All workers in playgrounds and places of amusement and recreation. All professional entertainers.
Submitted on Sun, 06/18/2006 - 3:31am
BERKELEY 6:30 PM -- This afternoon workers at Landmark Shattuck Cinemas voted an outstanding 22 to 2 in favor of unionization. Despite new promises by Landmark and an attempt by CEO Bill Banowsky to thwart the union attempt, workers at the Shattuck say they've never really been worried about the vote.
"I've felt extremely confidant that the union would go through since the beginning." said Ryan Hatt, cinema employee age 21. "Support has been almost unanimous since day one. There was no contest, if you would have asked me two months ago I could've guaranteed a landslide victory."
Now that the vote has gone through, workers are looking ahead to the contract negotiation process. Contract negotiations at Kendall Square Cinemas in Cambridge, MA, the only other Landmark theatre to hold a union, have been moving extremely slowly with Landmark officials meeting only the bare minimum requirements to keep the negotiations process "in good faith" over the last year.
Submitted on Sat, 06/17/2006 - 12:48am
Shattuck union workers brought their campaign for union recognition to the streets of Berkeley on Wednesday afternoon. About sixty people including many Shattuck workers gathered in front of the theatre to wave signs, hold banners, sing, shout play guitar and fiddle. The message was clear, "we are union and we want changes now". Aurelaea River, a long time Shattuck Cinemas worker brought aong her electric violin and got the proceedings under way by playing a fast tune. Then Ryan from Riot Folk played guitar and sang to get the crowd together.
Next came Ryan Hatt, one of the workers, to list what the workers demands are. A living wage, health care coverage, corporate accountibility, and respect. And a door chair. workers stand for long periods taking tickets. They had a chair but corpoate didn't approve. Chair gone. Then a meeting took place a couple of weeks back with the CEO. He came to explain what a union is. He wasn't quite sure what a union is after showing up an hour late. But the chair reappeared. Only to dissapear a few hours later. Rumor has it that management thought the union might claim the re issuance of the chair as a victory. The chair is stashed away for now.
Submitted on Fri, 06/16/2006 - 12:47pm
By Judith Scher, Berkeley Daily Planet - June 16, 2006.
Standing on the bed of a blue pick-up truck, draped with a red Industrial Workers of the World banner and energized by guitar and fiddle music, Shattuck Cinemas workers and their supporters addressed working conditions at the theater Wednesday.
The rally outside the downtown theater on Shattuck Avenue near Kittredge Street was a prelude to the National Labor Relations Board-sponsored union election scheduled at the theater today (Friday).
“They need to treat us with respect,” Ryan Hatt told the crowd that grew to around 50 listeners. “There are no benefits, unless you count free movies and popcorn. People working [at the Shattuck] for over six years get $8.05 cents an hour. What we’re fighting for is a voice.”
Submitted on Wed, 05/31/2006 - 12:55pm
By Judith Scherr - Berkeley Daily Planet, May 30, 2006
Workers at the downtown Shattuck Cinemas, owned by Landmark Theaters, who earn just above minimum wage with no health benefits, will have their say about whether they form a union.
The National Labor Relations Board has scheduled a vote for June 16, according to Harjit Singh Gill, organizer for the Industrial Workers of the World.
Twenty-two of the 28 workers petitioned the NLRB for the election.
Winning the vote “means the workers will be able to sit down at the negotiating table and make demands," Gill said, noting that the right to form a union is just the beginning and that negotiating a contract will be the hard part.
The only other unionized Landmarks Theater is Kendell Square, in Cambridge, Mass. The workers there have been in negotiations since July, Gill said.
In addition to fair wages, Gill said the workers want a contract with a grievance procedure, which they do not have now. Landmarks Theaters did not return requests for comment.
Submitted on Tue, 05/23/2006 - 2:44pm
The National Labor Relations Board has given The Shattuck an election date! On June 16th, between 4:30 and 6:30pm on location at the theatre, the workers will have the opportuinty to make their voices heard and vote for the union.
This could not have all come together without the commitment of the workers and the Industrial Workers of the World. We will be holding actions regularly between now and the election date, and look forward to having the opportuinty to start the process of gaining workplace democracy.
Please email the Landmark chain and express your support for the union, we have not won yet, but with the combination of community, union, and worker solidarity, we will! Stay Tuned for our weekly updates.
