Northwest Publications, inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board DecisionsOct 27, 1938

9 N.L.R.B. 529 (N.L.R.B. 1938)

r In the Matter of NORTHWEST PUBLICATIONS, INC. and OFFICE WORKERS= LOCAL UNION No. 21276 Case No. R-1031.-Decided October 27, 1938 Newspaper Publishing Industry-Investigation of Representatives: contro- N ersy concerning recognition : contract granting recognition and closed-shop- conditioned on the determination by the Board of the issues raised in the peti- tion filed by a rival union-Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining: em- ployees in advertising, circulation, business, building maintenance, editorial, departments and the employees in the other departments who are not covered by existing contracts with craft unions, excluding executive and supervisory- employees; stipulation as to-Representatives: eligibility to participate ing choice : stipulation as to-Election Ordered-Certification of Representatives Mr. Lee Loevinger , for the Board. Mr. D. S. Holmes, of Duluth, Minn., for the Company. Air. L. H. Dow, of Duluth, Minn., for the Union. Mr. Henry Paull, of Duluth, Minn., for the Guild. Mr. S. G. Lippman, of counsel to the Board. DECISION AND DIRECTION OF ELECTION STATEMENT OF THE CASE On April 12, 1938, Local No. 21276, Office Workers Union, affili- ated with the American Federation of Labor, herein called the Union,. filed with the Regional Director for the Eighteenth Region (Minne- apolis, Minnesota), a petition alleging that a question affecting com- merce had arisen concerning the representation of employees of - Northwest Publications, Inc., Duluth, Minnesota, herein called the- Company, and requesting an investigation and certification of rep- resentatives pursuant to Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela- tions Act, 49 Stat. 449, herein called the Act. On July 23, 1938, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, acting pur- suant to Section 9 , (c) of the Act and Article III, Section 3, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1,, as amended, ordered an investigation and authorized the Regionals Director to conduct it and to provide for an appropriate hearing. 9 N. L. R. B., No. 49 529 530 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD On August 17, 1938, the Regional Director issued a notice of hearing, copies of which were duly served upon the Company, the Union, and the Lake Superior Newspaper Guild, herein called the Guild, a labor organization claiming to represent employees directly affected by the investigation. On September 6, 1938, pursuant to the request of the Union, a notice and order of continuance was duly served on all the parties. Pursuant to the notice, a hearing was held on September 19, 20, 21, and 22, 1938, at Duluth, Minnesota, before Henry W. Schmidt, the Trial Examiner duly designated by the Board. The Board, the Company, the Union, and the Guild were represented by counsel and participated in the hearing. Full oppor- tunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing on the issues was afforded all parties. At the commencement of the hearing counsel for the Guild appeared and filed a petition requesting permission to intervene. The Trial Examiner granted the Guild's request. His ruling is hereby affirmed. During the course of the hearing the Trial Examiner made several other rulings on motions and objections to the admission of evidence. The Board has reviewed the rulings of the Trial Examiner and finds that no prejudicial errors were coxlimitted. The rulings are hereby affirmed. On September 22, 1938, during the course of the hearing, the Board, the Guild, and the Union agreed to a stipulation of relevant facts which was made subject to the Board's approval. The Com- pany was not a party to the stipulation, but did not offer any objec- tion to it. We have considered the stipulation and we hereby approve it. Upon the stipulation and the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following : FINDINGS OF FACT 1. TIIE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY 1 Northwest Publications, Inc., is a Delaware corporation having its principal office and place of business in St. Paul, Minnesota, and maintaining a place of business in Duluth, Minnesota. The Com- pany is engaged in the business of publishing newspapers. It pub- lishes the St. Paul Pioneer Press, the St. Paul Dispatch, the Duluth Herald, and the Duluth News-Tribune. In this proceeding we are concerned only with the Duluth Herald and the Duluth News- Tribune, which are newspapers published in Duluth, Minnesota. The daily circulation of the Duluth Herald is approximately 36,000 copies. Of this circulation approximately 1,600 copies go outside the State of Minnesota. The daily circulation of the Duluth News- 'The facts stated hereunder are taken from a stipulation executed on September 12, 1938, and signed by the Company and the Board's attorney. DECISIONS AND ORDERS 531 Tribune is approximately 38,000 copies, of which approximately 6,000 copies go outside