Repertory movie theater unionization drives have been successful in Cambridge and Somerville, but one in Brookline is not going smoothly.
Legal representation for the Coolidge Corner Theater filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board on June 3 alleging that the Coolidge Corner Theater Union, which is negotiating a contract on behalf of the projectionists and floor staff of the theater, is refusing to bargain in good faith.
It’s a recent development in a negotiation that has been ongoing since the theater workforce announced its intention more than two years ago to unionize with United Auto Workers Local 1596. The announcement came shortly after the theater built a $14 million, 14,000-square-foot addition. As WBUR reported in 2024, staff seek equitable wages, benefits and shift scheduling protocol that didn’t leave them guessing when they’d work next.
The board’s allegation, described in the filing submitted to NLRB, is that the union misrepresented the terms of the theater’s recent “last, best and final” contract offer to its membership. The paperwork, provided to the Independent by the theater’s executive director and chief executive, Beth Gilligan, mentions contract language related to staffing minimums as one example of the alleged misrepresentation.
The allegation comes at a critical moment in the standoff. The union membership voted in March to approve a strike, if deemed necessary. And 67 percent of its membership rejected the recent contract offer at the end of May on the grounds that the offer failed to satisfactorily address key issues of wages and scheduling.
If the two sides can’t find a path forward, a strike could be in the works.
It’s an acrimonious state of affairs for a process that began in a relatively robust spirit of compromise, with the board voluntarily recognizing its workers right to form a union back in 2024. After more than a year of stalled or unsatisfactory negotiations, the goodwill seems to have soured.
At the end of 2025 the board tried to regulate the right of theater staff to wear union buttons, a right protected under federal labor law. The attempt came around the same time the CCTU was contacting high-level donors to ask them to suspend giving until an interim resolution was reached in negotiations, part of a “Drop the Donation” campaign.
The union’s campaign ultimately resulted in interim wage increases. It also drew the ire of at least one board member, who declined the invitation to temporarily suspend donations and wrote in reply: “By far, the worst aspect of the Coolidge Corner Theater experience is the lazy and surly staff. You’re already overpaid and we will not be delaying our financial support.” The note goes on to call the staff “part-time layabouts” and ends with the closer: “You guys really suck.”
The as yet unidentified board member was asked to leave or was removed from their position by the end of January. Despite the removal, the incident left staff with deeper questions about the level of seriousness that the board was bringing to the negotiating table.
Workers at the Brookline theater don’t need to look far for examples of successful union drives at local theaters. In 2003 projectionists at the Somerville Theatre organized to demand improvement in wages and working conditions, joining IATSE Local 182 and ultimately winning a better contract.
In 2018, workers at Apple Cinemas in Cambridge, including box office employees, ushers, concession staff, projectionists and assistant managers, organized with United Food and Commercial Workers International Union Local 1445 – an example that should be of particular interest to the CCTU because the bargaining unit consists of floor staff alongside projectionists.
Will the board’s decision to file the latest complaint with the NLRB hasten the announcement of a strike date? Union spokesperson Ginny Hamlin said membership remains “hopeful” about getting back to the negotiating table, and provided the following comment.
“We’re still holding out for a few key items to the contract: regarding wages and benefits, new hires and lowest-paid employees have to wait nine months in order to see the benefits from the proposed annual pay increase laid out in the Coolidge’s contract. Projectionists still currently have no protection for lost shifts due to programming changes, and supervisor (shift lead) pay increase is currently only addressed by addition into the tip pool, which will in turn decrease take-home pay for everyone.”
About The Author
