Clackamas Broadcasters, Inc. v. Scherer, 49

• Decision Date: 20 May 1959
• Docket Number: No. 49,I,49
• Citation: 339 P.2d 426,216 Or. 471
• Parties: CLACKAMAS BROADCASTERS, INC., an Oregon corporation, Appellant, v. Fred G. SCHERER, Labor Examiner, Division of Labor Elections, State of Oregon, and Localnternational Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, American Federation of Labor, and C. D. Hoffman, its business manager-financial secretary, Respondents.
• Court: Oregon Supreme Court

Page 426

339 P.2d 426

216 Or. 471

CLACKAMAS BROADCASTERS, INC., an Oregon corporation, Appellant, v. Fred G. SCHERER, Labor Examiner, Division of Labor Elections, State of Oregon, and Local No. 49, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, American Federation of Labor, and C. D. Hoffman, its business manager-financial secretary, Respondents.

Supreme Court of Oregon, Department 1.

Argued April 8, 1959.

Decided May 20, 1959.

John O. Sheldahl, Oregon City, argued the cause for appellant. With him on the brief were Sheldahl & Misko, Oregon City.

Thomas C. Enright, Sp. Asst. Atty. Gen., argued the cause for respondent Fred G. Scherer. With him on the brief was Robert Y. Thornton, Atty. Gen. of Oregon.

No appearance for respondent Local No. 49.

Before McALLISTER, C. J., and ROSSMAN, LUSK, and CRAWFORD, JJ.

LUSK, Justice.

This case involves the validity of an election held to determine the bargaining agent of the employees of the plaintiff, Clackamas Broadcasters, Inc., an Oregon corporation.

ORS 662.630 and 662.640 prescribe the procedure for designating a labor organization as the 'bargaining agent of an appropriate bargaining unit' of employees of an employer. The 'appropriate bargaining unit' is determined by the labor examiner (an office created by ORS 662.700). When a petition for an election has been filed with him and after such determination, the examiner is required to cause an election to be held by secret ballot of the employees in the unit. The majority of those voting shall determine whether the labor organization has been designated a bargaining agent.

On June 29, 1955, such an election was held by employees of the plaintiff and it resulted in the designation of Local No. 49, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, as their bargaining agent. Seven employees who had theretofore been determined by the labor examiner to constitute the 'appropriate bargaining unit' voted, and the vote was 4-3 in favor of designating Local No. 49 as bargaining agent. The plaintiff challenged the vote cast by Edward Saxe, Chief Engineer of plaintiff's radio station KGON, on the ground that he should have been classed as 'supervisory personnel' and, therefore, not entitled to vote as a member of a bargaining unit. It is conceded that without Saxe's vote the result would have been a tie. Thereupon, the labor examiner ordered a new election. Judicial review of this order was had pursuant to ORS 662.720, as a result of which the circuit court for Clackamas County entered a decree vacating the order and directing the labor examiner to conduct a re-hearing of the question whether Edward Saxe should be excluded from or included within the bargaining unit of plaintiff's employees. Accordingly, a hearing, at which the plaintiff and Local No. 49 were represented by counsel, was held by the labor examiner, who determined that Saxe was a qualified member of the unit, and that his vote cast at the election of June 29, 1955, was entitled to be counted and that Local No. 49 should be certified as the bargaining agent. The plaintiff sought review of this order in...