Early this year we finalized a 5 year contract with Seattle Landmark Association for the Pace Musical Theater Series at the Paramount Theater, as well as the obligation for SLA to negotiate on any other type of event at that facility, The first musical, Miss Saigon, was 5 months worth of work and utilized up to 70 crew persons. Although we have had verbal agreement with the Paramount for many years, this is the first time real contract was established directly with the owners of the Paramount, as well, the first time we have ever provided for 100% Union crewing of rock shows at that venue, beginning with a recent 3 day stop for Bob Dylan.
We have established new contract with several out of town employers, as well as Bauer and Photo and Sound for convention work. We me currently re-negotiating contracts with the City of Seattle and 5th Ave, Theater. With the mentoring of Ms. Sandra England, International Representative, we continue the path to organizing employers such as Westsun.
Our losses are mainly in the area of rock events and uncontracted facilities. We sadly lost our first (and so far only) yellow card show, Moscow Circus, in 1994, at a uncontracted venue, the Tacoma Dome, however, we have a high probability of regaining the venue with the planned passing of a resolution by Tacoma City Council for local stage labor hires with a path to a State Certified Apprentice Training program, which we currently pursue.
We look forward to the completion of a remodeled 20,000 seat venue in October and currently covered under our City of Seattle contract, but are daily more and more aware of the severe competition in the rock venue environment, so that we expect to have to continue to reduce wages and conditions in order to retain this work.
We continue to refine our Apprentice Program, and have had several inquires about our methods, which we share upon request of other Locals of the IATSE. We have also reordered some of our internal business, such that Officers are now elected for two-year terms instead of one, and we now have eight elected at large Executive Board positions instead of four. I was elected President in 1993, took over as Business Agent in the latter half of that year, was elected Business Agent for two years in 1994, and at that time became the first full time salaried BA in the history of our Local. We celebrated our 100th year Anniversary at the end of 1993.
Lastly, I must sadly report the passing of Brother Floyd E. Hart, on July 26th, 1994, with whom I had the privilege of attending the 1993 Convention. Brother Hart was a Senior Member of Local #15, a past Business Agent of many years, and an strong guiding force behind the growth and strength our Local now enjoys, particularly in regards to our Seattle Opera, Seattle Symphony and Pacific Northwest Ballet companies. Brother Hart was looking forward to attending this convention as an elected Delegate for perhaps the last time, was a strong supporter of Unionism in our trade and Education amongst our ranks, and will be sorely missed by all those who knew him. Brother Hart is survived by his wife, Josephine Hart, a Member of Local #887, Wardrobe, and son Steve.
BROTHER FLOYD HART
In the state of the trade report for the 1993 convention, Brother James Burbach reported that we were in negotiation with METRO, which controls many Portland performance spaces, and The Portland Trailblazer Organization, which gained control of the 12,000 seat Memorial Coliseum. I am happy to report that we were able to negotiate contracts with both organizations, The Trailblazers negotiation was a collective bargaining contract and upon its completion in July 1994 we took 14 more members into Local 28. The contract also covers work in the new 20,000 seat Rose Garden Arena now under construction and due to open for the 1995 basketball season this Fall.
Work continues to increase in the Portland area. We now have two Broadway touring seasons booking shows in the Civic Auditorium. Because of these and the expansion of shows produced by the Portland Opera and Oregon Ballet Theater we have had a substantial decrease in dark days at all venues in our jurisdiction.
With so many new members joining (we now have 127 members actively working, with 27 of those registered apprentices), education has become an important part of our responsibilities. Portland has seen an increase in film projects and outdoor events using temporary electrical hookups and generators. We saw a need to control the quality of temporary wiring and to protect our jurisdiction. Along with the State of Oregon Joint Apprentice Training Commission, Local 28 has written two standards covering the aspects of our trade. One standard is for Stagehands and the other is aimed at the Studio Mechanics. These include hours of classes and on the job training in the classifications of Carpenter, Rigging, Props, Sound and Metrics. The electric's portion is the most extensive and culminates in a State test for a Limited Journeyman's Electrical License. With strong training we are able to provide quality stagehands for our contractors and gain their goodwill.
