Dues Referendum 2014 - guest post

Hi. 

I would like to speak in favour of the Dues increase. I know, I know, believe me, I know. I know all the arguments for and against… and I can’t afford it either. However, after more than 14 years, I think it is about time. I believe they should have been raised every year in conjunction with the cost of living. I believe that is how it should be from here on.

I want you to understand where I am coming from, so let me tell you about me over the past couple of years… I haven’t worked, much. Sometimes I am in arrears and don’t always know from where the money will come from to pay my dues. My wife and I have a seven year old. Alison works as a Designer, a Stage Manager, and a general all-around technician (she has, of course, a Masters in Acting). That’s our life. Day to day, week to week, and month to month. It’s a struggle… We aren’t alone, this is nothing new…for too many of us.

I am not whining or complaining. We chose this career path, and there was more than enough evidence that it would be, to put it mildly, Hard. Yet, my dues are the first thing I pay… when I get money. Here’s why: for all of us.

I want us to be strong, as individuals and as a group within our society.

To be strong we need a working organisation; and it costs money run an office, to lobby, to negotiate with producers, to administer an association with 6000 members and handle many thousands of contracts and other documents each year, to have a national presence. That means we need to spend money. It can’t be the same amount we were spending 14 years ago. Every year prices go up… for everyone, not just us. If we don’t raise dues what will be the cost?

Equity's responsibility is response-ability: the consistent capacity to act effectively on our behalf. They can't do that without our help; that's our responsibility. Please support your association.

Cheers,

John O’Keefe
Member, Atlantic

Referendum Fast Fact - Are the two parts of the proposal linked?

Yes they are.

In deciding on a proposed basic dues rate, Council also had to consider the working dues rate, and vice versa. Together, they cover almost all association expenses, and the due proposal is a balanced increase in both. There was a pretty strong message in 2011 that the membership considered a two-part adjustment to be more equitable, and Council has delivered that.

Dues Referendum 2014 - vote early, vote often

I know I'm dating myself is saying this, but I have always been a big fan of Walt Kelly's comic strip Pogo. The title of this post is a crib of the habitual election-year rallying cry of his characters. To be clear, we don't actually allow you to vote often, but if you are a life or regular member in good standing, you do get to vote, and it's important that you do.

If you'll pardon the digression, I thought I'd use this post to give you a bit of behind-the-scenes insight into the voting habits of our membership. I find them kind of fascinating, and perhaps you will, too.

First out of the gate are the early voters. These are people who, one way or another, have already made up their mind on the matter at hand, and vote within a day or two of the polls opening. Read the voting instructions; log in online, or pick up the phone and dial; make the selection; done! These voters account for about one-quarter of the returns.

Then we move into the long, dark doldrums of the mid-vote lull; voting tails off pretty rapidly by the end of the first week. It doesn't seem to matter how long that middle period is - one week or three - the mid-vote turnout is always about the same, another 25%.

Then, bam! Fully half of all members wait to cast their ballot until the last week, with roughly one-third hanging on until the very last minute. These are the people who fascinate me most. Well, second-most. Were they just having trouble making up their minds? Were they waiting until some voice or point arose that really touched them, one way or the other? Or were they, like many of us I suspect, thinking I'll vote tomorrow…well, tomorrow…well, tomorrow…What?!…the vote closes tomorrow?! Who knows. All we know is that there are always a lot of them, and we're glad they got in under the wire.

The members who really do fascinate me the most are the ones who don't bother to vote. Depending on the topic, voting return rates vary between 25% and 38%. Most of our sister associations would kill for return rates that high (yes, you read that correctly), but it still means that as many as three-quarters of members are not exercising their right to vote.

Why? Or, more correctly, why not?

This is your association, and your vote is your voice. Let it be heard! If you think the proposal should pass, please let us know by voting for it - our Staff Psychic is on vacation. If you think the proposal shouldn't pass, we need to hear that, too. (Obviously, we encourage you to vote in favour, but the decision is yours.) 

I mean, come on: this vote is all about finances. You have already paid for the opportunity to vote, don't waste your own money.

And for those who think that their vote doesn't matter one way or another, let me tell you something. The only vote that doesn't matter is the one you don't cast.

Vote! Vote early, vote often once.

