Tag Archives: union

Another Union Working Evening (or Doubling Up On Live Streams)

Posted on February 5, 2020 | Comments Off on Another Union Working Evening (or Doubling Up On Live Streams)

It’s been my job to do the live streams for the Union Working meetings for quite a while now. It’s an easy job to do and I know that a lot of people are grateful that I am able to do it. Many people either cannot make our meetings or they don’t live in LA, so having the videos posted allows so many more people to learn from what happens. Sometimes there are a few things we can’t have public, but I try to live stream as much of the meeting as I can.

But for the meeting that we had this past week, I got to run 2 different live streams. We had a guest at our meeting this time, which was a nice treat. Our guest was Chaim Magnum, who is an agent/owner of the LemonLime Agency. He was there to discuss his experience with submitting actors for commercial breakdowns and what he sees with union versus non-union work. And he wanted to have a live stream of the meeting for his Instagram, so I helped him with that. I had my iPad on a tripod running our usual live stream and his iPad being propped up with water bottles running his Instagram live. Fortunately, there weren’t many issues with running both, but it did make things a bit interesting for me.

Chaim first talked about his experiences as an agent, and then we had a Q&A where anyone could ask him questions. There were a lot of good questions about understanding how he sees the current state of the industry. There were questions about some of the new contracts we have and commissions that agents can take. And for some of the questions, we also had some staff from the union at the meeting to help answer things. It really was a great informational session and I’m so glad that I was there for it and could record it so others can watch.

Besides having our guest, we had some of the usual discussions that we have at our meetings. We discussed some current issues regarding unions and some of the battles that they are fighting. There are a few new tax policies that people were concerned about would affect them but our union was able to make sure that we would be protected. And we wanted to discuss some upcoming things and deadlines our union has.

Then we had a new thing that will hopefully be happening at the next several meetings. Being on a committee in our union is something that many people are confused about. They don’t know how to get on a committee or how to be involved even if they aren’t an official committee member. So the hope is that for the next several meetings, there will be a representative from a few different local committees so they could explain what their committee does and what opportunities there are to be involved now that the committee members have been selected. There were 3 committees at this past meeting and I think the plan is to cover 3 committees each time.

I love this idea and I wish this had been around years ago! I am getting more involved in committees now, but for a long time, I had no idea what I could do if I wasn’t a committee member or how I could try to become one. Now, I understand it significantly better, but there are still committees that I’m not completely sure what they do or if they have public events that everyone can attend. I’m excited to learn more about our local committees so when I have a chance to request to be on one the next time that I can be better about which ones I select. When you request to be on a committee, there is also space for you to write why you want to be on it. And by understanding the committees more, I can write a better pitch for why I should be selected. Having these little explanations of the committees is only going to benefit all members, whether or not they want to be a party of committee service.

After going over the committee information, there were a few more small updates about Union Working such as when our next meeting will be and some of the things we have for sale that help off-set the cost of renting the rooms that we have our meetings it. Even though we had a lot of information being covered in the meeting, we somehow ended exactly on time!

But before anyone could leave, we did want to take a big group photo of everyone at the meeting. We had a really good turnout and there were several people there that I haven’t seen before. I love that we have new people coming to our meetings and I hope they come back and bring some friends with them next time!

I didn’t stay too late after the meeting because I had an early morning the next day, but I did make sure I said hi to all of my friends who were there before I had to say goodbye and head home.

Overall, this was another successful Union Working meeting and I am so glad that I was able to be there. Not just because I got a lot of good information out of the meeting, but because I was able to help out with my live stream and doing a second live stream. The more people who can see what we are discussing, the better!

