Binghamton Sound Stage and Lighting, the student group responsible for setting up most campus events at Binghamton University, will have to hire a completely new stage crew after Friday’s Foo Fighters concert, when a pay cut approved by the Student Association takes effect. The decrease was approved by SA Vice President for Finance Chris Powell to make programming more affordable for other student groups.

The stage crew has been the highest paid division of BSSL since fall 2006, when they began earning $10 per hour. But because of the pay cut to $8, the entire crew is quitting.

“One of the reasons we ask for that much is because the job involves a lot of dangerous manual labor,” said Sacha Sigelman-Schwartz, president of BSSL. “Often we have to show up as early as 3 or 4 a.m. to do our job, sometimes outside in the rain or snow.”

When a student group plans an event, the stage crew unloads and sets up all stages and equipment by hand. The group is then billed directly for BSSL’s services.

But Powell said he believes the work completed does not deserve such a high pay rate.

“That much money is an unreasonable expectation, especially because they are getting learning experience from the job,” he said.

Powell approved the decrease in wages to $8 per hour at the end of last semester because he felt that the previous rate was too high to pay student workers, he said.

“The SA should be working for the benefit of the many, not of the few,” Powell said. “We want to make holding an event as affordable as possible for student groups.”

Although the new wages are already in place, the existing stage crew is working under contract for the Foo Fighters concert on Friday at a temporary rate of $10 per hour.

“This situation will not have any effect on the concert,” said Sandi Dube, vice president of programming for the SA.

After the concert, current stage crew members have promised that they will not work at any school sponsored events unless their wages are increased again. BSSL is now faced with hiring a brand new 16-person stage crew.

“Usually we would train a few new members at each show, but now we have to train an entire crew at the same time,” said Sigelman-Schwartz.

Although Sigelman-Schwartz has also decided not to work at the newly reduced rate, he said he also understands Powell’s concerns.

“It’s Powell’s job to look out for the best interests of the students and the SA,” he said.

The wages of BSSL’s lighting and sound engineers will remain unaffected by Powell’s decision.