PS: Someday, I would love to be able to mention, in casual conversation with one of our sister organisations, that we had a 50% turnout for our last vote. (I'll ensure emergency medical personnel are standing by, just in case.) I can't make that kind of turnout happen, but you can.

Dues Referendum 2014 - voting opens today

Your association.
Your decision.
Your future.
Your voice.
Your vote.

If you are reading this post, and thinking "What referendum?" or "Where is my ballot?", call the national office for assistance. Details are here.

Referendum Fast Fact - What happens after 2018?

I received a question today, that I think others might have as well...

Part of the proposal is to freeze the new dues rates until at least 2018. Does this mean that the rates can be unilaterally changed by Council after that?

In a word, no. The bylaws say that Council can't change the dues without membership approval, end of story. The next time Council needs to revisit the rate, we'll have to hold another referendum, just like this time.

So, why specify 2018 in the first place? Council and staff have to plan finances well beyond the short term, and we know you do, too. Putting 2018 in bylaws is our commitment to you that we will not be seeking any further adjustments before then.

Got questions? Get answers!

Dues Referendum 2014 - guest post

I write to you here as an elected councilor of Canadian Actors Equity, as a member of Equity’s Finance Review Committee, and as an individual member of this association. I will be blunt: Equity needs to increase its membership dues. It needs to do this in order to continue its core service and to ensure that its basic functionality as an association stays strong into the future. It needs your help to do this.

“What has Equity done for us lately?” I hear that a lot from CAEA members. My answer is always the same: Quite a lot, actually. And it has done so with increasingly limited resources. Prior to becoming an Equity councilor I always wondered whether Equity was spending our money prudently and in the best interests of its members. I still hear that question now from other members. Having spent the last five years on CPAG and Equity Council I can tell you that Equity takes the matter of fiscal responsibility very seriously. And Equity does have the best interest of ALL of its members in any decision that it makes.

As individual members it is easy to forget all the labour gains that Equity has successfully fought for over the years. Take a moment to think about what your pay, working conditions, and the general state of theatre would be without those gains. What has Equity done for me as an individual member? Lots! Equity responded quickly to my concerns regarding the challenges of creating of Indie theatre. Equity created an extensive member survey followed by a new series of updated indie contracts that go a long way to address challenges faced by small scale theatre in this country.

Equity recently introduced a Service Standards protocol to improve staff service. It has streamlined and improved member communications. It has significantly cut Council and staff spending. What can Equity do for its members in the future? How about a website upgrade? Less paperwork? More audition initiatives? All of these things cost money and we haven’t had a dues increase since the late nineties. So we now turn to you. Your association needs you now more than ever. Please vote yes on the referendum.

Mark Brownell

National Councilor for Ontario

Dues Referendum 2014 - what are basic dues for?

At a recent referendum info meeting, a member who doesn't often work in theatre asked what they get for their basic dues each year. They understood that working dues were related to the costs of negotiating and administering a contract they were engaged on, but basic dues were harder to grasp. Arden and I listed several things that all members get, regardless of work patterns, but I'm not entirely convinced we made the sale, as it were.

Any of the individual items we might talk about, regardless of what they cost, are only worth the value an individual member places on them. So, for instance, an automatic health and wellness benefit that is, on paper, worth three-quarters of the basic dues rate all by itself, the member found to be not worth their time to use. For them, the effective value of that $100 benefit was zero.

That got me thinking: what is the core benefit of the basic dues, for all members? It's hard to make an argument for worth, when it is subject to debate on the basis of 6000 individual value systems and career patterns.

Perhaps the best point to be made then, is that the core benefit of the basic dues we all pay in equal measure is that Equity simply exists.

When you need some information regarding an engager or contract, there is someone to pick up the phone and provide the answer. And there is a phone, for that matter, that is connected and can be picked up. When you do get a gig, you don't have to draft your own contract; there is one already written for you, and the engager has already agreed to it. When it comes time to negotiate a fee, you or your agent don't have to start from scratch; you can start from a living wage commensurate with the means of the theatre, and negotiate up from there. And so on.

Perhaps, then, this a better answer to the member's question than providing a laundry list: Equity's existence is what the basic dues pay for. Without your basic dues there would be no Equity, and without Equity, there would be no one to provide the benefits and protections you do use, whichever ones they may be.

Please support the dues proposal, so that you can continue to have access to whatever it is that you personally value.