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Default ThumbnailA Low Key Union Working Meeting (or Getting To Fully Focus On What’s Being Said) Default ThumbnailUnion Working Support (or Celebrities And Middle Class Actors Unite) Default ThumbnailDoubling Up On Union Days (or Really Trying My Best To Focus) Default ThumbnailLearning So Much From Union Working (or Getting Ready For Contract Negotiations) Default ThumbnailAnother Union Working Meeting (or Rolling With The Technical Difficulties) Default ThumbnailFinal Union Working Meeting For 2017 (or A Commercial Roundtable)

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Being An Active And Interactive Viewer (or SAG Awards Live-Tweeting)

Posted on January 24, 2020 | Comments Off on Being An Active And Interactive Viewer (or SAG Awards Live-Tweeting)

I watch the SAG Awards every year. I love watching award shows about film and tv so I have watched them as long as I can remember. And since I’ve become a union member, I watch them because I want to see what my fellow members voted for. I like to see if the projects and performers I voted for were what a majority of the membership voted for. It’s fun to feel like I have a bit of ownership over the results of an awards show and this is the only one that I have that feeling with.

For most award shows, including the SAG Awards, I have done a bit of live-tweeting. It’s fun to be a part of a worldwide conversation as so many people are watching the same thing that I’m watching. And the discussions and debates that people have online about winners and losers are usually interesting. There isn’t a lot of negativity about the shows, which is probably one of the reasons why I like live-tweeting these and I’m not as much of a fan of live-tweeting political events. But for the show this past weekend, I had a slightly more serious live-tweeting job to do.

Since I have been doing the social media for my union slate, I haven’t really had to do a lot of live-tweeting of anything. This is probably not what should have happened, but it’s what happened. But this year, I wanted to make sure that I was using the slate’s social media to share things that happened during the show and make sure that the messages shared in speeches were shared with others. I wasn’t exactly sure what my plan would be, but I knew I’d be doing a lot of retweets and doing my best to create original tweets as I could.

For the first part of the show, most of the tweets I posted were just retweets from the official SAG Awards twitter account. This was an easy way to make sure the slate’s feed had information about who the winners were in each category. I did a few original tweets, but they were mainly comments on what was happening so I could do them during commercial breaks. I did also post a few snarkier tweets on my personal account because there were things I wanted to say that weren’t as professional as what I knew should be posted on the slate’s account.

But then I realized that I wanted to do more with the tweets I was posting for the slate. And I do love tweets that include some of the best parts of speeches. But there was no way to do things completely live because I can’t type that fast. So when I heard something that I knew I wanted to share, I had to rewind my DVR a bit and start transcribing it. Thank goodness for DVRs because I had to do a lot of rewinding and pausing. But I was able to get the quotes that I wanted to share.

I did post quotes from several of the acceptance speeches, but some of my favorites are the ones I got from President Gabrielle Carteris’ speech.

While trying to live-tweet actual speeches was a bit more stressful than making fun and snarky comments, I’m proud of the work that I was able to do. I am sure there are more efficient ways that I could get the quotes posted, but I need to figure out how to do that. I want to be able to do this again for the next SAG Awards and go even further with what I can share on social media. I might try to test out things with the upcoming Oscars since I know I will be live-tweeting for that. But I will likely do a majority of the live-tweeting on my personal account. I might share winners and retweets on the slate’s account, but that’s probably all I’ll do. And it will be harder with the Oscars since I will be watching at a party and won’t have the ability to pause or rewind things to type them out.

I know that having to live-tweet might have frustrated some people because it doesn’t necessarily allow you to fully enjoy watching it. And it stops the ability to live-tweet a bit too since I have to catch up to the live show during commercial breaks. But I didn’t mind it because it did feel very important to me to make sure our slate was sharing news from one of the most important nights for our union. I take a lot of pride in how I’ve been able to make our social media a source of information for both members and non-members. And while the SAG Awards are a bit more fun than some of the information I usually share, it’s still important to make sure people know what happens.

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Doubling Up On Union Days (or Really Trying My Best To Focus)

Posted on January 16, 2020 | Comments Off on Doubling Up On Union Days (or Really Trying My Best To Focus)

I wrote about how this past weekend I had a casual get together with my union slate. That was so much fun and I love how chill the afternoon was. It was so different from so many union events that I go to. And the day after that hangout, I had one of my more serious union things to go to.

