Blacklisted Theater TD Help

[Ryan Kelly]

Hello all,
Going to throw a ton of personal information at you very quickly.
Graduated a year ago (almost exactly) Ended up doing odd gigs for this theater, showed my worth and quickly rose to Technical Director.

I am contracted to work 20 hours a week, but usually go home at 3am daily during tech weeks (our turn around is usually 3-4 days and we put a show up every month, usually a 2-3 week run per show) I work, on average, 30-35hrs, aside from the 65+ hour tech weeks.

My contract is up and aside from bringing a massive to-do list and a very precise time card I kept documenting my weekly hours, i'd also like to bring a very important piece of information to the table, problem is, I can't find it.

This theater has had 5 TDs in its 5 year existence, and they've burned every vendor they have dealt with. I was talking to an old TD and they told me that the theater is on a blacklist he found somewhere in the bowels of the internet. Does such a list exist? If so, i'd like to show them, kind of an incentive to say "guys, i'm willing to work with you, not many people are, I can make this theater the most efficient blah blah blah etc.

I want to love this theater, the space is great and they keep bringing in heavy hitting talent. HOWEVER, I will not continue to work on a part time status killing myself for them and passing up other opportunities, or furthering my education.

 

[SteveB]

I'm confused.

Are you saying they pay you for 20 hours yet you work 30-35, sometimes as many as 65 per week ?. Are they paying you for the extra hours ? If you are not being payed for the extra time worked, that is typically in violation of many state labor laws, as BTW and if that's what they are doing.

Or is it that they've mis-classified you as a part time employee when in reality you work full time and would rather be only doing the 20 hours, to be free to do outside work the rest of the week ?.

It's not uncommon for a business to classify it's employees as part-time, then pay them to work additional hours. Typically (though probably not in your case) it's to avoid having to provide medical or other benefits given to a full time employee . Walmart, Target and many others are notorious for this, as they can have a lot of part-timers with no overhead for medical and other benefits.

 

[PeteEngel]

If they aren't paying you for the hours worked, then no amount of experience is worth your time and trouble. It seems to me that they are not just burning all of the vendors...

 

[len]

There's no such thing as a "master blacklist." Rental companies, promoters, etc., will do business with your space if they want, or they won't. If I were a rental shop and had an issue with a customer, I might continue to rent to them, but it would be cash only if they become a problem. It depends on a number of factors.

But if you're working and not getting paid, that needs to stop.

 

[josh88]

You want find a list anywhere, it's not on the internet, it's on a wall somewhere and in the minds of the people they screw over. Sounds like they have just taken advantage of your predecessors and they didn't want to take it. Don't give them free labor unless you're volunteering out of the goodness of your heart.


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[StradivariusBone]

http://auditionupdate.com/gigandtell.php is the closest thing I've ever seen online to what you're describing, but it's mostly actors lauding and/or deriding regional theatres. Also, if you're hourly and not getting paid for the hours you work, then you're not hourly. Why did the other TD's leave?

 

[SteveB]

The design and painting union, United Scenic Artists - Local 829, has a list of "troublesome" employers. They publish it in their monthly newsletter.

If you know somebody that has an issue, they can check it for you. Or PM me with the theaters name and I'll look at the last issue.

 

[Ryan Kelly]

They were on the AuditionUpdate list, not surprisingly they had a few one star reviews back from when the theater was in trouble.

To further explain my situation, I'm salary w4 part time, not hourly.
Here is the part of my contract describing hours word for word


"Technical Director is expected to work approximately 20 hours per week, however hours may vary from week to week depending on the technical needs during each work week."

To me, that says: we can work you however long we want and not compensate you further.

SteveB, PM sent

 

[techieman33]

They were on the AuditionUpdate list, not surprisingly they had a few one star reviews back from when the theater was in trouble.

To further explain my situation, I'm salary w4 part time, not hourly.
Here is the part of my contract describing hours word for word


"Technical Director is expected to work approximately 20 hours per week, however hours may vary from week to week depending on the technical needs during each work week."

