by Martin Levenstein, Guild 2nd Vice President

Workers in Arts and Entertainment Face Common Problems

In February, Maddy Shirazi, Harry Bolles and I attended an Arts and Entertainment Unions Strategic Education Training seminar, also known as the SET Initiative Pilot Program. Developed by the Cornell University Institute of Labor and the AFL-CIO, the purpose of SET Initiative is to educate union members in the entertainment industry about how the field is changing, what the implications are for workers, and what we can do about it. Attendees included representatives from AFTRA, SAG, the Writer’s Guild, IBEW and others. The seminar made clear that while employment in the media/communications industry has grown in the last ten years, the number of dominant employers has fallen. These companies have consolidated in order to better control all aspects of their products, from creation, production and distribution to merchandizing and marketing. Union membership and employment have increased slightly, but they have been far outpaced by the proliferation of non-union jobs and non-union workers, primarily due to the success of cable TV and the effects of digital technology, which has helped allow employers to combine job functions.

All of this is familiar territory to many of us, but the seminar helped quantify the effects of technological change and media consolidation on union membership. Several speakers talked about how they have personally been affected. It was fascinating that everyone, no matter what their profession or expertise, evinced similar complaints. Ever-shortening schedules, an emphasis on the bottom line instead of creativity, the necessity of accepting non-union conditions in order to work, and less leverage with employers were common themes.

The focus was on what unions can do to turn this trend around and the number one answer was “organize.” By organizing, we not only help ensure that we can work under our collective bargaining agreements, but we make it harder for employers to hire non-union workers.

Quarterly Membership Meeting

Our Quarterly Membership meeting on March 5th further developed this theme. Arsenia Reilly, Eastern Region Organizer, chaired a discussion about Guild organizing in our region. She described our recent successes in signing documentaries, and encouraged members working on non-union documentaries to contact her or Paul Moore to discuss putting their work under contract. Pointing out that institutions that once supported large union workforces have disappeared, she stressed that we must try to obtain agreements with employers who produce content for cable. Another target should be digital lab and effects facilities. These companies employ a large number of our members or workers who are potential members, and in general are not Guild signatories.

Arsenia encouraged all members working non-union to report their jobs and to talk with her or Paul Moore about the possibility of organizing their work. She explained that all such discussions are held in complete confidence, and the union is extremely flexible when developing new agreements. Arsenia introduced Annie Ballard, Ernest Boyd and Matt Rovner, members who were instrumental in helping the Guild obtain a contract with New York Times Television. Each spoke to a different aspect of the NYT campaign, in order to help attendees understand the process of organizing a workplace. Ballard was introduced to members as our newest Guild employee. She began work on March 3 as Field Representative in the New York office.

Eastern Region Organizer Arsenia Reilly and New Field Representative Annie Ballard spoke about the importance of organizing at the March quarterly membership meeting.

Members were strongly supportive and offered suggestions to help with these goals. One idea was to get the message of “what the union means” out to non-union editors and assistants, film students, and even to other Guild members. There was a general consensus that we need more visibility in the media community, and that we need to highlight our creative and professional strengths in order to connect with young, entrepreneurial editors and producers. Our blue ribbon panel participation at the New York DV Show (see The Editors Guild At NY DV) is an example of this kind of outreach. We are also planning to advertise in publications geared toward local filmmakers and are working with Pat Swinney Kaufman, Director of the New York State Governor’s Film Office, to publicize the work of Eastern Region members and the value of completing post production in New York.

In short, it’s clear that we must resist losing control of our work in an environment marked by technological change, anti-union government policies and the agendas of large corporations. We must develop a larger economic base of union workers and covered employment. It is in the best interests of Guild members and employers to make the East Coast an even stronger production community.

Report Your Jobs

As part of this program, we are asking all members in the Eastern Region to report all jobs, union or non-union, when they begin employment. Also, please keep the office informed about major changes at your workplace such as an acquisition of the project by a different production or distribution entity. The more we know about employment, the better we can administer the terms of the contracts you are working under and develop new ones.

Louis Bertini also fielded members’ questions relating to the health plan merger. As of July 1, 2002, the Local 700 (NY) Producer’s Welfare and Pension Plan merged with the Motion Picture Industry Pension and Health Plans (MPIPHP). Anyone who has questions or feels they have a problem should contact our administrator, Jean Catalanotto, at (212) 997-7505.

In addition, Laura Congleton gave an update on the Avid training room in the New York office. As of this writing, we are in our second round of classes and new courses are being added. For an updated list of offerings, please call Sandy in the New York office.