The Shows Must Go On: Union Leaders Yield on Old Broadway Rules

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=aDpjXP9Ykt5Y&refer=muse

By Jeremy Gerard

Oct. 5 (Bloomberg) -- In a surprise move, negotiators for Broadway's stagehands yielded to theater producers on a cherished contract point Thursday night, said two people involved in the negotiations.

The union concession, which would give producers more control over how many workers they must employ and for how long, is expected to smooth the way to a new three-year contract, the two people said. Any agreement would still need to be ratified by the union membership.

If the two sides can agree, according to these people, producers will pay a higher hourly rate, but for fewer workers.

The union negotiators ``said, `No, no, no, no, no,''' said one of the people, both of whom insisted on anonymity. ``And then they said, `Yes.'''

Negotiators were meeting throughout today in the hope of hammering out a new three-year agreement.

The key issue of contention in the contract, which expired at the end of July, were rules requiring producers to pay an entire crew of stagehands during the setup, or load-in, of a show, regardless of how many were actually needed. The cost of the load-in can easily exceed $1 million and was, the producers argued, a contributing factor in the 80 percent failure rate of Broadway shows.

FULL story at link.