Opinion ID: 282416
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Layoff of Messrs. Cole and Lovelady

Text: 47 On January 19, 1964, stage technician Allan Cole was laid off. He had served as Union observer in the representation election on October 14, 1963, and was told the layoff was part of a general economy cutback and had nothing to do with his work and that he would be recalled when needed. He returned for temporary employment one day in January and from February 7 to March 5, 1964. Temporary employment offered to Cole on May 7 and June 23, 1964 was refused. On July 1, 1964 respondent offered Cole permanent employment to commence July 5. This offer Cole rejected as not giving him sufficient time to terminate his present employment and make the move to State Line. He stated he would need at least four weeks notice to accept. The Trial Examiner found that respondent's offer of permanent employment did not give Cole a reasonable period of time within which to report but that his demand for four weeks notice was unreasonable and he did not ask for or indicate he would accept employment within a reasonable period, and that he had, therefore, rejected respondent's offer. 48 It was further found that on March 5, 1964, Assistant Stage Manager, Bruce Lovelady, was laid off and told by respondent his layoff was part of a general economy cutback and had nothing to do with the quality of his work. He was offered temporary employment on May 5 and June 13, 1964, and on June 26, 1964, full time permanent employment to commence June 30. All of these offers were rejected. The reason for rejection of the permanent employment, as stated by Lovelady, was No mention of unconditional reinstatement or back pay. The answer is no. The Trial Examiner found that although respondent had not allowed Lovelady a reasonable time to report, his refusal was the rejection of a valid offer of re-employment. 49 The Board concluded that the offers of permanent employment to Cole and Lovelady were not valid because they did not allow a reasonable period of time for reporting. This court concludes that, in the circumstances, as evidenced by the record, the decision of the Trial Examiner was correct and that the offers of permanent employment to both Cole and Lovelady were bona fide and valid and were rejected. 50 The respondent's contention that Messrs. Cole and Lovelady were laid off as a result of economic measures, on the recommendation of a management consultant, was not followed by the Trial Examiner, who found that the layoffs    were discriminatorily motivated and constituted violation of Section 8(a) (1) and (3) of the Act. He also found that respondent's contention that Lovelady, as Assistant Stage Manager, was a supervisor was without merit. These findings, the court concludes, are supported by substantial evidence. NLRB v. Lindsay Newspapers, Inc., 315 F.2d 709, 712 (5 C.A.1963); and NLRB v. City Yellow Cab Co. et al., 344 F.2d 575, 580-581 (6 C.A.1965). 51 There was a finding that the first report of the management consultant firm was made in September, 1962. It did not recommend manpower totals or optimums but advised budget and wage ratio reports for each department. Certain economies were effected, such as elimination of two secretaries (late 1963 or early 1964), reduction of chorus line by four girls (late 1963), cutting of advertising budget by $100,000 to $200,000, reduction in the number of executives' automobiles, number of acts in the lounge reduced from five to two, and hours of entertainment in the lounge from twenty-four to approximately twelve. 52 Reductions in personnel were effected in several departments but in some instances the employee eliminated was found work in the organization. Some personnel reduction was by attrition. 53 Less expensive light shows and a less number of heavy shows were sought for the South Shore Room. These economies resulted in reducing the 1963-64 overall budget by 10% and a 10% cut was forecast for 1964-65 budget. 54 The economy program, the Trial Examiner found, had been ordered by top management in all departments without consideration of the needs of the participating departments. The decision was made and the program ordered carried out across the board. 55 The record shows that Mr. Patrick France, Vice President in charge of public relations, entertainment, publicity, special events and advertising, testified relative to the economy program and budget cuts totaling over $300,000 in the years of 1962-63 and 1963-64 and further cuts in 1964-65. He started pushing the 1962-63 cuts at the beginning of 1963. At the time of the layoff of Cole and Lovelady, on March 5, 1964 (Cole had been recalled to work on February 7, 1964, and was again laid off on March 5, 1964), he had asked his entertainment department to simplify the production and they wanted to wait until the following show because they had extensive props ready for the show coming up. Mr. France testified he said: I want to start now, and I said the same thing to my advertising department, public relations, all departments. I said I want to start immediately. 