Our three major employers are Landmark, Cineplex-Odeon, and General Cinemas. We are presently beginning negotiations with Landmark, building on eleven successful years of projectionist/manager contracts. Negotiations with Cineplex's Tacoma theatres have now been tied with Seattle and tamed over to IA Rep. Blanchard. Progress is slow as of this report. General Cinemas is still largely full service and our contracts have varying termination dams due to mergers. Rep. Blanchard was successful in negotiating a new maintenance contract with ACT III covering Bellingham and Longview. This agreement held a very substantial increase in wages and hours and will hopefully be the model for future agreements covering all their theatres.
Cineplex and General Cinemas have both announced l6plexes within a block of each other in downtown Seattle. All other new construction has been by ACT III.
Except ACT III, the Pacific Science Center, and a few others, all our employers contribute to our Health and Welfare Trust covering about 50 members. Most also contribute to the IATSE National Pension.
We now have three jobs at AVICOM by virtue of a IA contract.
Presently our training program is minimal given the low turnover and negative job outlook. The General Cinema FOCUS Program is now in full swing with the second cycle of booth audits now being performed.
In summary the state of the trade for Local 154 is holding steady provided we, bring Cineplex along. The challenges now are to get all ACT III under contract, stay technically proficient, and continue providing quality work for living wages.
Since the 1993 Convention, we still have a contract with Cine-Plex Odeon and have had limited talks for a new one. The wage scale still range from $10.45 for a 6 plex to $8.05 for a twin and operating hours limited to 33.5, maintenance hours 3 @ $6.80 and film make and break $12.00 per print. 5 units are in our jurisdiction.
In January, we signed an agreement with Act III for the Kelso-Longview theaters, 3 in all for a total of 10 screens. 40 hours of maintenance, which includes all theater maintenance, ie. Booth maintenance. grounds keeper, indoor theatre maintenance. Basically, what ever needs to be done. $15.00 per hour. Vacation time was added. One week after one year and two weeks there after.
General Cinema still has a year on the current contract with 2 theaters in our jurisdiction. The scale is $11.60 per hour guaranteed. Film make and break is paid @$20.00 per week and maintenance is 2 hours per week.
American Multi-Cinema has 3 units in our jurisdition which are under International contract at a scale of $14.50 per hour, with a minimum of 20 hours per week for 20 screens.
Valley Drive In contract is $12.00 per hour for 30 hours per week and operates 6 months out of the year.
Starlite Drive In has an operator for make and break and for limited hours Friday and Saturday night.
All employers except Starlite Drive In provide paid vacations and ll except Act III and Starlite Drive In participate in the Health Trust and Pension Plans.
Dues are $39.00 per Quarter, Working dues $1.00 per week / $4.00 per month plus 1% gross wages.
Effective July 1, 1995, Local 175 will merge with Local 154 in Seattle. Out of 15 votes; 12 for the merger, 2 against and one abstain.
Effective July 1, 1994, the local renewed A contract with its primary employer, the City of Eugene, with a number of significant changes. Because we are contracted with the, city, we are eligible for retirement benefits through the Public Employees Retirement System. The city now picks up and pays our share of the contribution at 6% of our gross. Because of a ballot measure which would take away from, us at the end of our contract, we signed a four year contract In addition to an increased wage package over the next four years, we she were successful in negotiating increased medical, dental and vision insurance, $25,000 life insurance, and long term disability benefits. 0ther benefits include increased personal leave pay. Personal leave may be used for vacation, illness/injury, or bereavement. Our relationship with the city continues to be a good one with few grievances filed. One of our members attended a sound reinforcement workshop in Los Angeles and another member attended a rigging workshop in San Francisco. The cost of the workshops was paid for by the City of Eugene.
We have had a fairly busy year at The Hult Center for the Performing Arts. This summer is proving to be the busiest season yet at our outdoor venue, Cuthbert Amphitheater, with 17 events planned.
We am continuing to sneak in the back done at the Lane County Fairgrounds We, have gone directly to the sound and lighting companies to secure employment for our members It a our objective to eventually sign a contact directly with the law board by proving that we have a working knowledge of their facility.
