AZ is a Right to Work state where labor unions (outside of those associated with government agencies/contractors, Teamsters and such) are almost powerless.

AZ had Union Projectionists up until the early-mid 1980s, when they were kicked out. Theaters claimed that there was no need for Union Projectionists due to the advent of automation/platters, safety film and Xenon bulbs.

There was a lot of nasty stuff that went on, and there was much media coverage. Theaters accused Projectionists of being lazy and featherbedding. I have also heard from some of the old Union members that there were political/racial factions within the Union, as well as some truth in the theaters accustations. There were also reports of Projectionists causing physical damage to "booths" as retaliation for being laid-off. Not to mention labor strikes and failed negotiations that were covered by the news-media.

Since AZ is a Right to Work State, it is a fact that a dishwasher or ditchdigger can earn just as much as a skilled technician/tradescraftsman!

Personally, I definately believe that having Union Projectionists would be one way of insuring quality presentations and upkeep of equipment. It would also be a means of ensuring fair and proper wages. But I also believe that if Unions have a comeback, it would be in the best interest of the Unions to police themselves to insure that the past does not repeat itself. I know that many of those Union Projectionists were skilled technicians. I had the opportunity to watch some of them in action, and remember them bustin ass! They deserved respect for their level of knowlege and expertise!

Likewise, the same with non-union.

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I think this is also an example of where; what would work in one location may not work in another, ie: in a large city a union booth would be perfered, while in a rural area it may not work out because theaters are very small and run on a shoestring budget.

Personally, I feel there is a place for a union projectionist at most theaters, but that person *can not* just be a threader-upper, regardless of how good they are. He/she must also be able to fix most "everyday" problems without having to call in outside service. For example, these are the things I think a projectionist today should be able to handle themselves:

Replacing a xenen bulb and aligning it so there are no visible hot spots;

Advising management that a film being played is in an unusual ratio (like 1.33) and, if management OK's it, calculating the correct lens to project it correctly on the existing screen (and file a aperture plate);

Change any part (on the outside of the projector gear case) like the motor, belts, shutter, sprockets, zipper and practically any platter or lamphouse part.

Run Dolby tone and set levels correctly (esp. after exciter lamp changes) Run other audio test loops (buzz track, surround test, etc.)

Know what to look for while running the 35PA image test film (cropping, jitter/weave, uniformity of screen focus, ghosting, etc.)

Know simple electronics/electricty stuff like ohms law, using a multimeter, an oscilloscope, real-time analyzer, light meter, etc. They don't have to be an expert with this equipment, but should be able to operate them enough to understand what's going on, ie: know just by looking at an RTA that the EQ way off.

Surfing the internet one day I learned of the IATSE union and found my local. I sent the president of the local an email and told him I was interested in what the Union had to offer to me. He gave me a relief operator's position at a Megaplex nearby. The senior operator had been a projectionist for over 20 years. Needless to say I learned a lot from him. After working with him for about 8 months I realized what a poor operation the other theater had. The most memorable thing my senior operator told me was he did it because he loved putting on the show. I greatly admired that about him. I learned more about being a projectionist my first day working with him than I ever did in all my previous days at the Regal theater.

The senior projectionist showed me the inner workings of projectors, some maintenance, explained to me about sound systems, and much more. After all, he himself completed much of the installation of all the equipment when the theater opened. At Regal, I would have been fired if I was found opening up one of the projectors even out of curiosity. We had a contracted company do any maintenance necessary. Of course, I only saw them twice in all the time I worked there. Automations were faulty, platters were falling apart, many pieces did not work, sound systems were consistently failing or out of alignment...all at a complex just UNDER a year old. Both times a technician came, EVERY projector had something wrong with it. Every single one. Not only were employees uneducated on how to fix them, even if they were educated enough, they were not allowed. Believe me, I begged the GM to let me fix some of the problems, but he refused. Some were so bad, I just fixed them anyway. I also saw over three dozen badly scratched prints in the year I worked there. And all prints were covered in dirt and dust by the time they left.

To give you an idea of the experience level of some of the employees, I present this example. We always ran soundtrack up (I showed them Kodak's recommendation to run soundtrack down--they didn't care). Anyway, someone accidentally threaded the film onto the takeup platter soundtrack down. The projectionist generally considered most knowledgeable didn't know what to do. They actually picked up the print and flipped it around so the soundtrack was on top again. Well, as (I hope) all of you know, the spiral pattern of the print cannot be reversed or you will get centerfeed wraps (or maybe you don't know because you aren't stupid enough to flip a print to get the soundtrack on the desired side). Nuff said?

The union job paid about 150% more than what the non-union job did. I believe the union helped keep that rate of pay. I also believe, projectionists with 20+ years of experience would be far and few if it weren't for decent paying projectionist positions. Because the company I work for decided to cut back union hours, I lost my job with one of the greatest teachers I will ever work with. And as of a few months ago, they cut his hours so much he couldn't afford to work there anymore. Now managers run the booth. I wonder what will happen when their soundtrack gets reversed.

I guess I really don't care if projectionists are union or non-union. I support the local IATSE union because I believe it has produced some of the finest projectionists in the country and helped to secure good paying jobs for them so they could afford to stay 20+ years. The projectionist I am working with now has been with the union for over 30 years. You just don't find that type of experience for starving wages. At least not for long.

But in a time where theater chains are highly dependent on the Manager/Projectionist hybrid, I see professional projectionists becoming extinct. I'd like to see the title of a Projectionist become a career again. Something you can stay with and actually pay the rent doing. I'd do that job. I'd do that job and learn it well. Why? Because I love putting on the show.

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Reviewing the decision against Regal, I was struck by how stilted and formalized the arguments were, and how the core problem was only partly addressed. Using this as an example, I'll say that designating a booth job as a management function within a complex of more than six screens is a fiction, and not only a mere fiction, but an out-and-out lie.

I've run as the manager/operator of six-plexes and even in light business this is about as much as a manager can handle while still performing true management duties, and even that is only possible with regular outside tech support. "Management" is a title that businesses love because managers are forbidden by law from forming or joining unions. A manager/projectionist has to take whatever is dished out and say "Thank you sir, may I have more?" where an "usher b" can unionize if he or she has the balls.

The Regal decision did note that there had been no technological advances in recent years that would change the status of the job to a management function. What would have been even more interesting would have been if the NLRB had suggested that even "management" functions at the theatre level were no longer true management, thus opening the door to complete unionization of some theatres that are micro-managed from the corporate office.

The problems, as we all know, are lack of training, lack of incentives for growth and continued employment, and lack of decent wages and living conditions. Unions tried to address those problems but failed. The reasons were partly failure to bargain in good faith, as evidenced by some operators getting wages far above what the job called for, and failure to train and maintain an internal set of presentation and booth standards, which caused owners to become dissillusioned with the entire concept of unions.

While the Regal decison would seem to open the way to a resurrgance of the unions, I fear all it will do is shorten the timeline for digital cinema. In the short term, the best that circuits such as Regal can do is contract out the booth to an independent company. Theatres already commonly contract out janitorial services, and contracting out the booth would be little different. Contractors that charged excessive rates would find themselves in the same situation as janitorial contractors that overcharged. Part of the terms of contract could include presentation standards that would have to be met. This type of solution is not as cheap as hiring off the street, but the cost containment cap makes it a better option for the company than unions, even if the intial increase is double what is currently being paid.