I’ve been doing a good job with prioritizing going to our local board meetings to be an observer. As soon as I know what the date will be for the next meeting, I put it in my calendar so I can do my best to not schedule something else that day. I know that there may be something out of my control in the future that will prevent me from going to a meeting, but I can make sure I don’t plan a dinner with friends or something the same night. Making these meetings a priority is becoming more important to me the more meetings I go to. I don’t think I was expecting to feel that way, but it makes me excited that it happened. Hopefully, that will motivate me to go to more union events even when I’m not necessarily feeling up for them.

And the meeting this week was one that I wasn’t necessarily feeling up for. It wasn’t the event itself that I wasn’t feeling ok with, I was just having a really bad pain and nausea day. I took care of myself as much as I could before going to the union for the meeting. I made sure I was hydrated, took all the medications I could, and had some anti-nausea lozenges in my bag in case I needed them. And I told myself that if I had to leave at some point to sit on one of the couches outside the boardroom or if I had to go home, I could. But I really didn’t want to have to leave at any point if I could help it. The meetings are really educational for me and I find it very important to learn as much as I can. Especially if I want to try to be elected to the local board in the next election.

Just like with all the other board meetings I’ve attended, I really can’t talk about what happened in the room. Most things that were discussed were confidential and I have to sign paperwork before going in as an observer agreeing not to share anything. But I can share that there were a few things being said in the room that I strongly disagreed with, especially things that directly involved me or things that I have been working on. Hearing incorrect or misleading information being shared was very frustrating since as an observer I am not allowed to talk. I did discuss some of my concerns with my friends who are board members after the meeting so I could feel like my opinion was heard. And many of my friends felt the same way that I did so they did speak up about those issues when they could.

I think between feeling so lousy combined with the frustration of not being able to speak up really took it out of me. The meeting did run a bit longer than expected, but I was just exhausted when it was done. I felt like I had been through so much just sitting there and watching. I wanted to get back to my house so I could decompress from everything and I didn’t really worry too much about saying goodbye to all of my friends who were there. I did make a quick round around the room to say goodbye to who I could, but I wasn’t as focused on making sure I saw everyone I knew.

Once I was home and could reflect on the meeting a bit more, I was even more motivated to continue going to the meetings and seeing what I can do to be elected next time. I hate that I have to be so vague about things, but there were just so many things discussed that I would have loved to speak up about. I know that my friends who were elected are speaking up for me, but I want to speak for myself as well. And the only way I can do that is to be elected. The next election season is still about a year and a half away, but I’m now starting to think about what I can do outside of everything else that I do to help get elected as well as getting more people from my slate elected.

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Default ThumbnailAnother Union Meeting (or Getting Into The Routine Of Things) Default ThumbnailObserving a Board Meeting (or Finding A New Goal) Default ThumbnailAnother Observer Opportunity (or Watching The Local Board) Default ThumbnailLearning So Much From Union Working (or Getting Ready For Contract Negotiations) Default ThumbnailA Low Key Union Working Meeting (or Getting To Fully Focus On What’s Being Said) Default ThumbnailAnother Union Working Evening (or Doubling Up On Live Streams)

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A Fun Union Hangout (or Hopefully This Is The Start Of A New Regular Thing)

Posted on January 14, 2020 | Comments Off on A Fun Union Hangout (or Hopefully This Is The Start Of A New Regular Thing)

So much of my work with Unite For Strength has to do with serious things. A lot of my work is related to our election or different negotiations. And my year-round work with them is making sure our social media is a good source of information. That’s slightly less serious, but it’s still more about the business side of union service and not the creative or entertaining sides of it. I don’t mind that because I have realized how important the serious and business sides are, but I have wanted to get to know my fellow slate members in a more fun way.

