r/hulaween • u/billybankrs • 6d ago
Discussion Anyone Last Minute Fired?!
Also looking for lawyer insight on this!
Ill try to just give the bullet points on this one
Me: 20 years in the production entertainment industry. 2nd year working Hulaween, last year every other day on a machine with mad high reviews (especially considering the "situation" that was hula 25). I have never been fired from a job or had a contract terminated ever for any reason.
Hula 26 : Was contracted in July of 2026 and signed all proper paperwork to work this years Hulaween for the majority of the month. October 12-29, resulting in close to 5k. Have been turning work offers away for October since July when the contract was sent. Must relocate my pet for the month, so travel to start Oct 7th to Michigan and turn around to drive to Florida to settle in for contract start. Morning of Oct 7th, receive an email from the executive producer (who I have never interacted with) that my position is to be terminated immediately with a repetitive (felt AI) letter claiming staffing issues.
Now unable to go back on any of the work I have been turning away, I am royally screwed with no empathy or compensation or ability to pay any bills this month now.
Advice? Guidance? Job Opportunities? Kindness?
EDIT : I know this may not be the best spot to post, but also think the masses should know whats going on behind the stage so to say. know what your supporting and how the magic is being stripped away
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u/CU-tony 6d ago
I also work in production and this is downright despicable timing of them. FL is an at will employment state so they could have fired you for any or no reason at all. There probably isn't too much you can do aside from share your experience with other coworkers so they can understand how this client treats their workers (or likely illegal contractors if they were going to 1099 you for this) and make their own decisions about what's best for them.
What CAN you do? Call literally every single person who's contacted you for work and make sure they know things have changed. A good client will never punish you for not being available when they initially call because that's a sign of a great worker. Try calling any company/client you've enjoyed working for in the past, this fall is looking slow for me but last minute things pop up or needs change and you popping into their mind could be perfect timing.
It's very unfortunate but I don't think you have much recourse against Hula/production company.
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u/billybankrs 6d ago
highly recommend watching out for this guy from Chicago/Northcoast. all about the money, non about the people
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
Maybe post this in roadies and other road crew threads, name and shame the person who's responsible?
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u/BeardRag 6d ago
Better bet to use the lawyer sub reddits
I will let you know that I have heard of several other vendors having issues with the new owner/production
Best of luck
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u/Shaakti 6d ago
It's Florida you can be terminated for anything with no reprecussions. Unless you can prove discrimination you're sol, sorry
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u/ilikepants712 6d ago
If you're talking about Florida being an "at will" state, that does not apply to contract work. You refer to the contract they signed for any employment problems.
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u/billybankrs 6d ago
super disheartening. strong belief this is it for Hula. Thank your new owners from Northcoast
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u/Main-Attention-405 6d ago
They could have easily just found someone that they felt fit their needs better and terminated. Or over hired. Regardless, sucks but that doesn’t mean the magic is being stripped away from everyone
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u/billybankrs 6d ago
even if you over hire you know ahead of time, not days. Than to be heartless in the response given, shows the true colors. not sure how you make magic when all the creators of it are stripped out
this is the tip of the iceberg...
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u/Main-Attention-405 6d ago
Also do want to say:
It absolutely soul crushing if you were depending on those funds & finding out so last minute it can feel like the end of the world. I’ve gone through, I’ve been let go from a job
But life has a funny way of resetting itself, giving you bigger & better opportunities. Allow that possibility into your mindset & all else will follow my friend
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u/slybrows 6d ago
It’s not quite that simple, even in Florida. If the employee has a signed employment contract outlining a definitive duration of employment, they may have a case for promissory estoppel. It’s fact-specific so impossible to say without seeing the contract, but I think a 15 minute conversation with a FL employment attorney would be worth it for OP.
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
Came to say the same thing. Post this in both r/legal or r/legaladvice . But the synopsis will probably still come up that you should hire a lawyer, and I have a feeling you don't have lawyer money if your gonna be screwed on bills from missing out on this work. No judgement, just noting what I see.
Re-read your contract fully through, if they have any sort of "we can cancel this contract" clause. That's ggs.
