Did you know? - Input into negotiations

Equity manages a wide range of scale agreements and engagement policies on behalf of its members. In order to ensure that the terms of engagement continue to reflect current realities in the business, each of these is reviewed on a cyclical basis, typically a three year term. In most cases, the review is done through negotiation with an engager, or a group of engagers (such as PACT). For the remainder, the review is done internally.

In all cases, the review is done with member input.

MEMBER:              How do I get involved in that?
COUNCILLOR:       Like this. (music of revelation)

There are several ways to have input into both negotiation and agreement review. 

The first is by far the easiest: make your Deputy do it. At the end of every engagement, the Deputy submits a release acknowledging that all artists have been paid, and everything is a "go" for release of the security bond. On the back of that form is space for notes for upcoming negotiation or review. So, when you are in the middle of an engagement and something arises that you think would be a good idea for future change or improvement, speak to your Deputy and ask him or her to add it to the notes. Staff gets quite a few of these each year, but they would be thrilled to get more; the more they get, the more complete Equity's understanding of member needs.

The second is just as easy: ask your SM to do it. He or she also has a notes form. Same basic idea as the Deputy form.

The third is a bit more work, but barely. Write to us, or call us. Anytime. We want to hear from you – it's how we know what the members are looking for in their contracts. It can be in relation to a specific engagement, or just a general observation or request. Questions and suggestions regarding the review and negotiation of any agreement or revision of any engagement policy may be sent to agreements@caea.com, or call us at 1-800-387-1856 (416-867-9165 in Toronto).


MEMBER:              What if I forget?
COUNCILLOR:       We'll remind you.

Equity provides advance notice of all upcoming negotiations and agreement reviews, with information on how to provide input. These go out on a regular basis by EquiFlash, and are also listed on the back page of the EQ magazine. We'll take your input any old time, but these reminders will let you know when important deadlines are approaching. In addition, the review cycle is listed on each agreement and policy itself, so check there, too.

It's your association; help us help you.