The 52nd Seattle International Film Festival kicks off Thursday with the opening night screening of communist director Boots Riley’s I Love Boosters, a pro-union, anti-capitalist satire about a group of working-class hustlers struggling to survive in the modern American hellscape. Awkwardly, at the same time, the SIFF Cinema Workers Union (SCWU) say that SIFF needs to “do better for the workers.” 

They’re now working without a contract (it expired April 23rd, and workers declined to extend it, arguing it was a “ploy” to prevent them from picketing during the festival), and say that new management is less willing to compromise on key issues like pay. SIFF says it offered to extend the contract “in anticipation of reduced capacity during the annual Festival.” They won’t meet at the bargaining table again until after the festival ends on May 17.

SIFF and the union have been in bargaining since January, and the nonprofit has provided only one wage proposal, with no concessions. In a statement posted on their Instagram, the union said management has proposed reducing minimum staffing levels by half, halving employee sick hours, cutting pay for shift leads, and having the ability to cut staff hours on shorter notice. Management has also proposed “locking wages for the next three years with no yearly adjustments.” Workers say by the time it expires, the minimum wage will rise above what they’re currently making. The statement called on “patrons, fans, and supporters of SIFF” to contact leadership letting them know they stand with the workers. 

In response to the union’s post, SIFF issued a statement that said it valued cinema staff and had been working in good faith on a new contract.

Adrienne Tippins, chair of the SCWU, said the offer to extend the contract through the festival was not a serious one, saying they “would have gained absolutely nothing from accepting this ‘offer.’” 

“Extending our contract when the organization is actively avoiding the conversation surrounding pay and medical leave and a number of other factors that really get heightened around the festival?” Tippins said. “It’s a continued way of kicking the can down the road. They have kicked the can further.”

The union has previously taken action during the festival. In 2022, some walked out on the final day of the first in-person festival after the pandemic to protest their shifts being unexpectedly cut at the now-closed Egyptian. Tippins said they’re pamphleting this year, calling on people to reach out to the Film Center (filmcenter@siff.net) and Box Office (boxoffice@siff.net) to “let leadership know this is unreasonable.” 

“[The pamphlets have] been really well-received by the public, with a lot of good conversations being held,” Tippins said. “I think the public appreciates a little bit more transparency on how the organization intends to work with its union.”

The union has also dusted off a GoFundMe, which primarily goes toward legal fees. 

The union says a strong contract that creates more stability for staff is critical to the future of SIFF. Adam Plesser, the financial officer of the SCWU, said “SIFF’s proposed cuts to wages, benefits, and hours would leave a large number of SCWU members in financial desperation… If we conceded to SIFF’s proposals, I think an alarming number of SCWU members would need to find another job and possibly leave SIFF.”

Tippins says they may take other actions during the festival and that nothing is currently off the table, but they’re hoping that management will come back to bargaining as they did last time, in 2024.

“We did have our first contract in that period, so there was a renewed sense of hope that the organization was going to work fairly with its union,” Tippins said. “Since then leadership has changed and there seems to be less willingness, at this point, to make compromises.” 

Staff know SIFF had a challenging year, they were there. But the nonprofit’s proposal and delay in bargaining are unacceptable to the union. Having a front row seat to the bargaining process has brought into focus how, in their eyes, SIFF isn’t putting its purported values about supporting unions into practice.

“There have been conversations where I’ve heard people say, ‘I support unions, I believe in unions,’” Tippins said. “And then when it comes to compromising with the union that’s in your house, it doesn’t quite follow through.”