56 The decision to lay off Lovelady on March 5 was made a few days after the Board overruled respondent's objections and certified the Union (February 27, 1964), and the respondent's refusal to bargain on March 1, 1964. The Trial Examiner found that the respondent was economy conscious and was successfully reducing costs and expenses and At the same time respondent was anti-Union conscious and had engaged in unfair labor practices (20-CA-2839) during the Fall of 1963, which unfair labor practices remain unremedied. The layoffs served both purposes. In ruling that the economy program was used as a pretext to accomplish the acts of discrimination, he considered the timing of the layoffs, the haste with which they were done, the warning and predictions that    this would be a consequence of Union activity   . The Examiner further found that it appeared from the evidence, as supported by the statements attributed to supervisory personnel in the prior case of NLRB v. Harrah's Club, 362 F.2d 425 (9 C.A. 1966), that the layoffs stemmed from respondent's opposition to the Union activities of the stage technicians. 57 After considering the evidence pertinent to the point, this court concludes that the findings in regard to the reasons for the laying off of Cole and Lovelady are supported by substantial evidence and that the Trial Examiner properly considered the facts found in the earlier case of NLRB v. Harrah's Club, supra, in reaching his conclusion. Those facts, as noted above, concerned respondent's opposition to the Union and Union activities of the stage technicians as evidenced by statements of respondent's supervisory personnel. 58 In considering the effect of the layoff of Cole and Lovelady, the question arises of whether the moving cause for the layoffs was their Union activity or the respondent's economy program. 59 Respondent urges that the Trial Examiner and the Board committed error by taking judicial or official notice of the facts found by the Trial Examiner in the earlier case as the basis for the findings of Union prejudice in the instant matter. The importance to the Examiner of the facts found in the prior case is demonstrated by the numerous quotations in his findings of statements of supervisory personnel of the respondent, in that proceeding, in support of the conclusion of unfair labor practice in the layoff of Cole and Lovelady and in the rescinding of tokes in the instant proceeding. 60 As noted above, charges were filed herein against the respondent on March 12, 1964, and evidence of any unfair labor practice which may have occurred during the period of six months prior thereto was properly considered by the Examiner and the Board as substantive evidence in determining the issues raised by the charges (29 U.S.C. § 160(b)). 61 Official or administrative notice of the facts there found, which occurred after September 12, 1963, (six months prior to the filing of charges) was proper and those facts were properly considered as substantive evidence in the instant case. The facts which occurred prior to September 12, 1963, were validly considered as background evidence. This is the holding of the weight of authority. S.D. Warren v. NLRB, 353 F.2d 494, 497 (1 C.A.1965); NLRB v. Stafford Trucking, Inc., 371 F.2d 244, 246-247 (7 C.A.1966); NLRB v. Lee-Rowan Co., 316 F.2d 209, 211 (8 C.A. 1963); United States v. Pierce Auto Freight Lines, 327 U.S. 515, 527-530, 66 S.Ct. 687, 90 L.Ed. 821 (1940); Local Lodge 1424 v. NLRB, 362 U.S. 411, 416-417, 80 S.Ct. 822, 4 L.Ed.2d 832; and NLRB v. Murray Ohio Mfg. Co., 326 F.2d 509-511 (6 C.A.1964). 62 The court concludes there was substantial evidence properly before the Trial Examiner to support the finding of unfair labor practice as a moving cause for the layoff of Cole and Lovelady. 63 The provisions of Title 5, U.S.C. section 556(e), 1 are deemed not to have been violated, as the findings of fact in the prior case, of which official notice was here taken, were in a fully litigated proceeding between the same parties with similar interests and were not a commonly accepted or well established matter which judicial notice usually involves. It is also to be noted that the respondent did not seek to offer contrary evidence in the present proceeding.