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reprinted from
October 7, 2001
Broadway Locals Band Together
Coalition's objective is to
'speak with one voice'
By ROBERT HOFLER
NEW YORK -- The seven Broadway locals of the Intl.
Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees have banded to together to form the
IATSE Broadway Council.
According to a union press release, the object of the
coalition is "to speak with one voice with producers, theater owners
and the League of American Theaters and Producers during future threats to
the health of Broadway and other labor issues."
The seven locals include Local 1 (stagehands and sound
designers), Local 751 (treasurers and box office), Local 764 (wardrobe),
Local 306 (ushers and porters), United Scenic Artists Local 829, Local 798
(hair and makeup artists) and the Assn. of Theatrical Press Agents and
Managers Local 18032 (press agents, house managers and company managers).
"During the recent crisis, producers would invite
two or three of the larger stage unions to hurried meetings to find a
means to save Broadway shows and union jobs when the World Trade Center
disaster shut down the city," said Ed McConway, stagehand and
president of Local 1. "Heads of all the unions showed up,
streamlining the process. This crisis brought us together. We found
sitting as a collective a positive experience that united us. As organized
labor, we learned to become a lot more organized."
The Broadway Council is expected to invite other stage
unions that are not members of the IATSE to become a part of the
coalition.
Individual agreements
After the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center
sent Broadway B.O. plummeting, the producers of "Chicago,"
"The Full Monty," "Les Miserables," "The Phantom
of the Opera" and "Rent" joined together on Sept. 18 to
negotiate their own emergency plan with IATSE president Thomas Short,
which resulted in a 25% across-the-board pay cuts for union members
working on those five shows. Shortly thereafter, the producers reached
similar agreements with other unions and guilds, such as Actors' Equity
and the American Federation of Musicians Local 802.
The Bruce Cohen Group, which handles press for IATSE,
released the following statement regarding the creation of the Broadway
Council:
"The events of Sept. 11 caught the League of
American Theaters and Producers totally unprepared, costing the Broadway industry crucial time. The unions will press for the development of a
comprehensive plan for marketing, advertising and labor relations should a
similar crisis ever arise again."
On Sept. 20, League president Jed Bernstein told Daily
Variety, "We never went forward to negotiate a group solution.
Different shows have different economic concerns."
League of American
Theatres and Producers, Inc. Response Letter (Members Only)
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