We have recently signed a sub-contract with Hewlett Packard through Presentation, Design Group in Eugene. We will provide the labor involved to the transportation, set-up and tear down of a travelling exhibit consisting of 3, 45 foot semi trailers, flat bed trailer, entrance and exit ramps, small stage, and a 50' tall aluminum tripod We hope to settle on a long term contact with Hewlett Packard directly when they have decided how extensively they will tour with this exhibit. Right now it is their plan to tour the Western United States for the next 3 to 5 years. We are very excited to be the only labor union to have a contract with this traditionally non-union company. We managed to beat out R.A. Reed and Peter Corvallis in the bid process.
We lost out on work this yew at die Grateful Dead Concert. They decided to play Portland instead. Rumor has it they will be hack in Eugene next year for several concerts.
It appears that we are the sole riggers for Gill Coliseum at Oregon State University. Wherever the facility is rented to an outside promoter, we are recommended by the University.
We will continue in our efforts to seek employment in all areas of entertainment and also non-traditional areas. We will continue to fight for what is rightfully ours and to organize the unorganized.
We are now subletting an office space from I.A.T.S.E. Local No. 488 in the Labor Temple, located in the Belltown area of downtown Seattle. An office manager is employed for 10 hours a week to manage the clerical business of the Local and assist the Financial Secretary with some of her clerical work. We were also able to begin paying our Call Steward a minimal salary in 1995.
Three contracts were renegotiated with the Seattle Repertory Theatre, Seattle Opera Association and Pacific Northwest Ballet, This was a lengthy process but we were for the most part pleased with the results which included Annuity Fund contributions of 2% of gross wages for all workers. We also rewrote our General Contract and Wage Scale to include Annuity Fund contributions so that these are made now for nearly all workers, All contracts and working agreements now also contain language pertaining to safety in the workplace. We have recently opened negotiations with the 5th Ave Musical Theatre Company. These are just beginning.
1994 was also the beginning of our new General Education class offered quarterly for all new workers and as a refresher for all current workers. This four hour course offers a variety of information about the Local and how it operates in the work place, an in depth look at our working rules, demonstrations of various skills common to our work and an overview of safety concerns.
After a dip in 1994 during which several local venues were closed for repair or remodeling, employment has once again risen to the level it had achieved in 1993 and projections for the remainder Of 1995 are good. The Miss Siagon "Engineer" company began their tour here employing nearly 20 workers at times as they prepared to open in the newly renovated Paramount Theater. This theater has booked a full season of touring musicals and plays including some co-bookings with the 5th Ave Theater.
Our call system, revised in 1992-93 has proven to be successful, needing only some minor revisions. Though we have taken in new members in the last two years, we have lost members to retirement or death. We continue to encourage membership to our nonmember workers and are pursuing options to ease the financial burden of joining as this seems to be most workers main objection. Plans to redevelop our apprentice program have moved slowly as it was determined that general education and a renewed emphasis on enforcement of our working rules for all workers needed to be enhanced as a foundation for any such redevelopment.
Our plans for the future include expanding the use of our office and streamlining our day to day operations, giving us more time for new development. We would like to see an increase in the number of hours we are able to employ our office manager and an increase of salary for our call steward. While an increase of membership is always desirable, an increase in the active participation of current members is equally important to our future success.
During 1994, we successfully re-negotiated favorable contracts with two employers, with wage increases and self-directed retirement programs. However, we continue to be without medical insurance for any of our members.
Although our membership appears to be stable, the names fluctuate due to the transient nature of the population of our state. However, our extra roster is now at around 100 thanks in part to our recent training program upgrade.
Two years ago, one of our employers, began a new program to bring in road shows to- Alaska on a continuing yearly basis. This new program has changed the face of the arts in Anchorage and Alaska. Patrons from all over the State, from Nome to Ketchikan come to Anchorage for such shows as PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (LiveEnt), PORGY AND BESS, STOMP, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, and CAMLOT, just to name a few. We now experience more seasonal work, from September to May, than any time in our short twelve-year history.
Our local has made a vast difference in the past few years in the wage scale paid by those not covered under collective bargaining agreements. The standard wages have increased 50% in some instances.
We continue to struggle in our negotiations with the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts. Negotiations have been ongoing for three years with interim agreements in between. We recently ratified an agreement only to have the employer's attorney decide to step in the day before signing, refusing to sign an already ratified agreement. Relations are strained to say the least.
Our goals for the future continue to be training, educating, and increasing our membership.
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