Before the pandemic, I had a few different union events and meetings I would go to. I went to the local board meetings to be an observer which was about once a month. I tried to go to social events like the holiday party. I went to unofficial union meetings through Union Working. And I was on my first committee with SAG-AFTRA, the organizing committee. I never could attend the organizing committee meetings in person because they were during my work time, but they always had a way for me to attend virtually. It was a little odd to be one of the few people listening in when a majority of the committee was together in person. But I made sure I was as prepared as I could to listen so I didn’t miss anything I needed to know about.
When everything shut down, the union had to focus on what was most needed by members. Those things included departments like safety (since people were working) and residuals (so people could be paid). A lot of the staff had to be furloughed so there weren’t as many staff members as before who could help out with different committee meetings. So the organizing committee wasn’t able to meet. While that was unfortunate, I understood why other parts of the union needed more focus.
But things are starting to slowly reopen here, so that means that things are also starting to pick up again. There are still a lot of things that aren’t back to normal yet, but it’s starting to get there as more and more people are vaccinated. And because they are opening up again, we finally had our first organizing committee meeting since the pandemic.
This time, nobody was at the union for the meeting. Everyone was on Zoom together and I think I preferred that. It was nice to be able to see everyone’s face and to have it easy to know who is talking. And when we had someone presenting information, they were able to do a screen share so we could all see the slides instead of me listening and taking notes (and getting copies of the slides after the meeting). And it was a little easier to hear everyone since everyone was in the same system versus having one microphone in a larger room where some people might be closer or further from it.
But what I liked most about it was that it happened. I have missed feeling like I’m involved in the union. It has become a big part of my life and I don’t know if I really understood that until I didn’t have it. And while I have tried my best to stay informed about what’s going on, I know I haven’t been doing a great job at that. When I’m attending meetings, I’m much more aware of union news than I am when I’m just looking it up on my own. And like with so many things I haven’t been able to do over the past year, I think I didn’t realize how much I missed and needed this until I got to do it again. I didn’t forget about being involved, but there was so much that I was missing that I couldn’t pinpoint anything specific. But after this recent meeting, I realized how much this meant to me and how much I crave it.
There’s no timeline yet for things being back to how they were. I know that there was an announcement that things should be 100% open again in CA by mid-June, but that’s not a guarantee. We’ve all learned over the past year how quickly things can change. But I’m hoping that if things are really able to open by mid-June, that means that we will also be closer to being back to the regular schedule for union meetings. Even if they have to be virtual for a bit longer, I’d love to have these as a part of my routine again.
And while I am waiting for the next meeting, no matter which group or committee it will be for, I want to work on catching up on news and information that I might have missed. I want to find ways to learn and stay on top of the news without the meetings. It won’t be easy, but I know now how important that will be. Maybe this means that by the next meeting I will have things to share. I usually am more of a listener, but I can empower myself to be a more involved and active member.
I’m going to think of this first meeting as the start of things picking up again for me and my work with union service. I hope that is true and I will have more union events to share on here coming up. I love being able to share what I learn and know when I can. And hopefully, I will be able to do that more often between meetings and my own efforts in learning.
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