VO-BB - 19 YEARS OLD!

todd ellis · Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 1:08 pm Post subject:

i am in the 5% of --- what was it again --- oh yes, pre-members (i'm thinking of putting that on my business card) --- yes, as a pre-member in deep, deep flyover country i find union work of any kind is as numerous as hen's teeth. i bite, scratch & claw doing what i have to do to beat out the other guy to get the work, to get the check, to feed my family because ... well, because that's how capitalism works. lack of union work & a shortage of ISDN are a couple of downsides in living where i do. on the other hand - a gallon of milk is $1.99 and my 3,300 sq/ft house in one of the top school districts in the state cost me less than $180k. i am NOT exploited. most of the time i bill out more than union scale - but if i feel like doing a job for less - i will - because i'm the boss. according to most of the research i've done - i make more than 50% of actual members. not the top 10%, of course, but the rank & file.

broadcast media is withering on the vine. people are cutting the cable left & right in favor of netflix, hulu, roku and a host of others. "broadcast rates"? might as well be selling square nails to the local farrier. many fortune 500 companies are fleeing broadcast like rats. ford motor company requires it's dealerships to spend 50% of their co-op $$$ on "new media". lots more are following.

as i read this back i kind of sound angry. i am not. i'm really happy ... happy that i saw this coming 10 years ago and prepared for it. i don't want to fight with anybody - i'm not calling anyone out - i simply think the union ship took too long to turn the wheel and is in a slow arc toward an iceberg.
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Deirdre · Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 1:12 pm Post subject:

...and can't find anything newer than 1987 that breaks down the strata of earnings for union actors.
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todd ellis · Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 1:24 pm Post subject:

according to the hollywood reporter (and a link from bruce about 6 months ago)

According to the most recent SAG statistics, the average member earns $52,000 a year, while the vast majority take home less than $1,000 a year from acting jobs.

now - i'm not really sure how "average member" and "vast majority" work out --- but that's what it says.
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Deirdre · Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 1:54 pm Post subject:

Yeah, I saw that and can't really parse it.

This is from Backstage in 2001:

todd ellis · Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 2:02 pm Post subject:

Bob Bergen · CM Joined: 22 Apr 2008 Posts: 939

You all have no idea how valuable your comments here are. (This was my intention when I posted those links). You are saying everything I've tried to get across to the powers that be at the union.

This new initiative is at least in the right direction. The word I keep repeating to the union is "incentives." The buyers need incentives, actors need incentives, if we are going to bring more work into the union fold.

I popped a note to a board member today, asking for a contact email for folks to voice their concerns, ideas, and suggestions regarding all of this. They need your input. It could only benefit everyone if those of you who work in the non Union, flyover world, could share with the union. They won't listen to me. They argue that there's no hard data on the amount of non Union work, or that actors are even making a living doing it. Well, duh!!!! The union only gets union work reported.

B

Deirdre · Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 4:20 pm Post subject:

I

Bob Bergen.

Gregory Best · Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 10:11 pm Post subject:

The union also needs a paid apprenticeship program. A union apprentice plumber gets paid while learning the skills of a journeyman. I was a union HVAC service tech and we had free evening union classes and worked during the day on union jobs. The employers paid into a training fund so we didn't have to pay for workshops from possibly questionable coaches. Top journeymen taught the classes where we had to demonstrate competence skills to move up. This is something SAG/AFTRA needs.

Some mostly non-union groups like WoVo are discussing competency certification. The union needs to reach out to non-union people and learn what is needed to try to bring them into the fold while working on those who cast the work. It will take change on all sides. It will also need a way for the VO to earn a living in VO not waiting tables hoping for union work.

I currently belong to a union in my day job (I've had for 26yrs) with a 40 hour week, retirement, health, dental and eye care covered. No side job needed.

It is time for the union to re-invent itself in the 21st century.
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Jeffrey Kafer · Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 11:02 pm Post subject:

I'm curious about how other unions work. If I'm a machinist for a union shop like Boeing and I get laid off, can I get work as a machinist in a non-union shop and not run afoul of the union?
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Deirdre · Posted: Fri May 22, 2015 6:42 am Post subject:

Yup. Your union membership grants you access to work in a union shop, period.
You're not kept from working in a non-union business, but you are not likely to have the same kinds of rights and protections in that shop as you would when you've got a union contract covering your work.
And no matter what, you're not going to be hired as machinist unless you possess some mighty skills, and having a union card lets folks know you've had to compete with the best of your kind to get work in a high-paid shop.

