Friday, October 02, 2020
Union accuses Strathmore of unfair practices after 19 layoffs this summer
bethesdamagazine.com: The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that the arts organization violated a tentative agreement that it reached with the union in April and “long-standing labor policies” by laying off the workers.
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I started reading with empathy for the venue, since I know so many people who have been laid off due to necessary cuts in order to keep companies alive. I was also thinking that it is unreasonable to expect that everyone keeps getting paid when there is no work to do. As I read further, it became clear that there were other, more appropriate options that the venue could have taken (and that there is, in fact, work to do). Certainly, from the venue’s perspective, their contract with Local 868 is an unnecessary financial burden, but it does look like they are trying to weasel out of a commitment and harming individuals’ lives in the process. I have been on both sides of this issue; and I have known many shows that have been cut drastically in order to afford to work in a unionized venue (the only appropriate venue for the show). I also have fought as a union worker and as a freelancer for my employment rights. I have stopped siding with the shows; if the cost of doing a show is too great to pay people appropriately, it should get shunted into the realm of community theatre. If Strathmore is trying to undercut employees, it deserves the same fate.
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