Yearly Archives: 2016

Training Seminar Monday Dec. 19th

Brother Joe Martin will be presenting a short seminar before the regular membership meeting on December 19th. The seminar is open to all area stagehands, but we request you sign up first.

The topic of the seminar is “Safety”.

stickman-tree

The seminar will be held in the IBEW 3rd floor meeting room from 5:00pm to 5:50pm.

To sign up, please fill out the form at: https://goo.gl/forms/ZohoKmSVFLlNEKNg1. You should receive an immediate confirmation that your sign up request was recorded.

As a reminder for 205 Members, the Special Meeting to discuss the 2017 Budget will occur at 6:00pm, immediately following this seminar. The Regular Membership meeting (which will include elections) will begin at 7:30 pm that night.

Tri-Union Holiday Hootenanny! Tomorrow Dec. 4th!

Holiday Hootenanny

Tomorrow is our Holiday Hootenanny that’s been in the works for some time with the 484 and IBEW folks! Today (Saturday) there’ll be sugar cookie baking madness at Jessika Dunbar’s – if you have some time between 10am-5pm please contact her or myself and please join us for baking good times! – the cookies are for the cookie decorating station at the event, if you’re curious.

Sunday – Nate from IBEW and Andrew Ferrucci will be grilling early, they would love your assistance! We’ll be decorating and setting up before the event, and cleaning up after. If you can assist with any of those please email me back, thank you so much!

In solidarity,
Mikela Cowan
YWC chair
For the Facebook inclined, there is some more details on the 484’s facebook event.

Training Seminar Monday November 28th

Austin Stagehands,

Brother Paul Arebalo and Ian “Micky” McGuane will be presenting a pre-meeting seminar before the Local 205 regular membership meeting on November 28th.

The topic of the seminar is “Essential Knots” and it will feature hands-on practice and visual presentations.  This seminar is open to ALL Austin area stagehands and is free.

This is a “very” basic class.  If you have a moment of panic and uncertainty when asked to tie a bowline or a clove hitch, then this seminar is probably for you.

Knots Tying

The seminar will be held in the IBEW 3rd floor meeting room from 6:00 pm to 7:30pm.
Please RSVP using this form.

Since there was a huge turnout for the last seminar, I’m trying a different sign up process. To sign up, please fill out the form at: https://goo.gl/forms/Q2mxAslkmrWzstFG3. You should receive an immediate confirmation that your sign up request was recorded.

If you cannot make this seminar, there are plenty of online resources for self-learning, just ask another stagehand what knots you should know and consult Grog’s Animated Knots page (or smartphone app).

Super Tuesday, Voting Day is Nov. 8th!

At the time of writing, that is TOMORROW!!

Get Out The Vote

Remember you are allowed an hour off work to go vote if necessary. 205 Young Workers have offered a “ride to the polls” option for those with limited transportation. If you need that ride contact Mikela Cowan or Riley Burgess to be dispatched, try to give them plenty of heads up though. Polling places for the 8th can be found via searching for “Where Do I Vote” and providing it your current location.  Google: https://g.co/kgs/xclv4e

Use Google to find your Polling Locations

Also be sure to PRINT your cheat sheet or endorsements, phones are discouraged at the polls.

Training Seminar Monday Oct. 24th

IATSE Local 205 is starting an educational seminar program to help raise the skill levels for all workers in Austin. These are short seminars on basic crafts and skills, presented by IATSE Local 205 for any and all Austin stagehands.

The first educational seminar will be held on Monday, October 24th from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm at the IBEW Building, 3rd Floor meeting room, 4818 E. Ben White Blvd, Austin TX 78741.

The topic of October’s seminar is basic audio- connectors, equipment, signal flow and gain structure.

audio-cables

There is no cost to attend the seminar, however you must RSVP to so that we can plan for how many people will attend.

Todd Drga
IATSE Local 205 Vice President

DELL/EMC World 2016

DELL/EMC World (and lots of other work in October)

Brothers and Sisters,

Dell World is moving into Austin Convention Center on October 14th and out on October 20th under several clients including Production Support Services, Las Vegas, GES and Freeman AV to name the largest. We need approximately 200 technicians and hands to fill all the calls. Therefore, we are requesting ALL members who are available to work this October and November to please call in and support your union.

We have crew calls at Paramount theater for Austin Film Fest and several other small jobs that have been added this week as well.

