Projectionist’s wages,
hours of work clarified

Dear Editor:

‘Vhis letter is to clarify some inaccuracies or Inisconceptions
in your recent interview with me regarding che projectionists”
lockout by Famous Players (Dee. 16 News).

Fam not the only projectionist at the Esplanade theatre ner
did T sav fat least not in the same sentence) that I worked 90
hours a week and 365 days a year,

As J recall what [did say or (at feast nieant to say) in Iwo
separate sentences wes thar projectionists work 305 days a year.
And then later in Gur conversation: that in the last week chat |
had worked at the Esplanade theatre sever: 13-hour shitts (91
hours).

T had told Ms. (Katharine) Hamer that The Province had
erroneously printed in their recent article about our labour dis-
pute that projectionists only work 4% hours per shift.

Also Ms. Hamer reported that projectionists make $33.27
an hour which she then compares with $14 in other provinces.

First of all, Ms. Hamer (and Famous Players, through the
media) is comparing the top wage in B.C. with the lowest wage
in other provinces and these companies have already recently
put these employees through unseasonable labour disputes and
unfair bargaining to achieve this.

Secondly, T dan’t make $33.27. The B.C. prajectionists
wage scale goes from als to $38 and that $38 wage was
imposed arbitrarily by Famous Players when the Silver C ity
megaplexes opened.

Question: Why would Famous Players impose this wage one
year and then try to retract it the next?

The single projectionist at these theatres is operating all 12
cinemas at one time and yet only four cinema patrons (uf a pos-
sible 3,300 seats) pay those wages. Not bad cost per valuc!

Something else to keep in mind is that projectionists are the
last line of quality control in a process that involves hundreds of
people and millions of dollars, from the whole production
Process (pre- and post-) including cast and crew to the actual
cost of the film stock and projection equipment, which inci-
dentally costs in the order of tens of thousands of dollars for
each screen.

I am responsible for over 30,000 fect of film going through
the projectors every hour at Esplanade but yet only three cine-
ma patrons cover my wages!

A pretty good value.

Please understand ! am not complaining about the nature of
my job nor do I begrudge these companies their profits, after
all they pay my wages?

I just don't believe such mercenary wage cuts are in order so
that these companies can further i increase their already bloated
profiis at rie projectionists’ expense.

RE. Frew
North Vancouver
rfrew@istar.ca

I know it’s only been a
week since Jan. 1, but I
bet there are a fair few
folks out there who
have already blown
their New Year's resolu-
tions.

You know who you are,
you smokers who have taken
up the accursed days again,
secretly puffing your butts out
an open bathroom window,
and vou dieters who have
binged in a desperate mid-
night feeding frenzy on the
Christmas baking package
your Aunt Meira left in vour
freezer.

You're a sneaky lot, you
irresolute reformers, but I
know you're there. And you
are not alone, Pm sneaking
around my New Year’s resolu-
tions too. Why already I've
silently finished hundreds of
sentences that weren't mine,
and had wicked and spiteiil
thoughts that under no cir-
cumstances could be consid-
cred big. Still, you'll never
know because I am keeping
this all very quict.

Unfortunately, I’m having
alittle more difficulty con-
vincing people that 1 have
stopped swearing, even
though I am making a gen-
uine effort to do so.

My problem is that there
are no universally accepted
guidelines for swearing, at
least none that I've been able
to find. In fact, coarse lan-
guage is largely a matter of
personal interpretation, and
that interpretation varies wide-
ly. So while T may feel that I
am no longer using coarse
language, there are people out
there who still think thar I
am.

For the record, Jam not
using any of the traditional
four-letter words at all, but

Close to
home

that's the easy part. It’s the
Jess coarse Janguage I use, the
not quite four-letter words,
that are causing folks to doubt
my sincerity in making the
effort to stop swearing.

