TSU FAQS
WHAT IS A UNION?
A union is an organized group of workers that uses their collective strength to have democratic control in their workplace. Without a union, workers are completely at the will of the employer, and all decisions are made by the employer and passed down to workers. With a union, workers have the power to negotiate with their employer as equals, without fear of retaliation.
Unions can negotiate better contracts for workers, help workers bring grievances to the employer, and fight against unfair discipline or firing of workers, among many other things!
WHAT IS A UNION CONTRACT?
A union contract is a legally-binding written agreement between employees and their employer detailing the benefits and terms of workers’ employment. Unions negotiate (typically referred to as “bargaining”) with employers on behalf of every worker covered by the union (the group of workers covered by the union is called the “bargaining unit”).
Union representatives will present the demands the workers have made (examples include higher wages, more hours, benefits, etc.) to the employers, and the employer and union representatives will then negotiate the specific terms of the contract.
After a contract has been drafted, the workers take a vote on whether they want to accept this contract.
If workers do not accept the contract their union representatives and employers have drafted, bargaining continues until a satisfactory contract is reached.
WHAT WILL BE IN THE CONTRACT AT THEATRE ROW?
We as a union have the power to demand absolutely anything in our contract, including:
HIGHER WAGES & PAY EQUITY: Higher wages that reflect the industry standard and equal pay, matching full and part-time pay across all departments
GUARANTEED MINIMUM HOURS: Demanding secure hours even when productions slow down so we're not constantly trying to find jobs to work in flux
HEALTHCARE: Healthcare option for part–time workers
TRAVEL: A MetroCard for every worker to cover travel costs to get to and from work.
If you have a demand in mind, we as united workers can fight for it!
It is illegal for employers to make a contract worse than where it started while negotiating with the union. This means that we cannot take a pay cut or lose any existing benefits because we decided to unionize and negotiate as workers. Our contract will guarantee us at least the same wages and benefits we currently have, and much more!
WHAT DOES ORGANIZING LOOK LIKE IN OUR INDUSTRY?
Instead of joining an existing union in our industry, we have organized an independent union because we believe that the structure of the existing theatrical unions serves to divide rather than unite the workforce. Rather than organizing as individual occupations (the model of Actors Equity and IATSE,) we want to organize theatre workforces as workforces so that each shop serves as its own collective bargaining unit. Through this, we believe that we can build vital solidarity between workers in different departments to ensure a greater level of equity in pay and working conditions. In this fight, we hope to work with the existing theatre unions when our interests are aligned but we stand independently organized and constructed to support all the workers on the shop floor of the theatre industry.
WHAT ISSUES CAN WE ADDRESS BY ORGANIZING?
When thinking about unions, demands like higher wages, guaranteed breaks, PTO, and health care often come to mind. These are important issues that our union can (and will) fight for, but union power can go beyond just the fight for basic workplace demands.
Unions can use the strong collective power of workers to advocate for changes, such as disability justice and non-discrimination in the workplace, creating more protection for workers of all intersecting identities.
This power can also be leveraged outside of the workplace. The labor movement has a long history of using its worker power to fight for issues like queer and Black liberation, disability justice, and Native land and water protection, and our union would also have the ability to use our worker power to fight against societal oppression outside the four walls of our workplace.
DO WORKERS NEED AN INDEPENDENT VOICE? OUR WORKPLACE HAS DONE GOOD THINGS FOR ITS WORKERS WITHOUT A UNION.
Many of us feel supported by our management team at Theatre Row, and many workers have expressed that we have good working conditions, especially in comparison to other Off-Broadway theatres.
While it’s wonderful that so many of us enjoy our workplace and have trust in our management team, managers are not forever, and there is a very real possibility that new managers may come in that we don’t have the same trust in. If we depend on our management to control our working conditions, the state of our workplace can greatly deteriorate if even one manager resigns and is replaced by someone we don’t trust or who doesn’t advocate for us.
With a union, we as workers can advocate for our own working conditions, so that our workplace stays positive (and improves!) regardless of who is on senior staff. Additionally, the majority of our senior staff does not spend any significant amount of time on the floor. The staff who hold decision-making power in the building do not see the day-to-day issues we face, and therefore lack valuable insight on what would truly improve our working conditions.
Our experience on the floor gives us as workers a unique perspective and power to make changes that are meaningful, practical, and impactful on the shop floor.
HOW CAN THE UNION PROTECT WORKERS AGAINST UNFAIR DISCIPLINE AND TERMINATION?
Without a union, workers are “at will” employees, meaning employers can discipline or terminate a worker whenever they please. The only acceptions to this freedom to fire are violations of federal law such as unlawful discrimination or firing for union activity.
Unions can prevent unfair discipline or firings by negotiating a “just cause” clause in the collective bargaining agreement, which would guarantee that an employer has to have a good reason to terminate a worker, as well as proof that their reason for termination actually happened. In addition to this, unions can use their collective power to demand the reinstatement of any worker fired without just cause.
BUT ISN’T THEATRE ROW A BETTER PLACE TO WORK THAN SOME OTHER THEATRES?
Many of us at Theatre Row work multiple jobs, including at other Off-Broadway theatres, and a number of us also feel that Theatre Row is a good place to work. While this is a great testament to the culture of Theatre Row, it is not the whole picture, as many of us raise the following questions:
How many of us have worried we won’t make ends meet while working at Theatre Row?
How many of us have been devastated by a cut in hours because Theatre Row is experiencing a “slow season”?
How many of us have experienced hostility, verbal harassment, and aggression from patrons while on shift at Theatre Row?
How many of us have been harassed and demeaned by the producers and production staff of renters at Theatre Row?
Theatre Row has, for many of us, been a good and welcoming place to work, but this positive environment is only possible because of the culture we as workers have created. This workplace culture does not negate the clear and present hardships we face as workers selling our labor for pennies while our employers reap the full benefits of our work.
A union helps us take back some of the power that is rightfully ours. It helps us leverage our good workplace into a great workplace, where workers are paid higher wages, given stable hours, shielded from unjust discipline or termination, and where their protection and liberation is fought for with collective power at every turn.