the State of Mimnesota. ' In the publication of its two Duluth newspapers, the Company receives daily national and international news through the facilities of both the Associated Press and the United Press. The Company also serves a.s a medium for the communication of news originating in Duluth and vicinity to papers throughout the United States, affiliated with the Asso- ciated Press. The advertising lineage of the Duluth Herald was 5,819,814 lines for the last preceding fiscal year, and the advertising lineage of the Duluth News-Tribune was 5,861,142 lines for the last preceding fiscal year. Approximately 27 per cent of this lineage is of a national character. In the operations of its Duluth newspapers the Company purchases materials annually amounting to approxi- mately $252,518. Of this amount approximately $29,518 represents purchases made outside the State of Minnesota. The Company nor- mally employs on its Duluth newspapers about 300 employees. II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED Office `Yorkers Local Union No. 21276 is a Federal Labor Union affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, admitting to its membership the Company's office employees. Lake Superior Newspaper Guild is a labor organization affiliated with the American Newspaper Guild,. admitting to its membership certain classes of the Company's employees. III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION rl'lie'_Guild approached the Company in April 1937, and' ' ask6d,to bargain only for the Company's editorial employees. ' On June 1, 1937, a contract was negotiated. This contract Was to continue in= definitely for yearly periods unless either party expressed its intention to change it by written notice at least 60 days prior to May 31, 1938, or any May 31 of succeeding years. On March 16, 1938, the Guild sent a letter to the Company stating that it wished to make changes in the contract and asked for. a meeting. On April 2, 1938, a meet- ing took place. At this meeting the Guild expressed its' intention of bargaining for all of the Company's employees who we're' not mem- bers of other organizations, and also requested a closed shop covering these employees. The Company refused to grant the Guild's request, and on April' 2, 1938, the Guild called a strike. On April 10, 1938, the Union sent a letter to the Company, advis- ing it that a petition for a determination of representatives had been filed with the Board and that the Union was'prepared to offer evi- dence that it represented more than 50 per cent of the office workers employed by the Company. - 134068-39-vol ix-35 532 NATIONAL LABOR. RELATIONS, BOARD On May, 24, 1938, the strike was finally terminated by a contract entered into between the Guild and the Company. By the terms of the contract the Company recognized the Guild as the exclusive bar- gaining agency, of its editorial, advertising, business office, circulation, and maintenance employees. The contract also granted the Guild a closed shop for_ certain classes of these, employees. However, these privileges were qualified by a clause in the contract 2 which conditioned the recognition and the closed shop on the Board's determination or disposal of the,issues raised by the Union's petition. We find that a question has arisen concerning representation of employees of the Company in Duluth Herald and Duluth News- Tribune. 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 In the above-mentioned stipulation, the Union and the Guild agreed Gn an appropriate bargaining unit. We see no reason to alter the agreed unit. We find that the employees of Duluth Herald and Duluth News-Tribune in the advertising, circulation, business, building main- tenance, editorial departments and the employees in the other depart- 2 This clause reads as follows : RECOGNITION The employer recognizes the Guild as exclusive representatn e of all _ employees and classes of employees covered by this contract for the purpose of collective bargaining in respect to rates of , pay, wages,' hours of - employment , or other conditions of em- ployment . The foiegoing recognition and any provision herein contained reducing membership in-the - Guild ' as a condition of employment ; shall be inoperative until the proceeding instituted by Office Workeis Local No 21276 , and now pending before the National Labor Relations . Boaid shall have been finally determined or otherwise disposed of . . •If any other `bargaining representative is certified of any such em- ployees„ this agreement may thereafter be administered and enforced by„such certified representatives as to such emllo3ees , with the same effect , as if said representative had been a ' party to this contract If in said proceeding it is determined that the Guild is not the representative of any • appropiiate baigaining unit, then any pro- vision in this contract iequiring membership in. the Guild as a condition for em- ployment shall , as to any employees iii such 'bargaining unit; - be 'made inoperative. It at any fdture time„ the National , Labor Relations Board „ or any other, authonty hat lug jurisdiction, shall certify that the Guild represents any department not ' covered by thisiagr'e ment; pulihshdrswill promptly negotiate' a-supplement to this ,., agieement;"extending this . contract, to such depaitnient t;ith such vaiiations as shall be necessary and agreeable to both parties i.r •,lr, t I .r c; DECISIONS AND ORDERS 533 ments who are not covered by existing- contracts with craft unions,3 egpliidilig "executive and" supervisory employees, constitute a unit ,appropriate for the purposes of. collective bargaining and that said unit will insure to employees of the Duluth Herald and the Duluth News-Tribune he ,full - benefit of their right to self-organization and Act. ctuate the policies of the VI. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES In the above-mentioned stipulation it was agreed and we find that the election should be held among the employees in the appro- priate unit to determine whether they wished to be represented for the purposes of collective bargaining by the Union, by the Guild, or by neither organization. It was further agreed and we find that only those employees who were employed by the Company on April 3, 1938, who are listed in the appendix should be eligible to vote. Upon the basis of the above findings of fact, the stipulation and the entire record in the proceeding, the Board makes the following : CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. A question affecting commerce has arisen concerning the repre- sentation of employees of Northwest Publications, Inc., in Duluth Herald and Duluth News-Tribune, Duluth, Minnesota, within the meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of the- Na- tional Labor Relations Act. 2. The employees of Duluth Herald and Duluth News-Tribune, employed in the advertising, circulation, business, building main- tenance, editorial departments, and those employees in other- depart- ments who are not covered by any existing contract with craft unions constitute a unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargain- ing within the meaning of Section 9 (b) of the, National Labor Re- lations Act. DIRECTION OF ELECTION By virtue of'-aild pursuant to the power vested iii the National Labor Relations' Board by Section 9 (c) of the National' Labor Re- lations Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 8,-of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1;' as'`amelided, it is hereby - DIRECTED' that, as part of the investigation authorized by the Board to ascertain representatives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Northwest Publications, Ina;' Duluth; Minnesota, s Although there may, be other existent craft contracts , the record -shows that at the date of the hearing the' Company , had existing contracts with ' craft covering the following divisions Composing rooni , stereotype room , press room , mailing' room, engrav- ing department and truck drivers. , _ , 534 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD an election by secret ballot shall be conducted within ten (10) days from the date of this Direction, ,under the direction and supervision of the Regional Director for the Eighteenth Region, acting in this matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board and sub- ject to Article III, Section 9, of said Rifles and Regulations-- Series 1, as amended, among its employees in the Duluth Herald and Du- !uth News-Tribune who are employed in the advertising, circulation, business, building maintenance, editorial departments and those em- ployees in other departments who are not covered by any existing contract with craft unions, whose names appear on the list set forth in the appendix, excluding those who have since quit or been dis- charged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by Office Workers Local. No. 21276, affiliated with the American Fed- eration of Labor, or by the Lake Superior Newspaper Guild, affiliated with the Committee for Industrial -Organization, for the purposes .of collective bargaining, or by neither. Elsbeth J. Anderson Ernest W. Anderson Margaret M. Armstrong 'Olive L. Bachke' Marie H. Bastash John J. Benda Alphild C. Bjornstad ,George L. Blake Bertha Bolma Walter E. Brown Lillybell S. Capbell Michael A. Chiovitti William E. Culkin Bonnie Currier Adele H. Cyrol Vernon, L. DeBolt - Julian B; De Santo Elna E. Dickinson Elvin Doe Grace L. Ege Joseph G. Erspamer Robert George Ferguson Robert W. Franklin Herbert F. Gibson, Jr. Theodore E. Glenn Lovell cGlockle APPENDIX iT William J. Gooder Tony Gotkin Mariane L., Graham Betty Mae Habes Dorothy Hagensoi (Johnson) Harry W. Hanson Axel J. Johnson Emil Johnson Marian A. Johnson Merle G. Johnson Andrew C. Jorgenson Clark G. Kennedy Paul J. Koslakiewicz John Jacob' Lindstrom Elmer A. Leeman Esther E. Lindau Carl O. Linnee Raymond Mack- Martin F. MacLean .Joseph D. McLaughlin Leo G. McGreevey - ,Dorothy M. Meagher Francis J. Method Fr`anci's C. 