The Commercial Strike Ends

The Commercial Strike Ends: Call off the dogs. Sound the retreat. Recall the troops. The Commercial Strike, after the longest job action in our checkered history, has come to an end. A Minor Consideration is particularly proud of its members and the current generation of young performers who, without exception, did not cross the picket line.

The major thanks (as we all heave a sigh of relief after a tough six months) go out to the Stage Parents, Agents and Managers of young performers who uniformly stood firm against temptation and not only eschewed “struck work,” but manned the picket lines, staffed the phone banks, and gave council to young people about the value of unions.

The stakes were high. The commercial strike in England ten years ago has still not been resolved. Madison Avenue would love to pay as little as possible to their “pitchmen,” even as they enjoy unprecedented profits. Professional actors made their stand. The Theatrical Unions will represent professional performers on the Internet, now and in the future, the gains on Basic Cable payments were substantial (although we did not win 'pay-for-play'), and the Guild ‘minimums’ have been increased in accordance with Industry labor practice across the board for the duration of the three-year contract.

The negotiators for AFTRA and SAG really earned their keep these past six months. There were many lessons learned over the course of this job action that will have value as the 2001 Theatrical Contract talks get underway.

Labor-Management negotiations are not for the faint of heart. The issues are serious, and the impact on people’s lives is very real indeed.

I want to reiterate our gratitude to those thousands of union kids who held the line and supported their union. They made a difference. As we have explained in other pages, without a union contract there really are NO rules for children in far too many jurisdictions, both at home and abroad. Every generation stands on the shoulders and the accomplishments of previous generations, and this Strike served to remind people in the Entertainment Industry that nearly everything we take for granted had to be won at the bargaining table and enforced in the work place. You only have to look overseas to see what the workplace would look like without unions.

Popular wisdom tells us that the money lost during this six-month strike will never be recovered, but that misses the point, at least as the work stoppage concerns children. The Federal Government and State labor officials were finally forced to understand that the lack of State work rules causes damage to working kids. Without rules and guidelines Big Business will always find a way to disadvantage its labor force. That’s what they do. Saving labor costs is a Business Imperative.

A Minor Consideration is committed to removing three issues from labor contract talks: Health, Safety, and Child Labor Laws. These three issues should not and must not be subject to negotiation or modification. Labor and Management must agree that the welfare of children in the workplace overarches all other considerations. Labor must protect its weakest members, and Management must not do to working kids what they would not do to their own flesh and blood.

This is the Golden Rule times Ten. The Federal Government gives special protection to certain classes of people: Seniors, the Disabled, Minorities and Women. These four categories are called “Protected Groups.”

It is our task to educate everyone…Labor, Management and the Government…that Children deserve special treatment as well. The only reason they have not been included in these Protected Groups is that it’s unpleasant to admit that given half a chance grown ups will take advantage of children in the workplace.

We know better, don’t we? There will be no peace until we in the Entertainment Industry live up to our obligations to children who work, whatever their station in life, and no matter where they are employed. We spend millions on the welfare of animal actors. Children deserve better treatment.

Who knows? If the employers in the entertainment industry finally make the workplace safe and nourishing for children they just might get around to thinking about the impact the content of their products have on our young people.

Wouldn’t that be something?

Paul Petersen