Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 8, 1943

53 N.L.R.B. 1234 (N.L.R.B. 1943)

In the Matter of WARNER BROS. PICTURES , INC. and JANITORS' GUILD
OF WARNER BROS. STUDIO
Case No. 8-5872 (U-R-2042).-Decided December 8, 1943
Freston cQ Files, by Mr. Arthur Freston, of Los Angeles, Calif., and
Mr. Carrol Sax, of Burbank, Calif., for the Company.
Katz, Gallagher d Margolis, of Los Angeles, Calif., for the Guild.
Mr. John C. Stevenson and Mr. George Bradley, of Los Angeles,
Calif., for the Service Employees.'
Mr. David Sokol, of Los Angeles, Calif., and Mr. Louis C. Helm,
of Hollywood, Calif., for the Hod Carriers.
Mr. Louis Cokin, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by Janitors' Guild of Warner Bros. Studio,
herein called the Guild, alleging that a question affecting commerce
had arisen concerning the representation of employees of Warner
Bros. Pictures, Inc., Burbank, California, herein called the Company,
the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate
hearing upon due notice before William B. Esterman, Trial Examiner.
Said hearing was held at Los Angeles, California, on August 18, 1943.
The Company, the Guild, Building Service Employees International
Union, Local 99, A. F. of L., herein called the Service Employees,
and International Brotherhood of Hod Carriers, Building and Com-
mon Laborers Union of America, Local 1104, Studios Miscellaneous ,
Employees, A. F. of L., herein called the Hod Carriers, appeared,
participated, and were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to ex-
amine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing
on the issues. During the course of the hearing counsel for the Hod
Carriers moved to dismiss the petition. The Trial Examiner re-
served ruling. The motion is hereby denied. The Trial Examiner's
rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are
hereby affirmed. All parties were afforded opportunity to file briefs
with the Board.
53 N. L. R. B., No. 225.
1234
WARNER BROS . PICTURES , INC. 1235
On September 7, 1943, the Service Employees requested that the
record be reopened for the purpose of taking additional evidence.
On September 24, 1943, the Board ordered that the record be reopened
for the purpose of taking further testimony. Pursuant thereto a
further hearing was held at Los Angeles, California, on October 27,
1943, before William B. Esterman, Trial Examiner. The, Company,
the Guild, the Service Employees, and the Hod Carriers appeared,
participated, and were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to ex-
amine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bearing
on the issues. The Trial ` Examiner's rulings made at the further
hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed. All
parties were afforded opportunity to file briefs with the Board.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following :
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc., is a Delaware corporation with its
principal executive office in New York City. The Company is engaged
in the business of making motion pictures for distribution throughout
the United States, Canada, and foreign countries. The Company oper-
ates a wholly owned subsidiary, the Vitagraph Company, which dis-
tributes its finished products through more than 30 exchanges in States
other than the State of California. We are here concerned with the
Company's studio at Burbank, California. The Company admits, for
the purpose of this proceeding, that it is engaged in commerce within
the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act.
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
Janitors' Guild of Warner Bros. Studio is an unaffiliated organiza-
tion, admitting to membership employees of the Company.
Building Service Employees International Union, Local 99 and
International Brotherhood of Hod Carriers, Building and Common
Laborers.-Union of America, Local 1104, Studios Miscellaneous Em-
ployees, are labor organizations affiliated with the American Federa-
tion of Labor, admitting to membership employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The Company refuses to recognize the Guild as the exclusive collec-
tive bargaining representative of the janitors at its Burbank, Cali-
fornia, studio.
On November 20, 1926, the Company entered into a basic agreement
with five unions affiliated with the American Federation of Labor.
1236 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
The Hod Carriers was not a party to this agreement at that time. The
contract was for a period of 5 years and renewed itself in 1931 and
1936 for 5-year periods. On March 25, 1942, the agreement was again
renewed for a period of 5 years. During August 1942 the Hod Car-
riers requested the Company to recognize it as the exclusive collective
bargaining representative of the employees involved herein. The Hod
Carriers did not claim "to represent such employees at any time prior
to August 1942. On December 18, 1942, the accredited negotiator for
the motion picture industry advised the Company that wage scales and
working conditions had been negotiated with the Hod Carriers for the
employees involved herein. On February 4, 1943, a joint application
was filed with the National War Labor Board by the Company and the
Hod Carriers, seeking approval of the new wage rates and conditions.
Up to the time of the hearing no approval had yet been granted. The
Hod Carriers contends, that by virtue of the wage scales and working
conditions negotiated by it with the Company, it automatically came
under the basic agreement. It should be noted that no separate writ-
ten agreement has ever been entered into between the Company and the
Hod Carriers and that the basic agreement had renewed itself on March
25, 1942, for a period of 5 years, at which time the Hod Carriers had
not yet claimed to represent the employees involved herein. The par-
ties stipulated at the further hearing that it is the Company' s position
that the Hod Carriers is not under the basic agreement until its admis-
sion is approved by the presidents of the International unions and the
producing companies that are signatories thereto. The record shows
that no such action has been taken. Under the circumstances, we find
that neither the basic agreement nor the negotiated wage scales and
working conditions constitutes a bar to a determination of representa-
tives at this time.
A statement of a Field Examiner of the Board, introduced into
evidence at the hearing, indicates that the Guild and the Hod Carriers
each represents a substantial number of employees in the unit here-
inafter found to be appropriate.:',
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Company, within the'meaning
of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6,) and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
The Guild and the Service Employees urge that all janitors of the
Company at Burbank, California, engaged in cleaning administra-
' The Field Examiner reported that the Guild and the Hod Carriers presented 25 and 32
authorization cards , respectively , bearing apparently genuine signatures of persons whose
names appear on the Company 's pay roll of June 26 , 1943. He further reported that the
Service Employees presented 15 membership application cards bearing apparently genuine
signatures of persons whose names appear on that pay roll. There are approximately 67
employees in the appropriate unit.
WARNER BROS . PICTURES, INC. 1237
tive and executive offices and dressing rooms, and all window washers
and matrons, but excluding the head janitor and supervisory em-
ployees, constitute an appropriate unit. The Company and the Hod
Carriers contend that service porters should be included in the unit
as well.
The service porters perform personal services on the studio sets
for the various artists. They are under different supervision from the
janitors and their rates of pay and working conditions are dissimilar.
There is no exchange of personnel between the service porters and the
janitors. We conclude that service porters should be excluded from
the unit.
We find that all janitors of the Company at Burbank engaged in
cleaning administrative and executive offices and dressing rooms, and
all window washers and matrons, excluding service porters , the head
janitor, and any other supervisory employees with authority ' to hire,
promote, discharge , discipline, or otherwise effect changes in the status
of employees , or effectively recommend such action , constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining , within the mean-
ing of Section 9 ( b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We shall direct that the question concerning representation which
has arisen be resolved by means of an election by secret ballot among
the employees in 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.
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 and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 3, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Warner Bros.
Pictures, Inc., Burbank , 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, acting in this
matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject
to Article III, Sections 10 and 11, of said Rules and Regulations,
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
1238 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
work during said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation
or temporarily laid off , and including employees in the armed forces
of the United -States who present themselves in person at the polls,
but excluding . any who have since quit or been discharged for cause
and have not been rehired or reinstated prior to the date of this
election , to determine whether they desire to be represented by Jani-
tors' Guild of Warner Bros. Studio , or by International Brotherhood
of Hod Carriers , Building and Common Laborers Union of America,
Local 1104 , Studios Miscellaneous Employees, A. F. of L., or by
Building Service Employees International Union, Local 99, A. F. of L.,
for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by none of said organi-
zations.