Opinion ID: 379143
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Actual Loss of Majority

Text: 28 The presumption may also be rebutted when the employer brings forth sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the union did not, in fact, have the support of a majority of the employees in the unit. Tahoe Nugget, 584 F.2d at 297. 29 In Barney's Club the administrative law judge determined that the respondent's evidence fell short of demonstrating that the union did not have majority support. The Board affirmed. Reviewing the record as a whole, we uphold that decision. 30 In Silver Spur, Sparks Nugget, Nevada Club and Finally, Inc., the respondents were restricted in their ability to question Board field examiner David Sargent and Union agent Howard Lawrence. They contend that the Board's actions erroneously prevented them from presenting their actual loss of majority defense and thus their cases should be remanded. 31
32 Respondents, in their individual cases, subpoenaed Board field examiner Sargent. The administrative law judges quashed the subpoenas on the basis that Sargent's testimony would have been irrelevant (Nevada Club; Finally, Inc.), or that 29 CFR § 102.118 prevented the subpoena from issuing to an agent of the Board without the Board's or General Counsel's consent (Silver Spur; Sparks Nugget ). 33 In NLRB v. Heath Tec Division/San Francisco, 566 F.2d 1367, 1371 (9th Cir.) cert. denied, 439 U.S. 832, 99 S.Ct. 110, 58 L.Ed.2d 127 (1978), we stated that in the absence of some valid evidentiary objection or privilege, 29 CFR § 102.118 cannot alone be the basis for the revocation of a properly issued subpoena. Thus the rulings of the administrative law judges in Silver Spur and Sparks Nugget were erroneous. However, the Board upheld the quashing of the subpoenas in all the cases, finding that a valid evidentiary privilege and a valid evidentiary objection existed. We agree. 34 The Board determined that there was an evidentiary privilege which protected the informal investigatory and trial preparatory process of administrative agencies, citing Stephens Produce Co., Inc. v. NLRB, 515 F.2d 1373, 1376-1378 (8th Cir. 1975). Sargent apparently had spoken informally to the attorneys representing the respondents and had stated that the refusal to bargain charges would probably be dismissed. Later, however, formal complaints were filed, charging the respondents with refusing to bargain. Through Sargent respondents sought to establish that the initial determinations were actually made and they also sought the information which provided the basis for those determinations. 35 It is clear that the testimony and documents which the respondents sought were informal investigatory material and preliminary determinations. The qualified privilege of preserving the confidentiality of investigative files is applicable here. NLRB v. Heath Tec, 566 F.2d at 1370; Stephens Produce Co., Inc. v. NLRB, 515 F.2d at 1376. 36 As in Heath Tec, and Stephens Produce Co., supra, we conclude that the investigatory privilege concerning informal deliberations of all prosecutorial agencies and branches of the government (Stephens Produce, p. 1376, n.1) was properly invoked. Others were present during conversations with Sargent. They were not called as witnesses, however, and respondents have shown no reason why examining these people was not possible or would not have produced information similar to that which they sought from Sargent. Moreover, we have some doubt whether the information sought was sufficiently material to respondents' case to outweigh the privilege. 37
38 The Board also sustained objections to the questioning of Union agent Lawrence regarding whether the Union had any records that would disclose it represented an actual majority of the unit employees of the respective respondents. The Board determined that the line of questioning was irrelevant because where union membership was voluntary, as in Nevada, such records provided no correlation to whether a majority of employees desired representation. 39 We affirm the Board's decision, but on a different basis. The Board cited Retired Persons Pharmacy v. NLRB, 519 F.2d 486, 491 (2d Cir. 1975), for the proposition that union membership is irrelevant to the determination of a union's majority status. We do not agree. It is true that in a right-to-work state an employee may choose not to join a union, but, nevertheless, desire union representation. However, this observation does not render union membership irrelevant to a determination of whether an employee had a reasonable doubt of the union's majority or whether the union in fact lacked majority support. Union membership, even in a right-to-work state, is some indication of union support, though it may be only marginally relevant. NLRB v. Tahoe Nugget, 584 F.2d at 307, NLRB v. Vegas Vic, Inc., 546 F.2d 828 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 818, 98 S.Ct. 57, 54 L.Ed.2d 74 (1978), and Terrell Machine Co. v. NLRB, 427 F.2d 1088, 1090 (4th Cir.), cert. denied, 398 U.S. 929, 90 S.Ct. 1821, 26 L.Ed.2d 91 (1970), are not to the contrary. 40 The question asked by the respondents was whether the Union could produce any records that would demonstrate that it had the majority support of the employees. Although not dispositive, the question had some relevance to the issues of the Union's majority status and should have been allowed. 41 However, based upon the record before us, we cannot say that reversible error was committed. If the Union had answered the question affirmatively, the Union's position would have been bolstered. If the question had been answered in the negative, that would have presented only slight evidence that the Union in fact did not have the majority support of the employees. Even with the addition of this evidence, the presumption would not have been rebutted. 8 Therefore, we find no error that would require a reversal. 42