And this past weekend, I finally got that chance. We had a casual get together for friends and supporters of Unite For Strength. We did have some business that ended up being discussed, but this wasn’t about preparing for an election or a contract negotiation. It was more about getting to know each other and seeing what we are interested in doing with our union service and what concerns we might have.

Having hangouts like this have been discussed among the slate for a while. I know that during election season we just don’t have the time or ability to plan things. And in the past, there has been a lot of focus on the serious work that needs to be done after people are elected. But now, I think we finally have the ability to do some more fun stuff as a group. There are more people who are leaders within the slate (technically I’m one of the newer leaders even if I don’t think of myself that way). So having more people to handle things means that people aren’t getting overwhelmed. We don’t have a specific person who is going to focus on fun events, but at least everyone has a bit more time to be able to contribute.

And I’m so excited to have more of these events because I want to bring friends with me to them. A huge thing that I am passionate about in the union is educating my fellow members. And I know this is something that almost all of us in the slate believe in doing. But getting people to attend official union events can seem intimidating. I’ve been trying to get people to join me as an observer for a local board meeting and that’s a struggle. Even though all you do there is sit and watch, it’s scary. And I get that. I was nervous about being an observer too. But now that I’ve done it, I see how silly my fear was.

But it’s hard to tell other people not to be scared if they haven’t gone before. So having some fun events where I know informed people will be there is a good option. It won’t be the same as an official union event, but it can be a way to ease into things or meet people who might be at the union events so that it won’t feel like you won’t know anyone there. Plus, I love everyone who is a part of my slate. These people are some of the most inspirational and informed actors I know and I would love for my friends to get to know them too. I feel so lucky that these people are my peers and some of them have also become my friends. I always seem to have pinch-me moments when I’m with them.

We don’t have our next casual hangout for Unite For Strength planned just yet, but seeing the response from others at the one we had has motivated me to make sure that we get a few planned. I want to keep this going because it’s also a great reminder for us to make sure that we are involved throughout the year and not just during elections. And it helps us get to know each other better so it’s not as odd to reach out to someone to ask for help or get a question answered. Being familiar with each other can only benefit us when we have to work hard together.

I hope that I will be writing about another event that we have as a slate soon. But even if it takes us a while to figure out things, I’m just glad that I got to spend an awesome afternoon with all of these amazing union members and that I got to do more with my slate that isn’t as serious.

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Another Union Holiday Celebration (or Being Social And Working Social Media)

Posted on December 17, 2019 | Comments Off on Another Union Holiday Celebration (or Being Social And Working Social Media)

One of the holiday parties I try to make it to every year is the SAG-AFTRA party. I haven’t been able to make it every year, but I do make an effort and know that even if I’m not feeling up for it that I will have a great time. I didn’t think I was slacking on sending in my RSVP for the party, but I guess I did because I was originally on the waitlist. I was a little sad that I might not get into the party, but I knew that it was my mistake for not sending it in the day I got it. But the day before the party, I got another email saying I was officially on the list and that improved my day a lot!

I was starting to deal with nausea on the day of the party, but I knew that I needed to go. I wasn’t planning on staying out too late, but I wanted to see my friends and I was excited about that. I arrived at the union early because I knew we would be lining up to get inside. I was in line standing right by the big tree in the lobby and I took advantage of that. I wasn’t feeling like having pictures taken of me, but I wanted to get some good photos of other people to put on my slate’s social media. I have been trying to work on improving the quality of the photos and I knew this tree was a great photo op.

I first got an amazing picture of my friend Shea (who had holiday decorations in his beard) with our union president, Gabrielle Carteris.

Then I realized that with so many of the union leaders being at the party, it was a great opportunity to get a photo of them for our main Instagram page. I usually am posting in our slate’s Instagram stories instead of the page, but I wanted to work on finding something new to post on our feed. And I think this one came out pretty good.

I only realized after I had posted it on all our social media channels that it looks like there are horns coming out of their heads. But fortunately, they found it funny so I was able to leave the photo up and not have to run around to try to take another one.

