BEVERLY — The North Shore Music Theatre stagehands ended their strike for livable wages and resumed work Thursday night, a day after walking out on the job.
After reaching a new interim agreement with theatre management that ensures a “well-deserved” wage increase for production staff, the stage crew returned to work, according to The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 11, the union representing the theatre’s employees.
This agreement came a day after the strike began, which forced the cancellation of Wednesday’s opening night performance of “Mamma Mia!”
“I’m thrilled to go back to work tonight to the job that I love, knowing my expertise is recognized and respected,” said Emily O’Sullivan, props department head and interim assistant technical director at North Shore Music Theatre.
According to the union, the North Shore Music Theatre crew was being paid 60 percent less than the industry area average. With the new agreement, theatre employees will now be receiving wages starting at $18 per hour. The union credited the support it received from the Actor’s Equity and the American Federation of Musicians, which helped it to secure a wage increase under the new agreement.
North Shore Music Theatre owner Bill Hanney told the Boston Globe Wednesday night that the math, in terms of the union’s claims about theatre workers making 60 percent less than the industry average in the area, didn’t add up; he described the NSMT as a “stepping stone,” and not on par with the Broadway rates that the union was asking for.
IATSE Local 11 is a part of a nationwide movement of IATSE members working in theater, film, television, and related crafts who declared this past weekend that they were prepared to strike.
Hannah Chadwick can be reached at [email protected].
