IATSE averts strike, reaches tentative deal with Broadway League, Disney Theatrical
NEW YORK -- With Hollywood shut down due to a work stoppage, another entertainment union has narrowly avoided going on strike.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, or IATSE, had begun voting on a strike authorization on Wednesday, but it reached a tentative contract agreement with the Broadway League and Disney Theatrical Productions on Thursday morning, the sides announced.
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About 1,500 stagehands, hair and makeup artists and wardrobe personnel under the so-called "Pink Contract" would have been impacted.
Pink Contract workers are employed directly by the productions and work on Broadway shows for out-of-town tryouts and tours.
"These are the people who run so many vital backstage functions and without them there is no show," a representative said.
The agreement still needs to be ratified.
The bargainers say they will inform their members about the agreement in the coming days.