Once I was inside the party, I got some food to eat and then found a table to sit at with my friends. We didn’t take up all the seats at the table so we got to meet some members that we didn’t know before. Getting time to meet members and talk about how we are involved in the union is one of the great things about social events like this. There were no politics involved, there wasn’t any arguing, and there weren’t any stressful or tense moments like there can be at other union events. This was all about having fun and enjoying ourselves.

I did get one photo taken with some of my friends while I was there, but I really didn’t think about taking any others of me.

I spent most of my time at the party talking to friends of mine, but I did try to also introduce myself to people I didn’t know. But since I wasn’t feeling my best, I knew that I wouldn’t be making the best first impression.

When I was getting ready to leave, my friends said they were headed over to the photo booth area to take some photos. I figured I could wait a bit longer before leaving and went to take some photos with them. But we didn’t expect that there would be such a huge line and that it would move slowly. I’m sure it felt worse for me because of how I was feeling, but after waiting 30 minutes I realized I wasn’t going to make it much longer. Plus, when I’m really nauseous I break out in a sweat and I didn’t want to take a photo like that.

I decided to head home before getting that photo done and it was a little disappointing. But I knew it was for the best for me and my friends understood I wasn’t feeling great. I haven’t seen how the photo turned out yet (they are supposed to be posted online in the next day or so), but I’m sure it would look amazing and I’ll feel a bit sad that I wasn’t in it. But I also remember how relieved I felt when I got home and could work on feeling a bit better.

I was only at the party for about 2 hours, but I feel like I got a lot done. I was able to hang out with a lot of my friends, I got some amazing photos for social media that I really needed, and I got to feel like I did something social when I would have been laying on my couch otherwise. I think that was a big win for me and I’m glad that not only did I get into the party but that I made the choice to go. And I know that when they announce the party next year, I’m going to RSVP right away!

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Default ThumbnailSAG-AFTRA Holiday Party (or Getting Ready For Elections Again) Default ThumbnailThe First Holiday Party Of The Season (or A Meeting And A Mixer) Default ThumbnailFirst Union Working Meeting Of 2018 (or Union Strong For All) Default ThumbnailUnion Working Holiday Party (or Just Enjoying Being Around Good People) Default ThumbnailUnion Holiday Party (or Seeing A Lot Of People In A Little Time) Default ThumbnailFinding More Ways To Help Via Social Media (or Continuing To Share Good Things)

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Another Union Meeting (or Getting Into The Routine Of Things)

Posted on December 12, 2019 | Comments Off on Another Union Meeting (or Getting Into The Routine Of Things)

I have been really good at prioritizing going to the local board meetings for my union. I believe there are 8 meetings a year, and the most recent one I went to was the 3rd one. I’m not sure if the year is by the calendar year or if the year starts after the election and the new board and officers have been elected. But either way, I’ve almost made it to half of the meetings for the year.

After being able to go to these meetings, I now realize how I should have been doing this in the past. It’s not as scary or intimidating as I thought it would be and it’s not a huge time commitment. And the meetings have not been during times I work for the last several years, so there was no reason for me not to go. But at least now I’m making up for lost time.

The first local board meeting of the year/election term had a lot of observers. So did the second meeting, and that meeting had to have an overflow room because there were so many observers. This meeting wasn’t as packed and I have a feeling that it might not be as full from now on. I think there were a lot of people who wanted to attend after the elections who aren’t as interested in attending anymore. I hope that there will be lots of union members who want to be involved and watch our local union government working, but I know that the interest might fade. For all I know, I might not be as interested in attending in a year or two. I hope that I will be, but I can’t predict it. The positive about people not attending is that there will be room for new people to go. I’m still trying to get friends who are in the union to come with me, but I haven’t been successful at that.

Even though this was only my 3rd meeting, I already knew what to expect for the evening. Getting checked in as an observer has paperwork we have to sign every time, there is a “snack” (I would consider pizza a meal and not a snack), and then we have a member going over the rules for everyone so we know what we are allowed to do and what can get us removed from the room. And I’ve been able to sit in the same section each time so even that is routine for me.