Pve had to establish my
own guidelines in the last
week pertaining to swearing,
and in case you're interested,
here they are:

1. Twill not give up any
word that makes me laugh.

For example, just the sound of

the word fart cracks me up. It
isa playful, merry word, with
real meaning and a wonderful
sound. I know there are peo-
ple who are seriously offended
by the word, who literally
blush with embarrassment at
the utterance of this word, as
if to utter the word itself is, to
in fact, fart. I don’t get it, and
T refuse to give it up. Please
don’t be offended when you
hear me say it.

2. 1 will try not to offend
people around me with my
language, even though J may
not think [am being rude.
Right up there in the iffy
swearword category are words
like crap, butt, and sucks. IFT
say, when conimiserating with
a friend who has lost a chunk
of money in the stock market,
“bey, that sucks”, or “vou
must have a crappy broker”,
am f being rude? J didn’t used
to think so, but an elderly
gentleman friend of mine has
advised me that Lam. Because
I really like him, I have d
ed to limit my use of these

What could be more natural than getting energy
boosting nutrients from high quality, organic
food? That's exactly what greens+ is. Food. A
concentrated superfood blended from high quality,
organic, nutrient-rich foods and herbal extracts.

Mixed with water to create a pleasant-tasting
drink, greens+ packs a potent nutritional punch-
with vitamins, minerals, enzymes, cell salts, trace
minerals, essential amino acids and antioxidants,
specially blended to energize, stimulate and

detoxify your body.

Eat your greens+. We guarantee, you'll notice the

difference.

S10 g Reg. 64. $9

swear ing |

words around him,

3. Any word thar has a
musta ring te itis OK, The
word hell is a ood example
ofthis, T chink that particular
word has a fovely, musical
quality. Just think of the
expression hells bells, Doesn't
that roll off the tongue nicely?
Mind you, when preceded by
the words go to, hell can be
quite offensive, so Lam nixing
that specific combination.

4. Labsolutely reftise to
use contradictory alternatives
for basic four letter words.
Like, saying, “oh sugar!”
instead of “Oh s**t." It
makes no sense to me to be
expressing a negative response
to something with a word that
means something sweet. |
can’t do it, It’s coo stupid.

5, Twill not use meaning-
less euphemisms. One friend
of mine constantly uses the
term frig as a substitute for
the fvord. Here’s how: “No
friggin’ way,” she'll say, or
“Youre out of your friggin”
mind.” Pve even heard her
say, “Ob frig!” when she was
startled by something. One of
my boys likes to use the word
freak in the same way “Get
away from the freakin’ TV”
he'll yell at his siblings when

they even so much as enter
the family room. Or “SVho
hid my freakiy shoes!”

These alternatives sound
asinine to me. We all know
that trig and freak are being,
substituted tor the f word,
and since these words don’t
hove any relevance to the
expression on their own, the
f word is what we think when
we process the message.

| believe the challenge in
cleaning up our Haguage is
not just to replace four-letter
words with senseless
cuphemisms, but to find a
better, more intelligent way to
express Ourselves. Personally,
I've found budy language to
be a terrific vehicle for expres-
sion.

Ifyou really need to add
some emphasis to your lan-
guage end you don’t want to
swear, make a fart sound with
your mouth.

Add a simultaneous scoop-
ing gesture with your hand
and you've got about the clos-
est thing to the perfect expres-
sion of negativity by any stan-
dards. Try it, out loud, right
now.

Felt good, didn’t it?

— humpers@bc.sympatico.ca

AY nervices
fully warranty
approved

Oil, Lube & Filter
21 pt. Safety check, 15 minutes - FAST!
Includes up to 5 litres of 10w30 Quakerstate i

1362 Marine Drive 980-9715

Mon-Sat 8:00arn-6:COpm, Suir. 9:00am-5:00pm

ee

VALENTINE DRAW -
Name
Address
Phoned.

“Drop entry at our Dundarave Store

FEB. 12

JSABOT

Creative Window Coverings & Home Decorating tdeas
2A13 Marine Dr., West Van 922-4668