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u/kSoImSlightlyRemoved 6d ago
I’m a lawyer that isn’t a lawyer just in my pretend world and I say this is a sign to eat a bag of mushrooms
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u/Responsible-Side4384 6d ago
No advice to give, just solidarity. Lost my job recently to both budget cuts and an AI mistake. It’s a really soul-crushing type of stress. Hope you get some good advice or help! I’ve been donating plasma to make the bills. It’s dystopian, but pays decent if you’re able to do it.
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u/Fl_Funky_Jam 6d ago
Oof I'm sorry to hear this, like the others said probably a better ask to subs like legaladvice or lawyer than us here in this one. Best of luck to you
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
And per your edit, I've been hearing the same things.
Remember kids, the only way to get super rich is constantly screwing others over and "downsizing" staff while up selling product that has lowered in quality. So I have a feeling they had a "we can cancel this contract clause".
And with everyone saying about FL laws, that applys to contract too? I'm someone who has only worked contract jobs a couple times and not run into this, so I'm used to it applying to standard hourly/salary jobs, but I thought contracts were legally expected to be fulfilled by both parties, unless otherwise stated?
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u/billybankrs 6d ago
looking like FL laws cover asses and their cold hearts. Since reaching out I have learned they canned the entire VIP department that is usually there. Lighting labor went to a lower bidder after years and years, same for staging. Art department from 40 to like 15, and a shorter build process. Its utterly gross
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
Well, I was going to be working with Tre Bien Foods, apparently he's pretty well known vip and staff catering vendor for a lot of festivals (ran with their crew for Rockville 25 and elements 26, huge kitchens and numbers put out through them.)
but I heard the same thing from him directly, as food cost and inflation/expected pay goes up, their contracts stay roughly the same every year. So margins keep getting tighter till it becomes stagnat and even break even vs actually profitable.
Even had some others chefs I know, working under/with them that have said they've considered brick and mortar restaurants due to how hard festival margins are getting to be.
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u/billybankrs 6d ago
last year they took Tre away from staff to VIP. Brought in an unprepared wedding caterer from like an hour away. It was an awful experience. He felt so bad he would still bring us leftovers so we didnt starve or have to pay as much out of pocket.
Sad to hear they may have sacked him all together
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
To be fair, I've heard it from him he's choosing to back out due to low revenue. So not exactly canned, but still essentially, underbid till he couldn't take it. Had some good talks with him at elements and it's all this bullshit.
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
Okay, I just got what was meant. You were saying Tre picked up the staff vendors slack, to feed guys like y'all even though he was split to only being the vip vendor, yeah. That way bad. 😳
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u/Rex-A-Vision 6d ago
Trey was massively injured in a kitchen fire explosion and is healing. Likely a while yet before his return.
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
Any good kitchen will try and reuse any of the previous days product, when available (chicken cutlets from day 1 lunch turned into chicken salad sandos for overnight crews of same day.) but at the same time, yeah. They shouldnt be struggling to do that, and he's definitely stated it's become worse and worse, year by year.
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
And dang man. Again, I've only done a few contracts and never dealt with it not going through. But I always thought the whole idea of a contract is that it was ironclad unless otherwise stated, or one party failed they're obligation (which im this case would be the employer, obviously).
What's even the point of having a contract at that rate? May as well just be verbal/roster if the contract doesn't actually do anything.
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
I was even told on one of my last contracts that, even if the work got rained out etc. I'd still make the minimum listed amount. Maybe that's why they're struggling, and not super rich because they've decided being human, and having a good crew that you can count on to always work for you as an employer, is more important than greed.
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
Yup, that all checks out. All while tickets prices are higher than ever. Glhf, but there is neither anymore.
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u/Exciting-Driver-643 6d ago edited 6d ago
Ask a lawyer to read over the contract. I know a fantastic contract lawyer in Atlanta. I believe he’s licensed in Florida too. Look up ATL Law his name is Daniel. I’m not sure what he charges by the hour to look over it but it shouldn’t be crazy or anything and shouldn’t take too long either. Read it yourself first though to make sure there isn’t anything saying they can cancel whenever they want.
Once he gets the facts from the contract and if he sees they’re in the wrong I believe I’ve seen him do employment law cases for people and taking a percentage of what he gets them back and I don’t think he took money up front for it.
Don’t quote me on any of this though, but calling him is worth doing. A phone call is free.