This meeting was a little different from the others that I attended because our local president was not able to be there. So one of the local vice presidents was in charge. Having someone else run the meeting didn’t change a lot of it, but there were some things discussed that were not voted on because they didn’t want to vote without the local president there. There also weren’t as many board members there, but I think that was because of work schedules or being closer to the holidays. But there were enough board members to have the meeting which is the most important thing.

Besides having someone else running the meeting, the rest of the meeting was similar to what I have gotten used to. There were discussions about the different local committees, policies to debate about and vote on, and making sure that different upcoming events were announced so they could be promoted to the rest of the membership. In a way, I get a bit of a preview about what is coming up by being at these meetings. But everything that is discussed that is ready to be announced does get shared with all members. If there is anything confidential discussed in the meetings, the observers have to leave the room so the board members have privacy. But that has only happened once and they moved that to the end of the meeting so we all just left at that point instead of waiting to be let back into the room.

And as always with union events, this was also some time to spend with my friends. I got to hang out with my friends who were observers when we were in the room where we waited after checking in before we were led into the boardroom. And I got some time to talk to my friends who are board members after the meeting concluded. It wasn’t as social as other events because there is work to be done, but it is always fun getting to see my friends and at least say a quick hello.

The next board meeting is in about a month and I already have it on my calendar so I save that time. And as soon as it is announced to all members that we can put in a request to be an observer, I’m going to do it so that it doesn’t fill up before I get my name on the list. And maybe I’ll have more luck next month by getting a friend to come with me to the meeting!

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Union Working Holiday Party (or Just Enjoying Being Around Good People)

Posted on December 6, 2019 | Comments Off on Union Working Holiday Party (or Just Enjoying Being Around Good People)

Because Thanksgiving was so late this year, it doesn’t really feel like we have much of a gap between then and Hanukkah and Christmas. Holiday parties are already starting and Thanksgiving was just last week! I’m making sure I don’t try to go to too many parties because I don’t want to overdo it, but I’m also excited to see so many friends in a festive mood.

The first holiday party of the season was the Union Working mixer. It has been a while since there was a Union Working event because so many of the leaders of the group are involved in union politics. So they have been busy with the election and then the convention. But hopefully, soon we will be back to our regular meetings in the new year.

This mixer was much more of a holiday party with a little bit of information thrown in. I didn’t have to run a live-stream because the things discussed were mainly about how we will be back to our meetings in the new year, that we have been able to accomplish a lot this year, and we have a lot to accomplish coming up. There wasn’t much information shared outside of things specific to the group. It only took a few minutes for that to be discussed and the rest of the mixer was a party.

I hadn’t seen some of these friends since the convention so it was nice to get to see everyone. And there were a lot of new people at the mixer that I hadn’t met yet. It’s always good to see fresh faces at union events because that means more people are getting involved and taking some ownership of the union. One of the most important and common things that people say is that the union is us. So if you are upset with the union, you need to take action. You can’t blame a different entity because members make up the union governance. So we hold the power and can make sure that our voices are heard. So whenever I see new people, I feel like they understand that concept and want to make sure the union is the best and strongest it can be. That’s one of my motivations for being so active in the union and it’s really encouraging to see others do the same.

I was bouncing around the party talking to different groups of friends. I probably looked a bit crazy because I wanted to make sure I had a chance to talk to everyone that I wanted to. I was feeling good, in a good mood, and had nothing else to do but be social. I have to take advantage of those moments and I definitely did that during the mixer. And I had every intention of taking lots of pictures in front of the step and repeat, but I kept getting distracted by talking to friends. I only managed to get one photo the entire night.

