Wednesday, September 28, 2011
A Sound Union: Then And Now
Live Design: Back in 1984, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists, and Allied Crafts (IATSE) came to fellow sound designer Jack Shearing and me to establish representation for sound designers working on Broadway and nationally. The problem from there was establishing collective bargaining agreements with various producers, and it took us a couple of years to even begin negotiations with The Broadway League. We eventually established a simple collective bargaining agreement that covered minimum fees, additional weekly compensation, and certain benefits plans. It wasn’t the greatest agreement, but it was better than nothing and gave us the validity of being represented by a collective bargaining unit. We were never strong enough to implement additional terms on that agreement.
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Cultural Trusts Big Yellow Taxi
"THEY PAVED PARADISE & PUT UP A PARKING LOT http://www.pghartswatch.org/Alert---2.html
IATSE is a confusing web of overlapping jurisdictions, representation being divided in what can seem like inconsistent and arbitrary ways, and varying membership and dues requirements from one local to another. Even as an IATSE member it's hard to tell what's going on. Here in Pittsburgh alone we have 489 that covers film work, 3 covering theatre and concerts, and then people coming in from other jurisdictions all the time (for example, Batman brought in people in the scenic artists local, as well as several carpenters and foremen from Hollywood who were paid about 1 1/2 times as much as the Pittsburgh crew doing the same jobs). Anything that can try to simplify this confusing structure, even if it is just for one job classification in one local, is a welcome change.
I heard Abe, Jeremy, and others talk about this at BSMC last May, and it sounds like a positive thing. Lots of designers have been hesitant to join the Local 1 because of the drawback mentioned herein, whereas 829 is more apt for freelance design folk.
This article didn't mention much about joining the union, so I went to the 829's website and poked around a bit. The process is apparently quite an arduous one, and many folks in sound opt to get brought into the union by working a production that is a union contract without being in the union, leading to union membership after sufficient time spent. While that requires knowing the right people, there are benefits to it.
www.IATSE3.com
www.PghArtsWatch.org
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