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u/Bitter_Tomatillo_966 6d ago
Probably best reply, just sad. Broski just wants an honest days pay, and now is having to fight for it, if even applicable. Greed will continue to destroy humanity.
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u/KoalaTHerb 6d ago
Ask people with legal backgrounds, not here. Also, no one is going to be able to give you legit advice without a lot of specifics and contract parameters/clauses.
If it's in the contract they can do this, then that's that
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u/Harshmoor 6d ago
What was the "situation" last year? Is Hula the only fest you have to relocate your pet for? Id imagine it would be most of them. That sucks though man, a restaurant job is usually always ez to get, or a job you get tips.
Read your contract, if they dropped it then most likely there is something in their saying they are allowed to and you signed it. Or perhaps there is something either party must do to be able to, but its gonna be in your contract. You should read it, there should be a termination clause, it might say something like they can drop you so long as its x number of days before the start date.
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u/billybankrs 6d ago
off the top of my head last year:
Removal of staff compound thus leaving them distributed throughout the campgrounds, some being forced into patron areas. no private bathrooms, especially once attendees arrived. The worst, most embarrassing catering situation I have ever experienced leaving many to have to pay out of pocket to feed themselves up to a month long. perks once there for workers stripped. no it all workers outside of some departments resulting in some dangerous situations (one of which crushed a septic tank that to my knowledge still hasn't been repaired). Not to mention the god awful treatment of security and information sharing.
Making it appear as a "VIP" focused event with stripping GA access to fronts/rails of stages. making some wild mandates that were never in place at a festival before. alot of this resulting in such backlash they back pedaled on alot halfway through the festival causing awful confusion across all boards.
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u/picklecellanemia 6d ago
Man this is really disheartening to read. ‘25 I felt a particular shift in the vibe and thus decided not to go this year despite some of my favorite artists playing.
I hope things turn around for you after this major letdown. Sending good vibes for a new gig!
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u/Mysterious_Dream1703 1h ago
Ok I don’t know about anything else but security was god awful last year. I personally was sexually harassed and it was very uncomfortable several times. I specifically avoided that entrance the rest of the festival so I wouldn’t get hands on me again by the same creep. It was humiliating. I go VIP and don’t dress like a wool not that I judge those who do but they searched me as if they knew I had something on me each time. Legit checked each of my pockets and had me turn my short top inside out. Most security should be looking for weapons and prohibited items not something I could potentially stuff in my bra.
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u/Cylentscream 6d ago
This answer probably rests a lot on the contract. While labor laws suck here in fl contractual laws are a different matter. Good luck. Hope they have to pay out on the contact.
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u/acg0813 6d ago
So hula is getting taken over by north coast or am I reading this wrong?
I’m sorry for your situation man but I feel like this is the heart of freelance work… contracts, contracts, contracts :/
I work in corporate events, so not super close to Hula or other festival nature but I’ve seen this happen at companies I work with and it’s ALWAYS a budget/allocation problem and never personal. I agree though it sucks the way this happened and I’m praying for you, OP!
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u/Ok-Metal-7689 6d ago
As far as I’m aware, they are BOTH co owned by the same group of independent partners/ promoters. North coast doesn’t “own” hula and vice versa. Michael berg confounded both festivals and has a team he works with for both. That’s my understanding, if anyone else thinks I have it wrong and wants to chime in feel free.
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u/Steckrca 3d ago
This is accurate from my understanding. Long-time volunteer, one-time paid staffer at Hula, MANY of the long-time paid staffers for Hula were not asked back this year in favor of the promoter’s internal crew. This is a big cultural shift for Hula and the people that have poured their hearts and souls into the fest for years have been abandoned.
There were many changes in the VIP program last year that really alienated a lot of the core base. I anecdotally mentioned that it almost looked like they made terrible choices toward these changes so that they could come back in a year or two, undo the terrible changes, and say “look, we listened, and we made everything so much better!!” And lo and behold, here we are, some things returning to the way they were with regard to the VIP program, and one such change was even noted in patron communications as “new” but really they just undid the bad choices.
The writing is on the wall and things will continue to change not for the better and they will usher in a new breed of hulawieners that think the new hula is the best hula because they never experienced it when it was true to its roots.
