To all my acting friends: I posted this (see below) in my friend Rosas comments and I do understand where shes coming from and how we as a union need to stand up for whats right. But, maybe you can help me. what I dont understand is the the cause. Is it worth the risk to stand up and fight for more money? Of course, if equal rights were involved, or some other worthy cause, then yes, STAND UP AND FIGHT!!!!!!!! But is this a worthy fight? I mean, when SAG went on strike a few years ago, what happened? Yes, SAG got their wishes but in the long term, many of the members now have a hard time finding work because of the influx of both AFTRA since the merger and new members from those free waiver shows like Gossip Girl and so forth. Instead of fighting for more money, if they want to offer us less money, perhaps we should instead STAND UP AND FIGHT for the studios to raise the quota even higher of the union talent they need to hire for film and television (before they can hire non-union) so more jobs and more work is out there for our union sisters and brothers. The Post: Im guessing some of these new members would never have received the waivers if they didnt work those jobs since perhaps they dont have the talent. But now that their members, and can apply for union jobs, they take jobs away from the rest of us. So is it our fault for not working those jobs, even if the pay isnt perfect? If unions were as strong as they were in the days, then it wouldnt be a problem. But look around, most unions, if their not already extinct, are slowly becoming. Dont let our starvation for a few more dollars every now and then be a causing factor for this to happen to the acting industry. Yes, $112 for 8 hours seems downright shameful compared to what we usually get, but $14 an hour isnt that bad for what we usually do. Plus its almost twice that of what non-union members make. Look at other jobs (both in and outside of our industry), people make less money and have to work a whole lot harder. I know, I know, there have been times when were standing out in the frozen tundra wearing a bathing suit, but how often does that come about? Dont get me wrong, yes we joined the union, paying all the dues, to be treated better. And we are treated better. Some shows pay more than others, but they do pay (and I could be wrong, but doesnt every show pay us more than our non-union counterparts?). I could go on, but youre probably telling me to shut the f**k up, Tom!!!!!!! Its just that I dont want to think that were so spoiled and in our own little world, we dont see whats actually happening out there. Dont let our greediness bring about our demise.
Posted on: Thu, 24 Oct 2013 03:21:24 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015