Broadcasting (Jan - June 1941)

Impasse Develops In Effort to Halt Strike by AFRA MBS, WKRC and Others Fail To Agree in Chicago DESPITE an eleventh-hour attempt to untangle the strained relations between WKRC, Cincinnati, and the American Federation of Radio Artists, it appeared as Broadcasting went to press Friday that an AFRA order calling for a strike of AFRA members on all MBS programs fed to WKRC might be carried through on July 7. The current AFRA strike against WKRC is the first ever staged against a radio station, and the portending move aganist MBS programs would be the first called against a network. A special meeting of union, network and station officials, held in Chicago last Friday, was concluded without any agreement reached, and since no further meeting was scheduled, it appeared that the AFRA strike order pertaining to MBS would go into effect. Principals in the discussion, including Hulbert A. Taft Jr., general manager of WKRC, had no comment to make immediately upon conclusion of the meeting. Week's Developments Chicago meeting was attended by Mr. Taft and his attorney, Leonard Weakley; Fred Weber, general manager of MBS, and Keith Masters, MBS attorney; For AFRA, Emily Holt, national executive secretary, George Heller, associate executive secretary, and Henry Jaffe, attorney. Joseph L. Miller, NAB labor relations director, was in Chicago to participate. Session came as a culmination to a week of feverish activity which can be summarized as follows: On Friday, June 20, AFRA called the first strike of its career against WKRC after more than a year of negotiations had failed to produce a contract. Chief points of dispute were union's demands for closed shop and for minimum wages of $50 a week for staff announcers, $35 a week for staff actors and singers. Four employes walked out and began picketing WKRC. The station continued operations with majority of staff talent staying on job. These are members of the recently-organized Radio Artists Assn., an independent union which AFRA considers a company union but which was sure enough of its position to petition the NLRB for an election to determine which union should act as collective bargaining agency for station's talent. On Monday AFRA notified MBS that unless it discontinued its program service to WKRC by Tuesday noon the union would call a jceneral strike against the network. Mutual protested that it would like '^x)_^ooperate with AFRA but that \e 14 • June 30, 1941 J Fla. Citrus Placing FLORIDA CITRUS COMMISSION, Lakeland, Fla., will use participating announcements on Arthur Godfrey on WABC, New York, and WJSV, Washington; Laura May Stuart on WCAU, Philadelphia ; Consumer Foundation on WLW, Cincinnati, and Majorie Mills on the Yankee Network, and is placing a varied schedule of one-minute spot announcements on 32 stations. Arthur Kudner Inc., New York, is the agency. it had contracted to supply both commercial and sustaining programs to WKRC. A meeting was arranged to be held in Chicago on Wednesday, at which representatives of AFRA, MBS and WKRC could discuss the situation and attempt to arrive at some sort of compromise settlement. Deadline Set On Tuesday Mr. Taft said he would be unable to attend the Chicago session, as it would be unfair for him to deal with AFRA as long as there was another union in the picture, whose rights must also be considered. The AFRA board, in special session, set July 7 as the deadline for pulling its members from all Mutual commercial programs which the network sends to WKRC unless such service had already been discontinued. That night, at an AFRA rally in Cincinnati, Mrs. Holt announced that AFRA had filed a complaint with the NLRB against RAA, asking the Labor Board to declare RAA an "administration dominated organization." She stated that when a strike vote was taken April 10, it had been approved by the majority of WKRC employes, including some of those individuals who had at that time voted to strike but who were still working at the station as a result of intimi dation by the station management. The next day Mr. Weber offered to go to Cincinnati to meet with officials of the station and of both unions to attempt to mediate the interunion controversy under the auspices of the NLRB, but this offer was rejected by AFRA. AFRA subsequently declined to be a party to an NLRB election at the station, claiming that under present circumstances it would be impossible for a fair election to be held. Andrew J. Meyer, Federal Conciliation Commissioner, likewise failed to make any headway toward a conciliation. Mr. Taft agreed to attend the meeting with MBS and AFRA in Chicago on Friday. The AFRA board approved a letter to advertising agencies operating under AFRA's code of fair practice, notifying them that as of July 7, "no AFRA member may work on any program going over or transmitted to WKRC." Effect of Code The letter also states "this notice does not apply to any program other than a program which uses the facilities of WKRC. You may use any other station in Cincinnati or elsewhere for your Cincinnati coverage, in place of WKRC." Letter was not sent out, however, until after the Friday session in Chicago. Asked if AFRA, by forcing programs off the station and possibly off the network, were not ignoring the anti-strike clause in its code of fair practice, a union spokesman replied that the code was not signed by either advertisers (on the grounds that such action might upset the labor relations of their own organizations) or by the agencies (who said they were not principals but agents). Instead, agencies signed letters in which they agreed to abide by the provisions of the code, but which (Continued on page 29) COMMEMORATING WMBD'S decennial, Edgar Bill (right), owner and president of the Peoria, 111., station since its inception ten years ago, accepts an engraved silver vase tendered by Charlie Caley, WMBD commercial manager, on behalf of the staff. On hand for the presentation, which constituted a part of the day-long celebration at the station held June 20, were A. H. McCoy (left rear) and Lew Avery, of Free & Peters, national representatives of WMBD. Inscribed gold Hamilton watches were also given to Ted Giles, chief engineer, and Ralph Ehresman, salesman, in recognition of their ten years of continuous service to the station. Rule Against Recording Not Planned by AFM AMERICAN Federation of Musicians has no immediate plans to cut off the supply of union musicians from the manufacturers of transcriptions and phonograph records, it was stated at AFM headquarters in New York late last week. Union officials also said renewals of the present AFM licenses for the employment of AFM members for recorded music, which expire June 30, would be extended for another six months, or until Dec. 31, upon request of the licensees. This news came as a relief to the recording industry, as resolutions introduced at the recent AFM convention [Broadcasting, June 16, 23] had empowered the union's executive board to take action as it sees fit to stop or at least curtail the allegedly adverse effect the use of recorded musi ', on the air and in "juke boxes," has had on the employment of live musicians. Fact that last December the AFM had issued to the recorders licenses running only six months, instead of for a full year as was the previous practice, plus the further fact that with less than a week to go before the expiration of these licenses no new ones had been offered by the union, had led to some expectations that the AFM might immediately start action on the convention's instructions. Union officials stated, however, that the board will probably not be called into session for several weeks and that no action will be taken before that time. FCC to Request Data On News Commentators QUESTIONNAIRES asking networks and stations whether they have "presented well-rounded rather than one-sided discussions regarding the role of this country with respect to the war abroad" are to be distributed shortly, probably this week, by the FCC in accordance with a request of the Senate Interstate Committee. The committee's action was precipitated by Sen. Tobey (R-N. H.) who, during recent hearings on the White Resolution, obtained the promise of FCC Chairman Fly to secure a compilation of speakers on the war issue stating that it would be a "good thing" for the committee to have [Broadcasting, June 9]. The Senator stated that because of radio's great influence as an instrument of molding public opinion and disseminating thought on major issues confronting the American people, it was of paramount importance that station managers treat their responsibility with every element of fairness. The FCC questionnaire will particularly ask the names of speakers who discussed this country's role in the war during the fivemonth period from Jan. 1 to June 1. Questionnaires must be returned by July 21. WILLIAM C. WHITTEMORB, for merly with Buchanan & Co., New York, and recently a member of the sales staff of Coca-Cola Co., joins the New York office of Howard H. Wilson Co. June 80 as an addition to the jn-esent staff, it was announced by J. Frank .Johns, New York manager of the station representative firm. BROADCASTING • Broadcast Advertising