unit. They
are included in the present contract between the Intervenor and the Employer . There is
nothing in the record to indicate that they should be excluded from the unit.
70 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
assistant directors have progressed to the point where they now handle
shows on the air. Assistant directors are not included in the existing
contract for technicians ; they are closely associated with producer-
directors , and their interests are primarily allied to those of the pro=
ducer-directors and not to those of the technicians . We shall there-
fore exclude them from the unit of technicians.
We find that all technical employees engaged in the operation, main-
tenance, and repair of the Employer 's technical equipment ( including
those facilities used in transmitting, converting and/or conducting
audio , video, F. M., Facsimile , and/or radio frequencies for use in
broadcast , rebroadcast , audition , rehearsal , any type of recording, or
any of the technical equipment used in connection with the same),
dolly-men, and stock boy at the Employer 's radio and television sta-
tion located at Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , excluding assistant direc-
tors, office and clerical employees , and engineers and other supervisors
within the meaning of the Act, constitute a unit appropriate for the
purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9
(b) of the Act.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
As part of the investigation to ascertain representatives for the
purposes of collective bargaining with the Employer , an election by
secret ballot shall be conducted as early as possible, but not later than
30 days from the date of this Direction , under the direction and
supervision of the Regional Director for the Region in which this case
was heard , and subject to Sections 203.61 and 203.62 of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations , among the employees in the
unit found appropriate in paragraph numbered 4, above, who were
employed during the payroll period immediately preceding the date
of this Direction of Election , including employees who did not work
during said payroll period because they were ill or on vacation, or
temporarily laid off, but excluding those employees who have since
quit or been discharged for cause and have not been rehired or rein-
stated prior to the date of the election , and also excluding employees
on strike who are not entitled to reinstatement , to determine whether
they desire to be represented , for purposes of collective bargaining,
by International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, A. F. of L., or
by American Communications Association, CIO, Broadcast District
Local No. 1, or by neither.