'Miller Frank F. Neumann Clemens Niemi DECISIONS AND ORDERS Alice Al. Norman ( foreman) Rosalie J. Orekovsky Harold E. Ouellette Blanche C. Patterson Gerald Pearl Evelyn S. Peterson Gladys E. Peterson Cleo Phelan Eileen M. Pomroy John Ringsred Alice S. Robertson Meda St. Pierre Florence P. Samson Evelyn K. Sandison Archie A. Sell Dorothy M. Shawhan Katherine A. Shelstad Lucille O. Sherman Charlene R. Sholund Roy L . Sicard Harvey W. Simonson Margaret Smith Lawrence Stenstrom William F. Sterle Walter L. Straszer Eleanor A. Szostak Margaret E. Token Earl E. Vanderyacht Albert G. Warner Charles Warren John P. Watson Frank M. Webb John A. Yernberg Max H . Zimmerman Clarence N. Anderson Harold J. Bowes Reginald J. Buck Stanton E. Campbell Isadore Cohen Nathan Cohen Roy H. Copperud Florence G. Coulter Prevost A. Coulter Albert F. Dod John J. Fein Glen A. Fitzgerald Charles Gardner Lloyd V. Gustafson Walter Hard Wilfred Jaques Carl E. Johnson A. B. Kappalin Einar W. Karlstrand George W. Kelley Reidar A. Lund Hiram P. McBride Dennis Earl McKenna Fred J. Magill John A. Magill Thomas A. Morrow Franz G. Naeseth Gustaf A. Nordin Kathryn R. Paulson Sidney E. Peterson Archie C. Ramberg Mary G. Remillard William F. Roleff Edward J. Shepard Richard J. Spadafore George F. Starkey Dean M. Steward George F. Sweeney Bernard C. Thomas Margaret S. Ulvang Helen Vuksich James T. Watts John C. Wesenberg 535 536 NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD [SAIIE TITLE] CERTIFICATION OF REPRESENTATIVES November 05, 1938 On October 27, 1938, the National Labor Relations Board, herein called the Board, issued • a Decision and Direction of Election in the above-entitled proceeding.. -The Direction of Election provided that an election by secret ballot be conducted within ten (10) days from the date of the Direction among the' employees in the Duluth Herald and Duluth News-Tribune who are employed in the advertising, circula- tion, business, building maintenance, editorial departments and those employees in other departments who are not covered by any existing contract with craft unions, whose names appeared on the list set forth in the appendix to the Decision and Direction of Election, ex- cluding those who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine whether they desire to be represented by Office Workers Local Union No. 21276, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, or by the Lake Superior Newspaper Guild, affiliated with the Committee for Industrial Organization, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by neither. Pursuant to the Direction of Election, an election by secret ballot was conducted under the direction and supervision of Robert J. Wiener, the Regional- Director for the Eighteenth Region (Min- neapolis, Minnesota), on November 7, 1938. Full opportunity was accorded to all the parties to this investigation to participate in the conduct of the secret ballot and to make challenges. On November 12, 1938, the Regional Director, acting pursuant to Article III, Sec- tion 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations- Series 1, as amended, issued and duly served upon the parties an Intermediate Report on the election. No objections or exceptions to the Intermediate Report have been filed by any of the parties. As to the balloting and its results, the Regional Director reported as follows : Total Number of Votes Cast for Office Workers Local Union No. 21276, (A. F. L )-----------------------------------'-- 49 Total Number of Votes Cast for Lake Superior Newspaper Guild, (C. I. 0.)------------------------------------------ 74 Total Number of Votes Cast against both of the above organi- zations----- ----------------------------------------------- 0 Total Number of Blank Ballots------------------------------ 1 Total Number of Void Ballots------------------------------ 0 Total Number of Challenged Ballots-------------------------- 2 Total Number of Ballots Cast------------------------------- 126 Total Number Eligible to Vote----.-------------------------- 129 DECISIONS AND ORDERS 537 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, Sections 8 and 9, of National Labor Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 1, as amended, - IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that Lake- Superior Newspaper Guild, affi- liated with Committee for Industrial Organization, has been selected by a majority of" the employees in the Duluth Herald . and Duluth News-Tribune-who are employed in-the advertising, circulation, busi- ness, building maintenance, editorial' departments and those employees in other departments who, are not covered by any 'existing contract with craft unions, as their representative for the purposes of col- lective bargaining, and that, pursuant to Section 9 (a) of the Act, Lake Superior Newspaper Guild, affiliated with Committee for In- dustrial Organization, is the exclusive representative of all such employees for the purposes of collective bargaining in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, and other conditions of employment. 9 N. L. R. B., No. 49a.