The island nation's most famous sons performed in concert, another stop on their massive world tour. Like so many other traveling bands, U2 brought along their film crew to tape the undertaking.
They'll make money on the front end, with concert tickets, and then they'll make even more on the back end with a movie that savvy television network executives will snap up.
But where's the cut of the action for the union men?
Bono et al. brought along the same crew that's been following on their heels, filming the action. As it turns out, they aren't union men. Canada's International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees picketed the Winnipeg concert in protest.
Nothing short of union busting said Matthew D. Loeb of IATSE. Sure, they used union help for all the rest of the business, but it's union busting to bring in so much as one employee who's not in the union.
Sounds like a big fuss over nothing, doesn't it. That's because it is.
Unions were necessary in James Connolly's day, when the workers were slaves. Now the unions are pricing themselves out of business and becoming increasingly irrelevant. Their members are seen as slaves to the union bosses, and workers aren't flocking to sign on these days.
Mr. Loeb is looking for publicity where it's most likely to be found, at a performance by a major rock band. He's trying to drum up outrage, but no one's buying.
The film crew has nothing to do with IATSE. Their function is entirely separate from setting up and knocking down the stage, performing or even switching out guitar strings.
To lodge a claim of union busting in this instance makes Mr. Loeb look silly and a bit childish. It's not the best face to put on the union movement when that movement is hurting.
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