Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 3, 2017)
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS | February 3, 2017 | PAGE 5 Rose Etta Venetucci first woman business rep at IATSE Local 28 work business confer- A native of Los ences, and concerts in are- Angeles, Venetucci nas and outdoor venues moved north to study throughout the Portland theater at Portland metro area and Southwest State University. She Washington. was introduced to Venetucci, 52, has been Local 28 while work- with the union since 1990. ing as a stagehand at She had just completed the university’s Lin- her first three-year term as coln Hall. The theater Rose Etta president when the busi- was run by union Venetucci ness rep job opened, and member Chris Her- she was encouraged to run. rick. Venetucci has held posts as an “He raised us IATSE and en- Executive Board member, vice sured we learned our craft on the president, and chair of the Edu- job site. On big shows he would cation and Membership com- bring in a union crew to work mittees, and she helped plan the side-by-side with us. I hand-de- local’s 100-year anniversary livered my application to join party in 1995. the union,” she said. Venetucci worked as a theater electrician. was very active Identity Theft Issues Can Be Devastating in the union She until 2005, when a What will you do? Who will you call? How will you automobile accident resulted in handle the cost? What are your legal rights? a partial disability. She disap- peared for five years. “Why did I come back? I was asked,” she said. Kroll Advisory & IDShield In 2010, then-business rep 360-213-8597 Radar Bateman offered her an T. J. Holder office job to fill a vacancy. She Don’t Face This Alone. Call Today did some dispatching and as- sisted Bateman where needed. http://ls-info.com/res/113/404/jholder93 Rose Etta Venetucci has been elected business representative of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 28. It is the only full-time post at the union, and Venetucci is the first woman to hold the job in the local’s 122- year history. She succeeds Roger Gayton II, who did not seek re-election. IATSE Local 28 represents about 400 stage (members and extras), wardrobe, and allied craft workers. They work shows in Portland at the Keller Audito- rium, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Moda Center, Memorial Coliseum, and Newmark and Winningstad theaters. They also YOUR SOLUTION Three years later she ran for president. President Venetucci reached out to members, asking them to volunteer at least once a year in any event they wanted — whether it was to support Local 28 or some community group. “Being a union member has rights and responsibilities, and being active is fun and reward- ing,” she said. Local 28 members stepped up. Their union banner can be seen at most rallies, marches and protests; the local partici- pated for the first time in the Northwest Oregon Labor Coun- cil’s Muscular Dystrophy “La- bor Bowl” fundraiser; during last November’s election, Local 28 sponsored two phone bank nights — and 68 percent of its members voted in the election. The union launched a “Young Workers Committee” for mem- bers ages 18 to 35. The group holds regular gatherings, with an open invitation to the entire labor community. And atten- dance at union meetings contin- ues to grow. “The most important part is showing the importance of the work and make it fun,” Vene- tucci said. In addition to her duties as business rep, Venetucci sits on the Executive Board of the Northwest Oregon Labor Coun- cil, representing the amusement trades section for the Oregon Theatrical Federation. She also serves on the Oregon AFL-CIO Committee on Political Educa- tion (COPE) board. “I am inspired by many of my brothers and sisters who have supported, shared, and educated me,” Venetucci said. “I hope to pay it forward, and encourage all my brothers and sisters to get active.” In other IATSE Local 28 election results: Rhiannon Ro- driguez-Betts was elected pres- ident; Gayton was elected vice president; Jay Spottswood was elected recording secretary; and Phillip Timmons was elected fi- nancial secretary/treasurer. Ex- ecutive Board members are Katherine Andrews, Kathryn Mura, Mike Pratt, and Stephanie Cook. Give your sweetheart the gift of Not corporate dentistry. All offices are independently owned, with Union Represented Staff Beaverton 503.914.4003 Longview 360.639.3388 Chehalis 360.639.3377 Milwaukie 503.821.0089 Eugene/Springfield - 541.622.0602 Salem 503.914.4007 Gresham 503.914.4005 Salmon Creek 360.639.3399 Hillsboro 503.719.6452 Southern Oregon Soon! g 541.227.6966 Comin For all patients, as long as the patient keeps 6 month checkup appointments Marysville - 360.488.4400 Western Washington Monroe - 360.639.3300 Arlington - 360.282.0803 Mount Vernon - 360.639.3311 Auburn - 253.220.4104 Olympia - 360.639.3322 Bellevue - 425.201.0600 Poulsbo - 360.639.3344 Bellingham - 360.282.0804 Puyallup - 253.220.4109 Bonney Lake - 253.220.4105 Redmond - 425.249.3415 Bothell - 425.201.1703 Renton - 425.249.3416 Carnation - 425.201.1934 SeaTac - 206.432.4706 Everett - 425.201.4343 Seattle - 206.432.4707 Federal Way - 253.220.4106 g Gig Harbor - 206-456-5144 C S o o m on in ! Sequim - 360.639.3355 Shoreline - 206.432.4708 Issaquah - 425.201.4411 Silverdale - 360.639.3366 Kent - 253.220.4107 Snohomish - 425.577.6755 Lakewood - 253.220.4108 Tacoma - 253.220.4110 Lynnwood - 425.201.4422 Maple Valley - 425.201.4433 Tukwila - 425.577.6775 Eastern Washington Ellensburg - 509.361.5500 Kennewick - 509.361.5511 Moses Lake - 509.361.5522 Pasco - 509.361.5533 Spokane - 509.361.5544 Spokane (North) - 509.361.5566 Spokane Valley - 509.361.5577 Wenatchee - 509.361.5588 Yakima - 509.361.5599 August 26, 2017 (Save the date)