It was so nice to be at a union event that had minimal discussion about politics. There were some people there who I know are a part of the other slate or don’t agree with my slate or union politics, but that wasn’t brought up at all. There was a little discussion about how there is so much blame going around that isn’t true, but that wasn’t blaming either slate for what was happening. It was more about why this blame is being put on anyone when it’s not something accurate. Nobody talked about the election or the results and there was no discussion about why things would be better or worse if they were different. It was just about people coming together for an awesome holiday party that all happen to be very passionate about our union.

My plan was to not stay at the mixer too late. I knew I had an early morning and I was driving a rental car that I didn’t love driving (my car had a minor mechanical issue and was at the shop for several days). So I didn’t want to drive home too late so I could sleep and I didn’t have to drive the rental when some people might be driving home a bit crazy from parties. I joked to a friend when I said goodbye that I was starting my rounds of goodbyes and hopefully I would be out of there within the hour. I ended up getting into so many different conversations and before I knew it the entire event was over and it was almost 2 hours after I said I was trying to say my goodbyes. But I guess that’s a sign of a really good party and that I was having a fun time. It was worth being out later than I wanted to because of that.

I’m glad the holiday party season kicked off with such a great party. And it was really nice having a union-related event that was just fun and didn’t feel like work. I definitely need more events like that in my life.

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Default ThumbnailUnion Holiday Party (or Seeing A Lot Of People In A Little Time) Default ThumbnailA SAG-AFTRA Party (or Finally Getting Photos With My Friends) Default ThumbnailAnother Union Holiday Celebration (or Being Social And Working Social Media) Default ThumbnailThe First Holiday Party Of The Season (or A Meeting And A Mixer) Default ThumbnailSAG-AFTRA Holiday Party (or Getting Ready For Elections Again) Default ThumbnailJust A Simple Dinner Out (or A Union Working Hangout)

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Another Observer Opportunity (or Watching The Local Board)

Posted on November 7, 2019 | Comments Off on Another Observer Opportunity (or Watching The Local Board)

When I went to the SAG-AFTRA local board meeting recently, one of the things on the agenda was when the next local board meeting would be. I made sure I wrote that date down because I wanted to make sure I didn’t accidentally schedule something else that evening. I really am trying to make an effort to go to all the board meetings that I can. First, because it will help keep me informed about what is going on in the union. But also because I want to get an idea of what my responsibilities would be like if I get elected to the local board in the future. Even though I was prepared to be on the local board if I was elected this time, I’m glad I’m getting this time now to truly understand what it would require and the work I would be doing.

Many of my friends are thinking the same way as I am with wanting to go to observe to understand the union more. So when we had the local board meeting this week, several of my friends were signed up to go as well. There were so many members signed up to be observers that they list was full and some people couldn’t request a spot ahead of time. They also have a walk-up list, but with so many people signed up, it was unlikely that everyone would get into the boardroom. There is an overflow room for people to watch the board meeting on a closed-circuit tv, so everyone who showed up did have a chance to observe.

I got to the union early because I wanted to guarantee I got a seat inside the room. Only the first 40 or so people to check-in get a ticket that allows them in the room. I was the 3rd or 4th person in line, so I felt a bit of relief when the check-in started. I knew I was going to be in the room and I could relax. They also provide some food for us, so once I was checked in I got some of the pizza and hung out with my friends in the holding room for observers.

I’m now getting used to the routine of observing meetings, so when it was about time to go inside we had a quick review of the rules and policies. Mainly, as observers, we cannot speak or contribute to the meeting. We just observe. We can take notes, but we cannot take photos, videos, or audio recordings. Since I had friends there as well, I knew that I didn’t have to stress out as much about taking notes since we could share. And the information I heard wasn’t confidential to members, so I could also ask people I knew on the local board to explain something or clarify something I heard.

I ended up sitting in the same seat I was in last time, which was good. I like being in the last row since sitting for too long can make my hips hurt. This way, I could get up to stretch if needed without disturbing too many people. And because the last meeting went long, I was prepared for this meeting to do the same.

