VO-BB - 19 YEARS OLD!

Moosevoice · Club 300 Joined: 16 Nov 2012 Posts: 390 Location: Iowa

Maybe a stupid question but I've not been union ever...

If I were to do a union job and then be officially union, would that prevent me from doing non-union jobs?

I know I can do the option (drawing a blank on the name of it) where I get the union perks but don't have access to voting or 'screeners' .

Asking for a friend. And by 'friend,' I mean: me
; )

Thanks,
Moose
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www.moosevoice.com

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

Not a stupid question at all. You are referring to going fi-core, which is a dues paying non member. You actually have to turn your card in and resign from the union. You may not call yourself a SAG-AFTRA member on any of your promotional marketing, including your resume or website. The least important thing you would be missing out on is SAG Award screeners. Screeners are a luxury, but certainly not a union benefit. And let me elaborate on what you cannot vote on. That would be anything. From leadership to contracts. Meaning if you hate the way things are going at the union, when you do work union you will be a victim of leadership and contracts you have no say in. And it goes beyond voting. Every contract goes through a process called the W&Ws, where members are welcome to voice ideas, concerns and proposals for the upcoming contract negotiation. Fi-core actors may not participate in this.

And the answer to your question is yes, if you are union that prevents you from doing non-union work UNLESS the work is non-jurisdictional. There aren't many contracts that are. Also, every day actors convert non-union work union. Mostly non-broadcast work and (or) work that does not pay subsequent income, such as residuals.

As someone who has been a part of contract negotiations for decades, and has chaired the tv/basic cable animation contract negotiations the last 3 cycles, those who have chosen to go fi-core have really hurt their fellow actors when it comes to contracts. Some who would be SO beneficial have gone fi-core, often for a single job, which means I have not been able to use them on my negotiation committees. Many, if not most had no clue what they were not permitted to do once they went fi-core, including being a part of a negotiating committee. So, no, this was not a dumb question at all!

todd ellis · Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2023 6:23 pm Post subject:

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

melissa eX · Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2024 7:20 pm Post subject:

I'm just seeing this now, much later.

What Bob said but I'll elaborate on a couple of things. You can do 2 or 3 union jobs before becoming a must join. I think it's 2 jobs and then after the second job you have 30 days in which you can do all the union work you want without joining but after those 30 days for the next union job you HAVE to join. or maybe it's 3 jobs then 30 days.

Bob touched on corporate work. This is work that is super easy to source non-union and convert to union through a signatory paymaster, no hassle at all to you, client or anyone. As long as it complies with the co-ed contract terms - rates etc. So if this is the bulk of non-union work you do, you can continue to do it by converting.

There is non-jurisdictional work you might find surprising. For instance most basic cable promos are non-jurisdictional. What this means is there is no national collective bargaining agreement. So you can do these without being in violation of the rules. There are a couple other areas as well.

If you're in a "right to work state" you never have to join the union. If you do a union job (this happens a lot in Atlanta) in a right to work state you get Taft-Hartleyd for each job but you don't have a maximum before joining. You don't have to join. This does NOT mean that a union member can do non-union work in a right to work state. Nope. It means a non-union performer can do union work without joining.