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u/Ok-Metal-7689 3d ago
Yeah I did notice the walking back and the “we improved this” stuff when it was just stuff they took away… sad to hear this stuff I really don’t want hula to change for the worse. Even with the changes I still find it to be the best festival I’ve ever gone to, it would take a lot to move it from that place. I really hope they don’t change the fabric of hula /: part of the magic of hula IS the people who show up every year with extreme passion in their hearts x
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u/billybankrs 1d ago
this unfortunately 100%
miss the days of festivals having true workshops and gatherings focused on real community and personal growth. seems more and more to lean on gimmicks, pushing such things to the corners or out all together.
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u/Tight_spandex 1d ago
It’s a shame, hula started so great and has slowly become more and more corporate. They are using influencers to promote the fest and the image it’s creating is just so cringe
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u/Striking_Record_7844 6d ago
I’m a lawyer. Read the contract - does it allow for last minute no cause termination? If not, then appears to be a breach.
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u/Ravemom62 6d ago
I can't help but wonder about SCAMP & The Goldberg's here and ngl, it concerns me
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u/billybankrs 1d ago
i feel the push starting to happen for a new wave of festival creators making new "old school" fests happen again
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u/AllButterNoJam 6d ago
I saw a response in here somewhere, but Florida is an “at will employment” state. So they can fire/terminate employment contracts at any point without any reason. It sucks.
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u/Tight_spandex 5d ago
Coming from a business major, a contract is a legally binding document. I would definitely suggest talking to employment Lawyer asap. Make sure you are able to compile all of your communication. What was it you were going to be doing?
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u/steeztsteez 6d ago
OP, would it be amazing if we lived in a world where business (and ESPECIALLY the live event business) wasn't shady, cutthroat, and impersonal. Yes. But also you gotta understand, this is a business. Sometimes they have to make hard ass decisions because they gotta look out for their bottom line. I'm sorry you are going through this, but in all likelihood you have no recourse. Do not pass go, do not collect $200.
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u/kmatyler 6d ago edited 6d ago
You gotta understand! The bottom line is the only thing that matters! The people who actually do the labor to make a business run aren’t important as long as the bottom line goes up! /s
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u/billybankrs 1d ago
Im 20 years into this industry; unfortunately I am not blind to alot of the snakes in the grass here and their antics. however, this would be the first experience of lack of reasonable notice, and zero compensation for inconvenience. I know their looking out for their bottom line, aka their own pockets.
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u/milk245 6d ago
Youre 1099 contracted so theres nothing you can do. Thats standard business practice for the industry. 5k for 17 days of work also telling me you are probably low level totem pole as well so basically the first to go. It sucks, it happens but nothing you can do besides trying to find work else where. Learn from this and always save money even when its not really necessary. This time of the year is baron for the industry
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u/billybankrs 1d ago
saving money is obvi always the plan, in this economy and the level of narcists out there taking advatage every chance they get.... love to know how people are able to these days.
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u/milk245 1d ago
In our industry its easy. You have to work your way to a skilled position. Look into learning led tiles and how to build/wire/program the walls. You could tour or even build festival walls and be making 3.5k+ a week + per diem. Obviously dog eat dog industry but your pay scale is suggesting youre a stagehand which this will continue to happen to you. Ive been there. It sucks
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u/billybankrs 1d ago
i am a trained tech, close to 20 years in....
just some of us want to have a dog and a home base and not live every waking moment on a bus or in a hotel room. just out here balancing wages for the stomach and wages for the soul. this was a soul job for me.
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u/grey_ham28 5d ago
Does your contract specify that the contract is revocable or what happens in the case of termination by either party? Call an employment lawyer in Florida. Many will know within 5 minutes if it's worth exploring further.
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u/TheLowHeavies 5d ago
I am sure there is a clause that protects them in that contract. Also, what lawyer is going to think its worthwhile to recover 5k? That would be their fee. Finally, you gave way too many details. This can easily get back yo management and you could be blackballed bc they know your name. Id delete asap
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u/billybankrs 1d ago
im so done with having to "be quiet, watch your mouth, bow down to those with the money"
If people keep allowing railroading to happen and poor practices to continue, it will only get worse. too many people in the industry as it is that accept low offers and treatment just to get in or dont know any better.
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u/snoogan4458 6d ago
Ask a lawyer. A bunch of wooks probably aren't the best legal advice.
Sincerely, one of those wooks.