To me, that says: we can work you however long we want and not compensate you further.

SteveB, PM sent

I would have walked out a long time ago if they were pulling that crap. Working 25 or 30 hours some weeks would be ok, but even then I'd expect them to give me some extra time off on slow weeks to make up for it. No way in hell would I work 3x the expected hours in the contract and not be well compensated for it.

 

[SteveB]

Ryan

As per your PM, as a request to not publicly name the theater, and as a reply for all.

I checked the USA 829 list and your theater is not on it, not that this means anything.

You are certainly working too many hours for the job description of 20 hours per week, even though they indicate additional hours may be required. And since you are salaried it's a tough situation to be in. Asking you to work 65 hours in a week, when they consider you part time is typical management BS, but hard to fight.

You could contact the State of Connecticut Department of Labor for advice and to determine the state law as it pertains to you. It's certainly possible that Conn. is similar to NY in that by the time you've hit 50 hours or so, you could be below the state hourly minimum and they would need to be paying you overtime. The theater may attempt to classify as exempt based on your title of TD, but being that you are often times the ONLY employee and that you are doing all the work required were there to be actual "employees" the state will require you to be considered an hourly employee.

On the other hand, this seems like a common working condition at this theater and the reason they have been through so many so-called TD's prior to you. Thus you have to weigh the desire to "make it right" against what is essentially a badly managed and will always be a badly managed facility. That may never change and they may simply fire you if they perceive you are making waves.

You can also chalk it up to experience. I can well recall many gigs, promoters and theaters that owe me money. I was young and it was all a learning experience. The longer you stick it out without being fired, the better it looks on your resume. Someday somebody may say "You spent a year at XX Theater ?, jeez, that's amazing" and hire you based on percieved patience.

Tough situation in the mean time.

 

[Ryan Kelly]

Thank you for your well thought out reply. Ours is a very niche business and I find it very comforting that mine is not a unique situation. Ill have to research CT labor law. I'll update you all if my situation changes.

 

[Calc]

My two cents: I don't know the exact situation so take all of this with a grain of salt, but this is what it looks like to me from what I've heard.

Nonprofit: I know I would be willing to tolerate a bit more from a nonprofit community theater. Possibly count some of it as donated time, but see if they can get you other volunteers to take some of the workload. You'll end up being more of a TD by organizing and managing others rather than doing the gruntwork, which also looks good on resumes.

Business (Profitable): Current situation is unacceptable. Bring them your concerns. If they don't address them, let your contract expire and walk. They should be realizing by now that they're burning through TD's, and something has to change. If they're determined to burn through people until they're used up, no sense letting it be you. That's untenable long-term anyway, and it sounds like the vendors have already caught on. Unless they turn it around quickly the vendor opinion will start to leak out to the general public, and the ship will sink pretty quickly. Don't go down with it, or let their reputation rub off on you.

Business (Unprofitable): Is this the new place in town can't pay the bills as-is, and this is the plan until they can get themselves established? Stay if you'd like to hang around long-term. Make sure they have a plan to turn the place profitable, and to get you paid properly for your work. If there's no realistic plan to turn things around, start looking for another job. As much as we'd all like every theatre company to succeed, they don't all make it.

 

[Ryan Kelly]

This is a nonprofit theater yes, but it is run and treated like a business, they've created this false identity of being the most professional theater in the northeast to the press, but internally, it's a mess. Burning your volunteers by overworking them, chastising them, taking advantage of good natured people, bounced checks, failing infrastructure, minimal fundraising despite it being located in a very wealthy area, a do nothing board of directors. I know on several occasions they've hammered me into presenting myself as a professional, which I try to do ANYWAY outside of work, but it got to a point of ridiculousness, its a paper tiger if you know what I mean. All show and very little else.

My point is, I can only be as good as the tools at my disposal, and the infrastructure that has been handed over to me, and MOST importantly, the time allotted with which to organize and run this facility. I've burned through favor after personal favor, and i've kind of found myself stuck.

The only saving grace of this place is the talent they import from Manhattan. But even that is starting to ware thin with the audience.

