Opening day boycott called for cinema
Staff at the former Gate Cinema Cork are calling for a one day boycott when the business reopens under new ownership later this year.
The call comes after the cinema closed abruptly at the weekend having given staff just one week’s notice to find alternative employment.
Staff say they were never officially informed that Arc Cinemas had acquired Cork’s only full-time city centre cinema and didn’t learn they would be temporarily laid off until 7 August, with some staff finding out even later.
The cinema closed for refurbishment on 13 August. It is not known exactly when it will re-open.
“We've never had any official contact with Arc,” a staff member told the Cork Independent.
“This would never have happened under the previous ownership. We're not calling for a continuous boycott, we’re just asking for people to boycott the opening day,” they added.
The staff member also said that it’s not just the staff that have been impacted by the lack of notice, but the regular customers too.
“All of us understand how important the cinema can be for people's wellbeing,” they said.
“We have so many regulars who were also dismissed by having not been given enough time.”
“Like people who are on the spectrum who go into the cinema as a very important part of their routine, or people with mobility issues. It’s not feasible for them to go to other cinemas.”
They added: “We want to reiterate that under the previous ownership of the Gate Cinema we were always treated with the utmost respect. The staff were always so well looked after in every regard. This was not done under the Gate name.”
According to a statement prepared by the affected staff, each staff member was instructed not to disclose information regarding the cinema’s acquisition or closure to one another.
Members of staff were then advised to apply for welfare assistance; however, as the majority demographic of the cinema’s staff are students, most do not qualify.
The statement also claims that staff were overworked and did not receive adequate breaks during the exceptionally busy period around the release of major summer hits ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’.
“The staff that they employ are people who have responsibilities, who have bills, who have people they have to look after,” added the staff member.
In a statement to this newspaper, Tracy O’Brien, Southwest Regional Manager, Gate/Arc Cinemas said: “The Arc Cinema have not yet acquired the cinema and unfortunately were given short notice ourselves of the refurbishment program.
“We let staff know as soon as we were aware, but it is essential that the cinema is refurbished in order to sustain the viability of the business.
“We would acknowledge that business has been very brisk during the past three weeks with the release of ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’, with business much ahead of expectations. However, we have had a very difficult period of trading from the onset of the pandemic and that continued until the release of the aforementioned films.
“Any concerns or grievances that have been raised with us directly since the publication of comments online are dealt with the employee/s and are treated in a confidential manner.
“There are at least two more pay weeks to be processed for staff along with holiday hours owed. We do hope all employees will be back to work with us once we re-open, however we understand some may need to find alternative employment in the interim and wish them well.”
Cork Socialist Party TD Mick Barry described the treatment of the staff at the Gate Cinema as being “amongst the shabbiest episodes” in Cork’s cinema history.
Deputy Barry said: “I’m sure that the stars of those two movies, Cillian Murphy and Margot Robbie - who are on strike themselves at the moment - would voice support for these workers if asked.”