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Thursday, September 12, 2019
I.A.T.S.E. Local 58 to hold informational picket on opening night of Cirque du Soleil's Alegria at Ontario Place
www.newswire.ca: The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (I.A.T.S.E.) Local 58 will be holding an informational picket outside the big top at Ontario Place at 6:00 p.m. on September 12, to mark opening night of Cirque du Soleil's Alegria. The picket comes in response to Cirque's choice to use lower-paid, non-union labour to mount the production.
Oh boy...Why? Why would you choose to a) take a chance with unskilled labor and then have the potential for numerous additionally expenses and lawsuits when damages or injuries are incurred, b) damage a long-standing relationship with one of the most influential and connected unions nationwide (good luck when the other unions decide to side with IATSE), and c) cheap out on basic, operational expenses when your company's annual revenue is somewhere around $800 million?? It simply doesn't make sense to me, and I think that while the picketing might not convince so many people at the door (as these people have probably already bought tickets or at least traveled to get there), if they send this article out and make sure that this information becomes known, certainly they will have those involved in the entertainment industry largely sympathetic to them. I also wonder how they even pulled this off, as I would think that the space they're performing in is a union house and requires IATSE labor. So, either it isn't a union house, or Cirque also negotiated an agreement with the presenting house to use non-union labor, which is even worse.
More and More we are seeing production companies try to do things on the cheap. Producers are getting greedy. They know that certain shows are going to be popular and well attended and they don’t want to have high overhead when it comes to labor costs. The dark side to this is that cheap labor undercuts the skilled labor that is needed for shows like this. People can die if things are not done right. They can also be seriously injured or paralyzed. Cirque is not helping its slumping ticket sales on the whole by hiring cheap workers to fill the roles that crews from IATSE have been doing for years. As the article mentions, this also drives down the wages in the city for other industry. The action of one company can have a ripple effect through other companies which can lead to wage stagnation, job loss, and a deficiency between the cost of living and the end of day take home pay. Oh and I did I mention that in a situation like this, where unskilled cheap labor has life in their hands, that people could die? Cirque seems to be more concerned about the bottom line and less about making art.
From a business perspective I see how going to cheaper labor might be better. But were not talking about a small company making ends meet, although they should also pay their employees a livable wage, were talking about CIRQUE. First of all, they have the money to pay skilled technicians for their sets, especially, because it’s a remount, and they can expect the right quality for the show like they had before. And second of all, its CIRQUE, do you really want to risk something happening on your show because you chose to go with cheaper labor? I think this is a decision made on immediate effects, not looking into the future, and understanding all the additional benefits that actual skill labor would bring to the table. Its not only building the set, is resting assured that the people knew what they were doing and know that the percentage of mistake might be lower.
3 comments:
Oh boy...Why? Why would you choose to a) take a chance with unskilled labor and then have the potential for numerous additionally expenses and lawsuits when damages or injuries are incurred, b) damage a long-standing relationship with one of the most influential and connected unions nationwide (good luck when the other unions decide to side with IATSE), and c) cheap out on basic, operational expenses when your company's annual revenue is somewhere around $800 million?? It simply doesn't make sense to me, and I think that while the picketing might not convince so many people at the door (as these people have probably already bought tickets or at least traveled to get there), if they send this article out and make sure that this information becomes known, certainly they will have those involved in the entertainment industry largely sympathetic to them. I also wonder how they even pulled this off, as I would think that the space they're performing in is a union house and requires IATSE labor. So, either it isn't a union house, or Cirque also negotiated an agreement with the presenting house to use non-union labor, which is even worse.
More and More we are seeing production companies try to do things on the cheap. Producers are getting greedy. They know that certain shows are going to be popular and well attended and they don’t want to have high overhead when it comes to labor costs. The dark side to this is that cheap labor undercuts the skilled labor that is needed for shows like this. People can die if things are not done right. They can also be seriously injured or paralyzed. Cirque is not helping its slumping ticket sales on the whole by hiring cheap workers to fill the roles that crews from IATSE have been doing for years. As the article mentions, this also drives down the wages in the city for other industry. The action of one company can have a ripple effect through other companies which can lead to wage stagnation, job loss, and a deficiency between the cost of living and the end of day take home pay. Oh and I did I mention that in a situation like this, where unskilled cheap labor has life in their hands, that people could die? Cirque seems to be more concerned about the bottom line and less about making art.
From a business perspective I see how going to cheaper labor might be better. But were not talking about a small company making ends meet, although they should also pay their employees a livable wage, were talking about CIRQUE. First of all, they have the money to pay skilled technicians for their sets, especially, because it’s a remount, and they can expect the right quality for the show like they had before. And second of all, its CIRQUE, do you really want to risk something happening on your show because you chose to go with cheaper labor? I think this is a decision made on immediate effects, not looking into the future, and understanding all the additional benefits that actual skill labor would bring to the table. Its not only building the set, is resting assured that the people knew what they were doing and know that the percentage of mistake might be lower.
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