IATSE Local 15 (Stagehands, AV, FOH Staff) held a rally outside the Hyatt Regency today to protest Encore AV’s repeated failure to bargain a fair contract

If anyone was wondering why there was a giant nasty inflatable rat outside the Hyatt Regency today, it’s because the in-house A/V provider is a generally terrible employer and their unionized workforce has been working without a contract for over 9 months now–mostly due to Encore’s refusal to raise pay. Encore is owned by Blackstone, a billionaire scale venture capital firm. IATSE Local 15 representatives, elected leaders, and stewards were joined by workers directly affected by the protracted contract negotiations, as well as local labor leaders from the Washington State Labor Council, MLK Labor, the IBEW, as well as City Council members Teresa Mosqueda and Alexsis Mercedes Rinck.