Members for Democracy Archive

The 10 or so remaining members of I.A.T.S.E. BC Projectionists Local 348 who have been locked out since April 27, 2002 are about to finalize a buyout package that will see them 'eliminate themselves'. As part of the package these workers will have to decertify their union in order to recieve their buyout packages which are rumoured only to be around $10,000 CDN for all their years of service. As a comparison local chocolate workers who were unionized for less than a year balked at a $20,000 severance. The attacks on this local started about a decade ago but have increased the last few years. Similar attacks are occuring in theatres right across North America as movie studios try to increase profit margins by taking advantage of a large labour surplus as unemployment rolls climb. History does repeat itself. The last labour dispute back in 1999 brought the local against its own international as biz-union executives tried to force the local to accept the (backroom) deals the company was offering and put the local under trusteeship right in the middle of their dispute. Here is a brief interview with a member of the local from the last dispute.

RANKIN PHYLE

The following in an interview with a member of the I.A.T.S.E International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees local 348

BLACKCAT: Please introduce yourself fellow worker.

JOE BLACK: Hi there, my name is Joe Black. I'm a member of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. We've been fighting employers Cineplex and Famous Players Theatres (Sony and Viacom Corporations) who are demanding 60 - 80% wage cuts and a major decrease in operating hours for unionized projectionists (job cuts).

BLACKCAT: How many members are there in local 348? International?

JOE BLACK: Approximately 60 active members in our local. 70,000 in our International.

BLACKCAT: How long have you been on strike?

JOE BLACK: Actually we've been locked out. That's when the employer imposes wages and job conditions on the employees without their consent. We've been locked out since December 5th 1998.

BLACKCAT: 15 months? That's a long time. How do you survive?

JOE BLACKCAT: In our case since we have such a small union and therefore a small defense fund therefore we barely get by. The defense fund isn't large enough to support our old lifestyles. Usually, as in our case, the members get together and decide how the defense funds are distributed. For the first 9 months we received $150/week. As it dragged on it was increased to $200/week. But as this dispute has gone along, our funds have been dwindling.

BLACKCAT: Your Internationals pretty big though. Isn't there any support from them?

JOE BLACK: We've received nothing. They have been nothing but a hindrance in our fight for a fair contract. Usually you would look to your International for strength and guidance. It's been really frustrating. We sent a letter to the International for funds but they replied that the Canadian defense fund was in the red. We send a lot of dues to the International and receive nothing in return. They seem to want us to accept the offer of Sony and Viacom for wage cuts and loss of union jurisdiction. We've already taken two wage cuts. One in '89 and the other in '95. Its as if they have given up on the Movie projectionist sector which doesn't deliver the same dues return as the production side of movie making. We're being sacrificed.

BLACKCAT: Didn't your International try to take your local over?

JOE BLACK: Yes, the International thought there was dissent in the local and that everyone wanted to join another union. The International rushed in and put our local in trusteeship. We had to go to court to try and get our local back, which we did, one month later. It seems this was an excuse to come in and take over so they could make their deal with the corporations. We even went to the IATSE convention to speak to the members from some of the locals but we were not allowed to speak. All our energy was put into fighting our own union than against the employer. During that period of trusteeship we could not get any money because it had tied up the locals funds. It was just horrible.

BLACKCAT: Is there currently any negotiations going on?

JOE BLACK: At the present time, no. The union has sent another offer to the employer two weeks ago, but we still haven't heard from them. We have made several offers giving up certain concessions and wage cuts but so far all offers have been rejected. The corporations will accept anything but a reasonable contract. You can imagine the response if the union demanded a 60% wage increase.

BLACKCAT: Has there been any union members crossing your picket line?

JOE BLACK: Well, yesterday there was a couple who came up to the picket line. They had their little girl with them and when them saw us on the line they stopped. They looked at us and then they looked at their little girl. They then started to explain to her that they couldn't go see it and she started to cry. I can understand as a parent how hard it is to say no to your child. So they looked back at us and then back at their little girl; then went inside the theatre. We can understand something like that. We're human too. We have had others who cross and actually even tell us that they're union members. Like for instance, the other day we had some guy that said he supported us and that we should stick together and that we'll win. Then he went across the picket line into the theatre. We have had union organizers cross who have jackets with the sign "Union Yes!" We've had people who said that they are union members but also say they're not in this dispute and they go and cross. It's not just the union members crossing but also their spouses and the rest of their family. On the other hand we've had a lot of union members who would come up and see that there is a picket line and tell us that they will not cross. It gives you a lot of respect and inspiration when they tell you that they wont cross or have not seen a movie since the start of the dispute.

BLACKCAT: So there has been a lot of support?

JOE BLACK: Well, on the other hand there's been not only financial support but support on the picket line as well. We've received messages of solidarity from as far away as Russia, France and New York through our website (www.bcprojectionists.com). Locals across BC have held rallies, which have brought out a lot of people. We've actually shut down several theatres during rallies in which hundreds of people have came out in support. Lately though the numbers aren't there. Seems we've been forgotten by labour here in BC. You hear a lot of union leaders talk about the need for greater solidarity amongst working people and yet never actually do it. They can talk the talk but not walk the walk, the picket line that is.

BLACKCAT: Is there a going to be a good ending to this?

JOE BLACK: Is there such a thing as a good ending? Well, not in our case. If and when we go back to work it wont be anything like we've had before. We've noticed that all the disputes that have gone on in BC as we've been locked out have resulted in a settlement with a wage increase, whereas we're the only ones still locked out. We will most definitely be taking a severe cut in wages and a cut in hours; resulting in job losses. It will most likely set a precedent for other large corporations to step in and cut wages and working conditions.

UPDATE (1999)-With only two members agreeing to return to work the BC Projectionists Union local 348 agreed to accept the wage and work concessions. Under the new agreement only large capacity theatres will remain unionized limiting the unionized projectionist workforce from 60 to around 15 workers. Most of the projectionists have taken other jobs in the I.A.T.S.E. movie local or have gone elsewhere for work. To quote one of the projectionists, "This is the best example of how NOT to conduct a labour dispute". Almost all of the court injunctions were obeyed to the letter and their two office workers who were responsible for organizing support to providing a lot of back up for their members were let go just a couple of months into the dispute to save union funds. Famous Players and Cineplex Odeon theatres have just recently upped their ticket and food prices by 20%.

This is a good interview Blackcat. It seems so unusual hearing a perspective about labour that actually comes from a working person (rather than the official paid mouthpiece of one union or another).

Any chance of doing a follow up with Joe Black about how it should be done (what are the best tactics and strategies for workers who want to exercise their power most effectively?). Now there's something we need to hear more about.

Give it some thought. Like I said, workers are the people who never get to say much about labour issues. I'd like to see us do what we can here on this site, to change all that.

I think it would be a great idea to do an interview with one (or more) of the Lomans workers. If you're game to do the interviewing and if any of the workers would consent to an interview, I think that we would all be most appreciative.

slek, what would be the best way to coordinate this?