IATSE Strikes at Atlantic Theater Company: Current Shows are Postponed

In an Off-Broadway first, Negotiations between IATSE and Off-Broadway's Atlantic Theater Company have broken down, prompting crew members to go on strike beginning January 12.

According to a statement for IATSE: "The strike follows several months of negotiations after the Atlantic crew voted nearly unanimously to unionize with IATSE in February 2024. Despite months of efforts and good-faith proposals from the union, management has consistently stalled progress and made unilateral demands on working conditions. The union has filed unfair labor practice charges against Atlantic Theater surrounding many matters that have arisen during that time."

The parties recently met on January 10 and 12. On January 12, the Atlantic Theater Company management demanded several provisions before continuing its further obligations to bargain with the union. The union initially countered the proposal, upon which management indicated they were not willing to move off their demands in full. The union says it continues to await a counter-proposal from the Atlantic.

"Atlantic Theater's refusal to bargain fairly has left the crew no choice but to strike," says IATSE international president Matthew D. Loeb. "These workers deserve the same dignity, respect, and protections as everyone else in New York's entertainment community -- whether they work in front of or behind the curtain, on or off Broadway. Shame on them for not providing healthcare coverage to all their employees. We are prepared to resume negotiations as soon as Atlantic Theater is ready to bargain in good faith."

In a statement, Atlantic says, "Atlantic has been working together diligently with IATSE for months to create a fair contract for our crew workers, and we have offered a good faith agreement with a nearly 20% increase in wages and other benefits. Recognizing how long a first contract can take, Atlantic offered two interim agreements over the past two months that included 13% increases in wages and health, effectively immediately in return for a no-strike agreement while we continue to bargain in good faith. Both of these offers were ignored."

Actors' Equity Association has expressed its solidarity with IATSE: "Production workers at Atlantic Theater Company represented by IATSE voted unanimously yesterday to authorize a strike should they not come to an agreement on a fair contract with Atlantic Theater Company by this afternoon. That deadline has passed, and the crew is now on strike, affecting shows at both the Linda Gross Theater and Atlantic Stage 2. Actors' Equity Association stands in solidarity with these workers, and there was an Equity presence at today's picket lines. We have full faith that IATSE is negotiating terms that are fair and appropriate for their members, and we look forward to the shows resuming when an agreement has been reached."

The Atlantic's current productions, Grief Camp, presented at the Linda Gross Theater, and I'm Assuming You Know David Greenspan, have been indefinitely postponed.