Thank you very much for your input, I take it with gratitude

 

[themuzicman]

This is a nonprofit theater yes, but it is run and treated like a business, they've created this false identity of being the most professional theater in the northeast to the press, but internally, it's a mess.

A nonprofit isn't a charity, it is still a business - albeit one that functions different from a for-profit business. You shouldn't be donating your time to them. I work for a non-profit as well, but they still pay everyone a living wage. You're either a full time staff member (with overtime compensation, vacation pay, health benefits, etc.) or you are an hourly freelance worker. There is no inbetween.

Depending on how much your salary is, you may (and probably are) entitled to hourly overtime pay. I know in certain states in the Northeast (NY, MA) if you are salaried under a certain amount, you are entitled to overtime for every hour worked over 40. I know in MA the cutoff was $500.

My point is, I can only be as good as the tools at my disposal, and the infrastructure that has been handed over to me, and MOST importantly, the time allotted with which to organize and run this facility. I've burned through favor after personal favor, and i've kind of found myself stuck.

So what you're saying is that you are destroying your reputation on behalf of an employer. That is very foolish. If the infrastructure is dangerous and management won't fix it, file a complaint to OSHA. If you find yourself stuck, leave. It's not worth being abused by an employer like this.

 

[SteveB]

I work for a non-profit as well, but they still pay everyone a living wage. You're either a full time staff member (with overtime compensation, vacation pay, health benefits, etc.) or you are an hourly freelance worker. There is no inbetween.

.

It's not as clear cut as you state. A TD could easily be considered a salaried exempt employee and not be eligible for OT. If the business does more then $500,000 in interstate commerce, then the Federal Fair Labor Standards act would apply. If not, then State of Conn. Labor laws apply. Typically to be considered non-exempt and eligible for OT, the employee must meet certain conditions (that vary from federal and state to state), including doing the same functions as a hired employee the TD supervises, doesn't have the right to hire/fire, etc... In a long list of conditions.

As well, non-profits do not fall under the federal act, but as to state law ?, it's a very grey area.


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[Pie4Weebl]

I just don't understand how someone could be considered both salaried and part time...

 

[gafftaper]

So when you total your pay for the year and divide it by the number of hours you put in, how much are you getting paid? Is it minimum wage?

My young friend there is a difference between working hard to get established in the industry and being used. You are being used and abused. I would go to them, show them your hours and salary, and say you've had 5 TD's in 5 years and this is why. I would love to continue to work here but I won't do it under these potentially illegal conditions. Make me a reasonable offer.

 

[Footer]

My young friend there is a difference between working hard to get established in the industry and being used. You are being used and abused. I would go to them, show them your hours and salary, and say you've had 5 TD's in 5 years and this is why. I would love to continue to work here but I won't do it under these potentially illegal conditions. Make me a reasonable offer.

...And they will post the job on offstagejobs and replace him just like they did the year before. Sometimes the powers that be just don't care. There are plenty of jobs like this out there. I can think of two just in my area. If mediocrity is what is asked for... give it to them. If they are paying you for 20 hours... work those 20 then start cutting from the show. Labor cost is something that is rarely factored in at this level. When I had the lower paying salaried gig I gave them just enough to get by... and worked other gigs to pay my rent. They could not afford me for what I was worth so they did not get it. I routinly told designers "I'm going to get your set to X, your responsible for anything beyond that". If it means you have to tell the SM you won't be at tech because you need to do notes... so be it. Hold them to what they agreed to. The will either fire you OR pay you more. Either way, your not getting screwed.

 

[gafftaper]

I've been used enough that I'm at the point of being comfortable saying pay me what I'm worth or I'm leaving. But @Footer 's approach is probably better for someone starting out.

 

[SteveB]

I just don't understand how someone could be considered both salaried and part time...

He's not part time. The theatre just states that "normal" work hours should be 20 hrs. Then when you buy that line and look at the weekly salary it doesn't seem so bad. Then it turns into 40-60 hrs typically and as a result of being an exempt position, you get screwed.


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