Oscar 2014: Security guards protest academy's use of non-union firm

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http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-oscars-security-guards-protest-20140302,0,598473.story



Protesters hold a banner criticizing the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' use of the security firm Security Industry Specialists (SIS), in front of the Dolby Theatre, the site of Sunday's 86th Academy Award ceremony, on Friday, Feb. 28 in Los Angeles. Approximately 50 Los Angeles security officers urged the academy to use a unionized security contractor.

Oscar 2014: Security guards protest academy's use of non-union firm
By Saba Hamedy
March 3, 2014, 5:00 a.m.

As actors and industry members flocked to the Dolby Theatre for the 86th Academy Awards on Sunday, a group of about 50 security guards and community supporters took to Hollywood Boulevard to protest.

In an effort to sway the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences to stop using non-union Security Industry Specialists for the annual event, the protesters held signs that read “Academy Awards: Support Good Jobs for Our Communities” and handed out fliers that read: “Why can’t Oscar go Union?"

SIS provides security for companies such as Apple, Twitter, EBay and Google. According to the company's website, the average wage for hourly SIS security officers in Silicon Valley is $19.77 per hour. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the average wage of a security officer in California is $13.33 per hour.

The group also rallied outside the Oscar luncheon in February hoping to deliver a letter to academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs. However, she did not physically take the letter.