4 ms·
The article missed one big point. All those temp workers are unionized. The union does not guarantee them a job, but it does guarantee them a certain salary a
by fsk 11y ago
The article missed one big point.
All those temp workers are unionized. The union does not guarantee them a job, but it does guarantee them a certain salary and benefits when they do find a job. It's a closed shop, so if they do hire a non-union member for a job, they become a union member.
- jonas21 11y agoThe author mentions this in the middle of the article: "It helps that, despite the work’s fleeting nature, Hollywood is strongly unionized, which keeps wages high. According to the rate card of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 728, which represents union film-lighting crews in Los Angeles, even entry-level electricians on a major film set make more than $35 an hour — i.e., more than 40 percent higher than the national average for electricians — and make that wage over 12-hour days."
- fsk 11y agoI see now that it does mention unions, but it's buried in the middle. It really should be the one of the highlighted points of the article, rather than buried on one paragraph.
- salmonellaeater 11y agoThe article does mention the union. It helps that, despite the work’s fleeting nature, Hollywood is strongly unionized, which keeps wages high. I wonder how the unions interact with the automation also mentioned in the article, such as robotic cameras. I'd expect some push-back from the grips' union against automation, at least while they still have some leverage with the studios.
- anigbrowl 11y agoThere's not much concern about automation - it's been a fact of life in the industry forever, because every producer wants every movie to have stuff that nobody has seen before. They're more concerned about the safety implications. I've never heard of anyone being told not to use a particular technology because it would reduce labor requirements, although I've heard plenty of stories about general work rules designed to inflate labor requirements from unions or professional guilds.
- WillPostForFood 11y ago* attendees at a Feb. 22 rally in Burbank held by Hollywood unionists were handed petitions to send to Sacramento citing that only one of 41 big-budget feature films shot in 2012 and 2013 was shot entirely in California.* http://variety.com/2014/film/news/even-films-set-in-california-are-shooting-elsewhere-to-save-money-1201125523/ http://variety.com/2014/film/news/even-films-set-in-californ... Hollywood is using every tool to avoid and work around unions.
- santaclaus 11y agoI thought closed shops were illegal under Taft-Hartley or something like that? One can require employees to pay a union a fee for negotiation but one can't require union membership as a condition for employment?
- fsk 11y agoUnder Federal Labor law, each state gets to decide if they are open-shop or closed shop. Democratic-leaning states tend to be closed-shop and Republican-leaning states tend to be open shop. Of the big movie producing states, California and New York are closed shop. Florida is open shop.