NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD

256 THIRD ANNUAL REPORT OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
ance of the aforementioned belief that full compliance with the act
must eventually rest upon a clear public understanding of its aims
and the procedure adopted to achieve them.
•B. STAGES AT WHICH INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE
The 'following describes the progressive stages of Board unfair
labor practice and representation cases, and states whether information
is available at each stage or why it is withheld :
The fact that charges or petitions have been filed is available upon inquiry,
but details of allegations are withheld because charges merely represent unsubstantiated
facts and the Board holds it unfair to employers to make them public
prior to its investigation.
Formal complaints are issued when investigation reveals a basis for unfair
labor practice allegations. Normally, complaints are made public in the regions
where they originate. When the Board issues a complaint in its own name the
text is released at Washington.
Hearings upon complaints or representation issues are open to the public.
The intermediate reports of trial examiners are made public in complaint
cases. They are usually made public both in the field where issued and at Washington.
Intermediate reports in representation cases are informal recommendations
from the trial examiners to the Board and are not made public.
Cease and desist orders and decisions or certifications in representation cases
are made public in Washington when signed by the Board. Digests are simultaneously
issued by the publications division. The full text of each decision is
available for reference immediately and is printed for general distribution within
a short period.
Summaries of the Board's record in the courts are periodically issued. The
texts of Circuit Courts of Appeals decisions in Board cases are mimeographed
as soon as possible.
C. ACTIVITIES OF PUBLICATIONS DIVISION
The publications division consists of a director, an assistant director,
and a secretary. Its duty is to supply or make available information
on the status of Board cases, the contents of examiners' reports,
the text of Board decisions, and the course of litigation cases. The
division prepares for mimeograph release the following type Of information
:
Digests of °Board decisions and intermediate reports.
Digests of Board orders for election.
Digests of complaints when issued by the Board.
During the fiscal year the division prepared 766 releases, a total of
1,915 mimeographed pages and about 700,000 words. There were also
released 30 speeches by Board members and officers.
A mailing list is maintained for those who request regular receipt
of material issued, including the monthly summary of Board activities.
No names are placed on the list except by such specific request. Under
these circumstances the list, on June 30, 1938, was as follows :
Receiving releases (includes newspapers, labor organization, trade journals,
students, etc.) 3, 233.
Regional offices 22
Total 3, 2515
All decisions are printed at the Government Printing Office and may
be obtained only through the Superintendent of Documents. A list of
all Board publications available at the Government Printing Office
is furnished upon request to the Board.