Doune the Rabbit Gap pageant has been canceled following organizers’ lack of ability to pay performers and contractors, resulting in an announcement from BECTU and different commerce unions.
Scotland’s Doune the Rabbit Gap pageant, slated to happen between July 21 and 23, has been canceled following organizers’ lack of ability to pay performers and contractors, main the related commerce unions, BECTU, The Musicians’ Union, and Fairness, to challenge an announcement.
“Over the previous few years, this pageant has amassed nicely over £1 million in unpaid payments to each bands and employees (£800,000 in 2022 alone). Many individuals, together with the headline bands final 12 months, had been paid nothing aside from their deposits,” the unions’ assertion reads. “In some instances, bands are owed tens of 1000’s of kilos with no hope of getting their ultimate funds, and this 12 months’s cancellation will impression but extra bands and employees.”
“As commerce unions, we’ve tried to have a constructive dialogue with the organizers of the pageant, however the undertakings which had been supplied to us weren’t forthcoming. The organizers mentioned that they might share gross sales figures to be able to reassure us that they might make sufficient revenue this 12 months to start to repay the money owed owed by the earlier pageant,” the assertion continues. “They said their intention to repay these money owed over three years. They haven’t offered any such data and that enterprise to repay these money owed is now in jeopardy.”
The unions’ assertion references a radio interview from June 8 on Good Morning Scotland, wherein Craig Murray, one of many pageant’s organizers, said that Doune the Rabbit Gap’s ticket gross sales had been hitting £5,000 per week, however wanted to realize ticket gross sales of £25,000 per week to realize its goal.
Since then, pageant organizers have mentioned they might not be issuing refunds to ticket holders for the occasion’s cancellation. An announcement posted on the Doune the Rabbit Gap web site claimed {that a} “marketing campaign of misinformation” from BECTU and different commerce unions created a major drop in ticket gross sales and compelled them to cancel, regardless of having “checked out all choices to maintain the occasion on the desk.”
“That he sought in charge commerce unions, and by implication, the very individuals who work so exhausting on the pageant annually, was extremely disappointing,” the unions’ assertion counters. “We had agreed with the organizers that they might provide 100% deposits up entrance to these contemplating working on the pageant, however once more, Craig disclosed that this has not occurred, so as soon as once more those that had agreed to carry out and work at this 12 months’s pageant will likely be not noted of pocket by the failure of these organizing the occasion.”
“As commerce unions, we had been involved that the pageant was in a position to enter liquidation final 12 months and be reborn so rapidly with so lots of the identical faces concerned, and that concern has been borne out with so lots of the identical points this 12 months,” the assertion concludes. “We might urge any members affected by the cancellation to make contact with their commerce union and can present all of the assist we are able to.”
The occasion was held final July on the Cardross Property after being canceled the 2 earlier years as a result of pandemic. It went into liquidation in December and is now underneath the administration of the Pageant Meals Beverage and Property Providers Firm.