Still Working 9 To 5
Written By: Margaux Fortier
Some may call it a cult classic, but the lasting influence Working 9 To 5 had on the American worker is undeniable. The documentary Still Working 9 To 5 dives into the impact of the film and how it remains relevant to this day.
With a premiere at SXSW 2022, Still Working 9 To 5, directed by Camille Hardman and Gary Lane, brings the 1980 comedy into focus as an equality revenge hit that reached millions of women. There was a demand for respect that was universal in American workers and people across the country flooded to the theater. Women identified with the secretaries at the center of the story and men identified with the injustice of the office worker low on the totem pole, and all appreciated the Dolly Parton’s anthem theme song across the music charts.
With the film casting done before it was written, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton all represented very different but realistic scenarios for women in the work place: 1 woman was entering the workforce after divorce, 1 woman was the backbone of the company who receives no credit, and 1 woman was beautiful so she was seen as incompetent. The realistic element becomes fantasy as they plot to kill their over-demanding and incompetent boss, but gain respect along the way.
With several different iterations including a TV adaptation, a Broadway musical hit which later moved to a successful run on the West End, the characters in the original film continue to strike a cord with audiences. Women continue to fight for rights, representation, and respect in the workplace and continue to be met with roadblocks.
Politically, Working 9 to 5 came at a crossroad of change in the US. In Boston in 1973, an organization formed called 9 to 5, who were looking for equal pay for equal work and wanted raises, rights, and respect for all workers. A few years later in 1977, efforts to get Virginia incorporated into the Equal Rights Amendment swelled as the deadline to pass it loomed. 38 states needed to vote in favor of the amendment but in the years since it was proposed in 1923, it hadn’t reached the magic number. Following the MeToo and Time’s Up movements, the amendment finally reached the 38 states in 2020, 40 years after the opening of Working 9 to 5, but unfortunately the amendment had expired in 1982.
Still Working 9 to 5 will bring in a new generation to appreciate the efforts towards workplace equality and the camaraderie of women working together. The characters are relatable and more importantly the underlying message still deserves a fight for equity.
Check out the trailer and links below for more information!
