www.hollywoodreporter.com: Support staffers on the second season of the HBO Max medical drama opted to join a union aligned with LiUNA Local 724, the Hollywood laborers’ group, in a landmark election that took place Friday. Participating production and office assistants unanimously voted to join the union in the National Labor Relations Board election in a clear show of support for the effort, the labor group announced.
I had not realized that there were still positions in Hollywood under union shows that were not unionized! Along the same lines, it is surprising that the Production Assistants Union only just began in 2023. My own surprise feels like a reflection of the overlooking of the crew behind the scenes in popular media. By creating these unions and by publishing stories about them, light is shed upon the work that PAs do and their importance in the creation of television. Going into a career in theater where I will be working behind the scenes, it is both inspiring and terrifying that these unions are being created. While I am excited to be entering a workforce of people who value unionizing and creativity, it is scary that these unions aren’t old institutions that have been around forever. Their newness makes them feel impermanent and almost flimsy, as without a precedent they might just fall apart as soon as I enter.
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