Due to the busy nature of these two months, you may report your availability to work in three ways: call into the HH phone number or, email or, wishlist jobs that you are available to work on Call Steward. (Note, if you wishlist a job, you are reporting that you are available for any position and for the entire job as there is no mechanism in Call Steward to request certain positions or days.)  Set your vacation manager for days not available.

Whichever way you choose, report your availability for this specific time frame as soon as possible and we will endeavor to put you to work.

In Solidarity,
Nikki Combs
Business Agent
I.A.T.S.E. Local 205

Stage Alliance ‘B Rate’ Is No More!

With the recent wage dispute concluded and subsequent settlement checks mailed out, Stage Alliance Inc. contacted IATSE Local 205 with a new wage proposal for consideration:

“Stage Alliance proposes paying out $17.25 on all stagehand wages at Long Center and UT Texas Performing Arts for the remainder of this CBA with Local 205. This would eliminate the B wage completely, provided that Local 205 agrees to freeze the wage increase for stagehand positions only on LCPA and TPA events; scheduled to take effect 10/1/2016.  Stage Alliance proposes NO other changes to the wage addendum set for October 1st until the end of the current CBA.”

On September 28th 2016, IATSE Local 205 members voted to accept this proposal. On October 1, 2016 all rated positions with the exception of ‘stagehands’, will receive the scheduled 1% pay increase. However, stagehands will now receive $17.25 for all work at Long Center’s Dell Hall and all venues of Texas Performing Arts. Eliminating the B stagehand wage rate is something Local 205 has pushed for during the last two contract negotiations, so we are very happy to finally see it gone! This change will remain in effect until the current contract expires on September 30, 2017.

Stage Alliance Pay It Right!

Stage Alliance Pay It Right Update – September 2016

The shows listed below are the shows that were previously paid at the B wage, but have been reclassified to A wage as settlement of the arbitration between IATSE Local 205 and Stage Alliance.

  • Ballet Folklorico
  • Screw Tape Letters
  • UB40
  • Bollywood Massala
  • Work Call on 10/27/16
  • Neil Gaiman
  • Vietnamese Live
  • Les Ballets Trocadero
  • ASO Pops
  • Argo Guthrie
  • Peking Acrobats
  • Vocalocity
  • Carol Burnett
  • Shen Yun Dance
  • Star Trek Ultimate Voyage
  • Black Violin
  • Legend of Zelda
  • Mandy Patinkin
  • Case/Lang/Viers

The list was determined by the criteria in the SA-LCPA contract that was in effect when we negotiated the current CBA with Stage Alliance. Ticket sales information was used to verify proper classification of the events.

Note: The GMC event was a private corporate event with no tickets sold and a closed balcony, so it did not qualify as an A rate event by the criteria in the SA-LCPA contract.

Make-up checks and healthy & annuity contributions have been made by Stage Alliance. If stagehands worked these shows and have not received a make-up check, they should contact a Local 205 steward or the Business Agent.

Lynda.com Subscriptions (New or Renewal)

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

If you were signed up for a Lynda.com subscription that just ended on 8/31, you may renew your subscription for $25.  See this flyer for what the courses are like or browse all of them on lynda.com.

New subscriptions also cost $25. See the attached flyer for more information on Lynda.com and the online training that is offered.

All year 2 subscriptions will last until 8/31/2017.

You must be, and remain, in good standing with all financial obligations to Local 205 in order to sign up for Lynda.com.

To sign up or renew, please follow the following procedure. Please note that the IATSE office in NY wants to receive ONE check from Local 205 for all people who sign up, so we must follow these steps.

  • Email and let me know that you want to renew or sign up.
  • If you are signing up for the first time, please include your date of birth (required by Lynda.com) and the email address you would like to have associated with the Lynda.com account.
  • Renewing members will continue to use the email address that they signed up with last year.
  • Send a check for $25, payable to “IATSE Local 205” to Treasurer Kelso. Please put “Lynda.com” on the memo line so she knows what the check is for.
  • You may mail the check to PO Box 142, Austin TX 78767 or pay at the monthly meeting.
  • Your subscription will be activated when the IATSE office in NY receives and processes the subscription forms. Lynda.com will contact you directly to complete the sign in process at that time.

In solidarity,
Todd Drga
IATSE Local 205 Vice President

Congratulations on the new positions!

IATSE Local 205 congratulates Kevin Squires on obtaining the position of House Carpenter at the Paramount Theatre, and Ryan Graham, on obtaining the position of House AV Technician at the Long Center.  We look forward to representing you and hope you will consider joining our union!

Paramount Theatre

Long Center