Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp.

In the Matter of TWENTIETH CENTURY Fox FILM CORP. AND MOVIE- TONEWS, INC. and SCREEN OFFICE AND PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYEES GUILD, LOCAL 109, U. O. P. W. A., C. I.- O. . Case No. R-3582.-Decided March 7, 1942 Jurisdiction : motion picture and news reel industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: refusal of Company to accord union recognition until certified by the Board; election necessary: Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all office, clerical, secretarial and accounting employees at several offices located in New York City, including bookkeepers, receptionists, telephone and telegraph operators, auditors, office boys, comptometer operators, accountants, billing-and bookkeeping-machine operators, cashiers, typing clerks, secretaries, requisition-department clerks, mail clerks, stenographers, messengers, typists, reproduction-machine operators, general clerks, tabulation operators, statisticians, and copyright librarians, but excluding executives, officers, traveling auditors, lawyers, engineers, mainte- nance employees, publicists, readers, translators, supervisory employees having the power to hire and discharge, persons having the duty to recommend the hiring, discharging, wage increases, or other adjustments of working conditions, and employees who are eligible to membership in 'other labor organizations; agreement as to. Edwin P. Kilcoe, by Mr. Harry J. McIntyre, of New York City, for the Companies. Boudin, Cohn & Glickstein, by Mr. Sidney Fox, of New York City, for the Union. Mr Louis Cokin, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On December 5 and 20, 1941, respectively, Screen, Office and Professional Employees Guild, Local 109, U. O. P. W. A., C. I. 0., herein called the Union, filed with the Regional Director for the Second Region (New York City) a'patition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. and Movietonews, 39 N. L. R. B., No.. 105. 579 580 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD Inc., New York City, herein called the Companies, and requesting an investigation and certification of representatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On January 21, 1942, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the Act and Article III, ,Section 3, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regional Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice. On January 23, 1942, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which, were duly served upon the Companies and the Union. Pursuant to notice, a hearing was held on February 2, 3, 4, and 9, 1942, at New York City, before Frederick Livingston, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Companies and the Union were represented and participated in the hearing. Full opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, 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 of evi- dence. The Board has reviewed these rulings and finds that no pre- judicial-errors were committed. The rulings are hereby affirmed. Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following: FINDINGS OF FACT 1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANIES Twentieth Century, Fox Film Corporation is a New York corpora- tion. During 1940, Twentieth Century shipped 43 negatives of feature pictures from California to its offices in New York City. From these negatives approximately 9,500 prints were made and shipped to all parts of the United States. Movietonews, Inc., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Twentieth Century. It sends film crews all over the world which take pictures and develop negatives which are in turn sent to New York. Two news reels are issued every week and approximately 600 prints are made of each for distribution throughout the United States. Twen- tieth Century and Movietonews, Inc., both admit that they are engaged in commerce within- the meaning of the Act. II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED Screen,' Office and Professional Employees Guild, Local 109, U. O. P. W. A., is a labor organization affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to membership employees of the Companies. TWENTTETH• CENTURY FOX FILM 'CORP. III. THE QUESTION, CONCERNING REPRESENTATION 581. The Companies stated that they will not bargain with the Union until such time as it is certified by the-Board., A statement of the Regional Director, introduced into evidence at the hearing, shows that the Union ' represents' a substantial number of employees in the alleged appropriate unit.' We find that a` question has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the' Companies. IV. THE EFFECT OF THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION UPON COMMERCE We find that the question concerning representation which has arisen, occurring in connection with the operations of the Company, described in Section I above, has a close, intimate, and substantial relation to trade, traffic, and commerce among the several States and tends to lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing commerce and the free flow of commerce. V. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT The Union and the Companies agreed, and we find, that all office, clerical, secretarial, and accounting employees of the Companies at 444 West Fifty-sixth Street, 448 West; Fifty-sixth Street, 850 Tenth Avenue, 460 West Fifty-fourth Street, and 30 Rockefeller Plaza, all in New York City, including bookkeepers, receptionists, telephone and telegraph operators, auditors, office boys, comptometer operators, accountants, billing- and bookkeeping-machine operators, cashiers, typing clerks, secretaries, requisition-department clerks, mail clerks, stenographers, messengers, typists, reproduction-machine operators, general clerks, tabulation operators, statisticians, and copyright librarians, but excluding executives, officers, traveling auditors, lawyers, engineers, maintenance employees, publicists, readers, trans- lators, supervisory employees having the power to hire and discharge, persons having the duty to recommend the hiring,, discharging, wage increases , or other adjustments of working. conditions, and-employees who are eligible to membership in other labor organizations,' constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. We further find that such unit will insure to employees of the Companies the full benefit of - their right to self-organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise will effectuate the policies of the Act. 1 The Regional Director reported that the Union presented membership application cards bearing the names of 160 persons who appear on the Companies' pay rolls of January 10, 1942. There are approximately 315 employees on these pay rolls'in the alleged appropriate'unit. ' 2 We interpret this clause as meaning 'all employees eligible to other labor organizations except the cate- gories of employees specifically included in the unit found appropriate herein. 582 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES .We find that the question concerning representation which has arisen can best be resolved by the holding of an election by secret ballot. The Union and the Companies agreed that in the event the Board directs an election, eligibility to vote should be determined by the Companies' pay rolls of February 1, 1942. We find that the em- ployees of the Companies eligible to vote in the election shall be those in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period ending February 1, 1942, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the Direction of Election herein. Upon the basis of the above findings of fact and upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following: 1 CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation and Movietonews, Inc., New York City, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2: All office, clerical, secretarial, and accounting employees em- ployed in the offices of the Companies located at 444 West Fifty-sixth Street, 448 West Fifty-sixth Street, 850 Tenth Avenue, 460 West Fifty-fourth Street, and 30 Rockefeller Plaza, all in New York City, including bookkeepers, receptionists, telephone and telegraph oper- ators, auditors, office boys, comptometer operators, accountants, billing- and bookkeeping-machine operators, cashiers, typing clerks, secretaries, requisition-department clerks, mail clerks, stenographers, messengers, typists, reproduction-machine operators, general clerks, tabulation operators, statisticians, and copyright librarians, but ex- cluding executives, officers, traveling auditors, lawyers, engineers, maintenance employees, publicists, readers, translators, supervisory employees having the power to hire and discharge, persons having the duty to recommend the hiring, discharging, wage increases, or other adjustments of working conditions, and employees who are eligible to membership in other labor organizations, constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act. 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 Rela- tions Act, 49 Stat. 449, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORP. 583 DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation and Movietonews, Inc., New York City, an election by secret ballot shall be conducted as soon as possible, but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Second Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to Article JII, Section 9, of said Rules and' Regulations, among' all office, clerical, secretarial, and accounting employees at the offices of the Companies at 444 West Fifty-sixth Street, 448 West Fifty-sixth Street, 850 Tenth Avenue, 460 West Fifty-fourth Street, and 30 Rockefeller Plaza, all in New York City, who were employed during the pay-roll period ending February 1, 1942, including bookkeepers, receptionists, telephone and telegraph operators, auditors, office boys, comptometer operators, ac- countants, billing- and bookkeeping-machine operators, cashiers, typ- ing clerks, secretaries, requisition-department clerks,, mail clerks, stenographers, messengers, typists, reproduction-machine operators, general clerks, tabulation operators, statisticians, copyright librarians, and employees who did not work during such pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or in the'active military training or service of the United States, or temporarily laid off, but excluding executives, officers, traveling auditors, lawyers, engineers, maintenance employees, publicists, readers, tralislators, supervisory employees 'having the power to hire and discharge, persons having the duty to recommend the hiring, discharging, wage increases, or other adjustments of working conditions, employees who are eligible for membership in labor organ- izations other than the Union,3 and employees who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether or not they desire to be represented by Screen, Office and Professional Employees Guild, Local 109, U. O. P. W. A., affiliated with the Congress, of Jndustrial Organizations, for the purposes of collective bargaining. CHAIRMAN MILLIS took no part in the consideration of the above Decision and Direction of Election. 3 See footnote 2, supra. In the Matter of TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORP. AND MOVIE- TONEWS, INC. anti', SCREEN OFFICE AND PROFESSIONAL EmPLOYEEs GUILD, LOCAL 109, U. O. P.W. A., C. I. O. Case No. B-3532 AMENDMENT TO DECISION AND DIRECTION -OF ELECTION March 23, 1942 On 'March 7, 1942, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, issued a Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceeding? On March 13, 1942, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. and Movietonews, Inc., herein called the Conipanies, filed a motion asking the Board to amend its Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceeding with respect to three matters. The Board hereby amends Section VI of its Decision by striking therefrom the words, "The Union and the Companies agreed that in the event the Board directs an election, eligibility to vote should be, determined by the Companies' pay rolls of February 1, 1942. We find that the employees of the Companies eligible to vote in the election shall be those in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period ending February 1, 1942, subject to the limi- tations and additions set forth in the Direction of Election herein", and substituting, therefor the words, "We shall direct that employees of the Companies eligible to vote in the election shall be those within the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately, preceding the date of the Direction of Election herein, subject to the-limitations and additions set forth in the Direction." The' Board hereby amends its Direction of Election by striking therefrom the words, "who were employed during the pay-roll period ending February 1, 1942", and substituting therefor the words, "who were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of this Direction." The Board hereby denies the other requests contained in the Companies' motion of March 13, 1942. 1 39 N. L. R. B. 579. 39 N. L. R. B., No. 105a. 584