A procession of union and freelance stagehands, IATSE Local 11 union leadership, local venue principals and event production companies, united as the Massachusetts Live Events Coalition, began their trek from the Citizens Bank Opera House, and pushed their cases – typically used to transport various staging equipment – down Tremont Street to the Boch Center Wang Theatre. The march is the latest visibility in a series of actions aimed at raising awareness for the Live Events industry, which remains devastated from COVID-19.
The We Make Events Coalition is calling on Congress, which controversially remains on hiatus during the 3rd most massive unemployment crisis in our nation’s history, to:
- Pass the RESTART Act, to provide support and relief for venues and production companies of all sizes.
- Extend full Pandemic Unemployment Assistance — including the extra $600 weekly, from the CARES ACT — which expired in August despite the Live Events industry remaining at 96% unemployment nationwide.
See what the press is saying about the action: