News Syndicate Co., Inc.

In the Matter of NEws SYNDICATE Co., INC. and NEWSPAPER AND BUILDING GUARDS AssoCIATION, UNAFFILIATED Case No. R-2613.--Decided July 11, 1941 Jurisdiction : newspaper publishing industry. Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of, question: re- fusal to accord union recognition until it is certified by the Board ; election un- necessary : Company agreeable to certification without an election ; pay roll and union application cards compared. Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all armed guards employed by the Company at its New York plants, including regular substitutes, excluding su- pervisory employees known as captains, lieutenants and sergeants ; stipulation as to. Mr. George T. Townley, of New York City, for the Company. Mr. George A. Brenner, of New York City, for the Association. Mr. Ralph S. Clifford, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES STATEMENT OF THE CASE On March 31, 1941, Newspaper and Building Guards Association, herein called the Association, filed with the Regional Director for the Second Region (New York City) a petition alleging that a question affecting commerce had arisen concerning the representation of em- ployees of News Syndicate Co., Inc., New York City, herein called the Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of repre- sentatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On May 10, 1941, 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 May 13, 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the Associa- tion. On May 17. 1941, the Regional Director issued a notice of 33 N. L. R. B. No. 69 339 450122-42-vol 33-23 340 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL -LABOR RELATIONS BOARD postponement, copies of which were duly served upon the Company and the -Association.' Pursuant to notice and notice of postpone- ment, a hearing was held on June 4, 1941, at New York City, before Daniel R. Dimick, the Trial-Examiner duly designated by the Chief Trial Examiner. The Company was represented by coun- sel and the Association by its representative; both 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. No objections to the introduction of evi- dence or the rulings of the Trial Examiner were made by any of the parties. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were committee. 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 COMPANY News Syndicate Co., Inc., a New York corporation, having its offices in New York City, is the owner and publisher of a daily and Sunday newspaper known as the "Daily News" and the "Sun- day News," respectively. The Company maintains a branch office in Chicago, Illinois, for the solicitation of advertising, and a news office in Washington, D. C. The Company also maintains a coma bined office and printing plant at 220 East 42nd Street in New York City, herein called the New York plant, and a printing plant at 700 Pacific Street, Brooklyn, New York. Approximately 84.6 per cent of the raw materials used in the New York plant are purchased and shipped to the Company from out- side the State of New York. Approximately 50 per cent of the issues of the "Sunday News" and approximately 15 per cent of the issues of the "Daily News" are circulated outside the State of New York. Some 250 correspondents, approximately 20 per cent of whom reside outside the State of New York, furnish news items to the Company on a free-lance, space-rate basis. The Company uses the following wire and picture services : Associated Press, A. P. Photos, Wire Photos, United Press, Acme News Pictures, Chicago Tribune News Service, Standard News Association. These services through their offices located in New York City, sell to the Company news and photographs which such services gather from within and with- out the State of New York. 1 Notice of bearing and postponement was served on the Special Officers and Guards Union, No. 177, Building Service International Union , A. F. of L., but it failed to appear or take part in the proceedings. NEWS SYNDICATE CO., INC. II. THE ORGANIZATION INVOLVED 341 Newspaper and Building Guards Association is a labor organiza- tion admitting to membership all armed guards. employed by News Snydicate Co., Inc., at its plants located at 220 East 42nd Street, New York City, and at 700 Pacific Street, Brooklyn, New York. The Association is not affiliated with any other labor organization. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION The Association claims that a majority of the Company's em- ployees in the alleged appropriate unit has chosen the Association as their exclusive collective bargaining agent. The Company has declined to recognize the Association's claim until it has been cer- tified by the Board. We find that a question has arisen concerning the representation of employees of the Company.2 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 Com- pany described in Section I, above, has a close, intimate, and sub- stantial 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 parties stipulated, -and we find, that all armed guards em- ployed by the Company including regular substitutes, excluding supervisory employees known as captains, lieutenants, and sergeants constitute an appropriate unit for the purposes of collective bar- gaining. We find further that said unit will insure to employees of the, Company the full benefit of the right to self-organization and to collective bargaining and otherwise effectuate the policies of the Act. VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES At the hearing the Company and the Association agreed that in event the Board found the stipulated unit to be appropriate it might certify the Association as the exclusive collective bargaining repre- sentative for all the employees in such unit without an election. At the hearing the Trial Examiner reported that 43 application cards in the Association, 39 dated during the months of March and April 1941, and 4 undated, all with apparently genuine original signatures, 2 The evidence with respect to the Association 's claim to represent a majority of the employees in the alleged appropriate unit is set forth in Section VI, infra. 342 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD had been submitted, to him. At the hearing comparison was made between the signatures on the 43 application cards and the signatures on the Company's May 29, 1941, pay roll, which listed 58 employees within the appropriate unit, and the Company admitted and certified that the Association represented a majority of the employees in the appropriate unit. On the basis of the foregoing, we find that the Association has been designated and selected by a majority of persons employed by the Company in the unit herein found to be appropriate as the representatives of such persons for the purposes of collective bar- gaining. It is 'therefore the exclusive representative of all the em- ployees in such unit for the purposes of collective bargaining, and we will so certify. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of News Syndicate Co., Inc., within-the mean- ing of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act. 2. All armed guards, employed by the Company, including regular substitutes, excluding supervisory employees known as captains, lieutenants, and sergeants constitute a unit appropriate for the pur- poses of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the National Labor Relations Act. 3. Newspaper and Building Guards Association is the exclusive representative of all the employees in such unit for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act. CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES By virtue of and pursuant to the power vested in the National Labor Relations Board by Section 9 (a) of the National Labor Relations Act and pursuant to Article III, Section 8, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, IT Is HEREBY cFRTIFIED that Newspaper and Building Guards Association has been designated and selected by a majority of armed guards employed by the Company, including regular substitutes, excluding supervisory employees known as captains, lieutenants, and sergeants as their representative for the purposes of collective bar- gaining, and that, pursuant to the provisions of Section 9 (a) of the Act, Newspaper and Building Guards Association is the exclusive representative of all such employees for the purposes of collective bargaining with respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employ- ment, and other conditions of employment.