Walt Disney Productions

In the Matter of WALT DISNEY PRODUCTIONS, EMPLOYER and INTER- NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF THEATRICAL STAGE EMPLOYEES AND MOVING PICTURE MACHINE OPERATORS OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA, A. F. L., PETITIONER Case No. 21-R-3999.---Decided February 11, 1948 Mr. Bonar Dyer, of Los Angeles, Calif., for the Employer. Messrs. Michael G. Luddy and R. W. Gilbert, both of Los Angeles, Calif., for the Petitioner. Mr. E. W. White, of Los Angeles, Calif., for the Intervenor. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION Upon a petition duly filed, hearing in this case was held at Los Angeles, California, on December 1, 1047, before George H. O'Brien, hearing officer. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. "-Upon the entire record in the case, the National Labor Relations Board 1 makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT -I. THE BUSINESS OF THE EMPLOYER Walt Disney Productions, a California corporation, is engaged in the production of motion pictures and animated cartoons at its studio in Burbank, California. The Employer's annual purchases of raw mate- rial exceed $100,000, of which over 75 percent represents shipments from points outside the State of California. Its annual production is valued in excess of $100,000, of which over 75 percent represents sales to points outside the State. - The Employer admits and we find that it is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the Act. I 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-man panel con- sisting of the undersigned Board Members [Houston, Murdock, and Gray]. 76 N. L. R. B., No. 15. 121 122 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED The Petitioner is a labor organization affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, claiming to represent employees of the Employer. International Association of Machinists, herein called the Intervenor, is a labor organization claiming to represent employees of the Em- ployer. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION In April 1942 the Employer and the Intervenor executed a collec- tive bargaining agreement covering the employees involved, herein. This agreement was terminated in accordance with its terms on March 26, 1947, at the request of the Employer. On that date, the Petitioner notified the Employer of its claim to represent these employees. The Employer, however, indicated that it would not recognize either labor organization as the exclusive bargaining representative of these em- ployees until certified by the Board in an appropriate unit. On May 20,1947, the Petitioner filed the instant petition. We find that a question affecting commerce exists concerning the representation of employees of the Employer 2 within the meaning of Section 9 (c) (1) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the Act. IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT We find, in substantial agreement with all the parties, that all em- ployees in the machine shop of the Employer at its Burbank, Cali- fornia, studio including precision machinists (camera), machinists (journeymen), machinists' helpers, apprentice machinists, machinist gang bosses (journeymen), and the subforeman 3 excluding the fore- man and supervisors, 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 pur- poses of collective bargaining with Walt Disney Productions, Burbank, 7 At the hearing the Petitioner questioned the adequacy of the Intervenor 's showing and opposed its motion to intervene on that ground . The Intervenor , in turn, moved to dismiss the petition on the asserted ground that the Petitioner 's cards were obtained by coercion and were therefore not adequate for showing purposes. We have repeatedly held that matters of prima facie showing of interest are administrative expedients only and are not subject to collateral attack. Inasmuch as we are administratively satisfied as to the suf- ficiency of the showing made by both unions we believe that the issue of actual representa- tion can best be resolved by an election by secret ballot. Matter of Lancaster Iron Works, Inc., 65 N. L. R . B. 105; Matter of Falcon Manufacturing Company, 73 N. L. R. B. 467. Accordingly the ruling of the hearing officer granting the motion to intervene is hereby up- held, and the motion to dismiss is hereby denied. 3 We find, in accordance with the agreement of the parties , that the subforeman is not a supervisory employee. WALT DISNEY PRODUCTIONS 123 California, 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 supervision of the Regional Director for the Twenty-first Region, and subject to Sections 203.61 and 203.62, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 5, 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 employees who did not work during said pay-roll 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 any employees on strike who are not entitled to reinstatement, to determine whether they desire to be represented by International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employ- ees and Moving Picture Machine Operators of the United States and Canada or by International Association of Machinists, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither.