Actors' Equity Association has decided to push its own version of Global Rule One, the Screen Actors Guild's mandate that its members work only under SAG pacts no matter where in the world the production shoots.
Equity and the other major performers unions are all members of the Associated Actors and Artistes of America, commonly known as the 4As. With that in mind, Equity issued a general notice to its fellow 4A members "to remind you that members of the 4A's unions (AEA, AFTRA, AGMA, AGVA, and SAG) are not permitted to work in nonunion theatrical tours without a proper Equity contract."
Both Equity's and the 4As' bylaws provide that members can be "fined, disciplined, or expelled for working in such nonunion theatrical tours," Equity's notice stressed. "If you are approached to work in a nonunion theatrical tour, or are asked to work under an alias, please contact the Equity regional director in New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles."
Alan Eisenberg, Equity's executive director, signed the notice and posted it June 4 on the union's website.
Equity has been becoming more and more active in battling nonunion tours, which in recent years have grown, thus claiming jobs which would otherwise go to Equity actors as well as monies that would go into the union's pension and health coffers.
SAG quickly responded to Equity's call, posting a headline announcing the notice at the top of its home web page. The guild also took no chances that members might not understand the guild's relationship with the 4As, noting that Rule 9 of the SAG constitution and bylaws states that a member is guilty of "conduct unbecoming" if working for an employer who isn't a signatory to a contract with a 4As member union.
Dues, Initiation Fees Increase
While fighting to keep its members working under union pacts, both Equity and SAG have upped the cost of being a union member.
Equity's members recently approved increases in the following areas:
• A dues increase from the present $78 annually to $98 on Nov. 1 of this year, then another increase to $118 a year on Nov. 1, 2003.
• A weekly working dues increase from the current 2% to 2.25% on Nov. 1, 2004. The maximum amount of annual earnings subject to working dues will rise from $150,000 to $300,000.
• A tri-level initiation fee increase from the present $800 to $900 on Nov. 1 of this year, raised to $1,000 on April 1, 2003 and again to $1,100 on April 1, 2004.
SAG has announced that national initiation fees will increase to $1,310 in conjunction with the increase in the theatrical/television day player rate to $655, as of July 1. All qualified new members must pay the initiation fee plus the first semiannual basic dues upon joining the guild.
Eligible applicants who contact SAG offices prior to July 1, either to schedule an appointment or by submission of a written request for membership, will be quoted the current initiation fee of $1,272. Persons applying for SAG membership on or after July 1 will be required to pay the new fee.
Initiation fees in SAG branches may vary, the guild said.
WGA Touts Indies
The Writers Guild of America, East and west (WGAE, WGAw) has announced a new program targeted to encourage independent filmmakers to produce films under the guilds' jurisdiction. For the first time, the guilds have established a low-budget agreement allowing writers to defer initial payment for scripts and the first rewrite. The program promotes production of low-budget films while assuring writers' basic economic and creative protections.
"This is an era when, due to the vertical integration of companies, the opportunities for both guild members and non-members to sell their work are severely challenged," said Victoria Riskin, president of WGAw. "We also recognize that many writers prefer to see their work produced independently without the constraints of the studio development process. There is a world of wonderful stories being written that audiences may never see. This agreement affords writers the opportunity to see their work produced in the low-budget, independent arena while assuring the protections of the guilds' contract. It is writer-friendly and producer-friendly."
"The writers of lower budget films need the guild every bit as much as the writers of big budget films. I hope that this agreement will be the first of many ways to give the benefits of union membership," said Herb Sargent, president of WGAE.
The pact allows writers to defer payment of their compensation—available for the screenplay purchase and first rewrite only, not for additional development—for films budgeted under $750,000. Only the writer, not the producers, may request the agreement.
In exchange for deferring their compensation, writers of original screenplays may not be rewritten without their permission. Writers of adapted material also have the right to do the first rewrite.
SAG has touted its own independent contract for the past few years, and recently announced an increased effort to sign agreements with indies.