You can work anywhere as an AFTRA Radio DJ. You have to be AFTRA to work at a station that is part of the union's collective bargaining agreements, but you are NOT kept from working at a non-union station.
Because. . .
The American Federation of Radio and Television Artists never claimed to hold sway over all broadcast outlets. Just the ones that embrace the union's agreements. In a union shop, you have the protections of the union-- a strong voice with which to negotiate with management, recourse when in trouble, and wages and working conditions you're not likely to get on your own.

It's pretty spiffy. The union stuff that works well works best in places where you go to work every day like a radio or TV station, or for many days. like a movie or a series.

It does NOT work well with freelance home studio stuff. And the idea that the union can simply claim hegemony over all the work I do in my converted pantry in Maine is an exercise in absurdity.
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Bob Bergen · CM Joined: 22 Apr 2008 Posts: 939

This is all good stuff!

Something to keep in mind. "The Union" covers many, many contracts. From vo (which in itself covers commercials, animation, promo, narration, etc.), to background, singers, dancers, broadcasters, film &V TV on camera, on camera commercials, and more. Necessary changes for the vo community may not be feasible or even doable as blanket adjustments with all congrats and performers.

We are a very unique animal in vo. Much of our work is done in the privacy of our home studios. Before Voicebank, audition availability was limited to just a handful of agents in just a handful of markets. And the internet literally handed the vo industry to anyone and everyone on a silver modem, creating a better business model and, for a huge percentage of working people, eliminating the middle man (the union). We have about 15 years of conditioning where the talent and the buyers have streamlined the process to make it easier and faster than it is doing it union. The downside to that is, even with a good payday, benefits are taken out of the equation. Many in this generation cannot relate to the concept of receiving benefits for doing their vo work. Many in the union cannot relate to the concept of NOT receiving benefits for doing their vo work. HUGE generation gap!

The purpose of this new "Best in the Biz" initiative is to bring more union work back into the fold. To bring union protections and benefits to more. This initiative does not concentrate on vo. It covers all commercial work, on camera and vo. Very different, as we all know. I would have preferred the union tackle vo separately as commercials are just one genre of vo.

But this is a start. And those at the union need to hear from you, the working vo people out there. You need to share your ideas, concerns, issues, etc.

They will not listen to me! I've tried. I have shared with them what you all have shared with me. Without mentioning names, I've shared similar notes and info posted by Todd, DB, Gregory, etc. They call my info "anecdotal," lacking data based facts to back it. Well, there ARE no data based facts when it comes to non union work. The union only has union based statistics. So, in a way, they are correct. My info is hearsay. But we all know it comes with truth.

I have spent 15 years traveling the country, teaching, discussing, preaching, etc., the ways of the union. And you, those working in your various markets around the world, have educated me on your day to day, what you make, the relationships you make with your buyers, how you've adapted how you conduct business by invoicing your buyers (a process we do not do with union bookings), the frustrations you've had in the past dealing with the union, the pros and cons of even joining if you qualify, etc.

Again, they won't listen to me! Perhaps they will listen to you. If there's a way, I can guarantee all of you would love to receive the kind of benefits I receive every time I work. Or, having the union go after those that don't pay. Or, those beloved residuals, which is really how I, and everyone else I know and work with, make our living. None of us make a living on session fees.

Please keep these comments coming. And if the administrator thinks this is best served in a different thread, by all means feel free to move it.

I am seeking out a direct union email contact for concerned actors to send their comments to. As of right now, the only email contact I can find in that initiative is one where actors report non union casting and work.

I am calling this my last and final offer. Getting kinda over it all. Gregory is correct, this is going to take some give and take from everyone. You all have nothing to lose and much to gain. If things don't change you are no worse off than you are now. If you decide you are content the way things are, I ask that you take the time to let the union know why. Again, they won't listen to me.

B

todd ellis · Posted: Fri May 22, 2015 7:16 am Post subject:

bob - i feel your frustration - you're a great guy with a good heart - i appreciate what you have to say.

Deirdre · Posted: Fri May 22, 2015 7:22 am Post subject:

Bob Bergen · CM Joined: 22 Apr 2008 Posts: 939

ConnieTerwilliger · Posted: Fri May 22, 2015 7:40 am Post subject:

I think it would be very hard to find an old business model that is working well without accepting the changes brought by the Internet.

Bob, if you do find a way for people to share their thoughts, make suggestions, open eyes, seek compromise, please let us know.

And thank you again for your efforts.
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