But I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly things moved during the meeting. There were disagreements and things to debate, but much less than the last meeting. And there weren’t as many things on the agenda so even if they were taking time to get through something, it wasn’t delaying a lot of other things. Also, having fewer things on the agenda made things easier for me to follow. I was so prepared for things to run long that when there was a motion to conclude the meeting I was thinking that I was hearing it wrong. I thought maybe it was to conclude discussion for one thing and not the entire meeting. But the meeting ended almost an hour early after accomplishing everything that was on the agenda! It was a very nice surprise for everyone in the room.

Since we ended early, I went to a restaurant next to the union with a few people from my slate to hang out and discuss a few things. But most of our talk was about silly things and it was nice to get a chance to do that. I’m usually in work mode and serious when I’m with those people, but this gave us an opportunity to relax and have fun. I had a few moments where I was thinking “how is this my life?” because it’s still so crazy to me that these amazing actors are my peers and that they wanted to hang out with me. But it also gave me a confidence boost and made me think that I am in the right place and pursuing the right career.

The next board meeting is next month, and it’s already on my calendar. Unless something crazy happens with my schedule, I’ll be signing up to be an observer again and trying to make sure I get into the room. I will keep encouraging other members to do the same because I feel like this is so important to do and not enough members take advantage of this chance.

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Default ThumbnailAnother Union Meeting (or Getting Into The Routine Of Things) Default ThumbnailMy First Official SAG-AFTRA Duty (or Learning What’s In Store) Default ThumbnailObserving The Local Board Meeting (or The Beginning Of My Second Term As A Delegate) Default ThumbnailThe End Of The SAG-AFTRA Elections (or Being An Observer) Default ThumbnailSAG-AFTRA Local Meeting (or Coming To The End Of My Delegate Term) Default ThumbnailObserving a Board Meeting (or Finding A New Goal)

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A Full Convention Weekend (or Preparation Pays Off)

Posted on October 15, 2019 | Comments Off on A Full Convention Weekend (or Preparation Pays Off)

This past weekend was the SAG-AFTRA National Convention. It was my 3rd time going to convention as a delegate and it was amazing! Because I had been to 2 previous conventions, I had an idea of what it would be like. But this still had some new things for me because it was the first time that I had a bit of a leadership role within my slate. I also feel like this time I was significantly more prepared for all the resolutions and was more informed about what we would be voting on and what would be coming up.

Convention started on Thursday with the welcome reception. I have always gone to the welcome reception because it’s a great time to get to meet the other delegates from different parts of the country. I wish I had taken a bunch of photos because it was a really nice event. This year, all of the convention was happening at the Beverly Hilton (which was nice because it was much closer to my house), so it was a little different from the past 2 conventions. I spent my time at the reception saying hi to my friends that I knew and the delegates that I had last seen 2 years ago. I also got to meet a lot of new delegates and hear about their stories. It’s always interesting to learn about acting careers in other parts of the country, and I got to hear lots of journeys from my fellow delegates.

I didn’t want to stay too late at the reception because I knew the next day would be an early morning and a long day, but I was having too much fun and ended up leaving much later than I planned. But it did give me a chance to see a lot of people and be social since I knew the next few days would be busy and not have a lot of free time.

Friday was the longest day for me. We started early with convention and I started working my day job from my seat. I’ve done this every convention and it’s something I feel grateful I can do. I don’t take customer calls when I’m working from there, but I can do the online chats. Fortunately, work wasn’t too busy so I could pay a lot of attention to what was happening on the stage, but I did have a few moments where I had to turn my focus to my work to make sure that I did my share of the work.

We did our elections for the Executive VP, Geographical VPs, and Category VPs. My slate had a candidate for each of those and it was very exciting when we learned that we won! Everyone who ran for a VP spot was someone that I have gotten to know quite a bit during election season and I knew they would do amazing work as a leader in the union. When almost everyone else was enjoying their lunch outside, I grabbed my food and ate back in the convention room because I was still working. But fortunately, some of my friends did join me inside to eat and it was another great time to be social.

The rest of Friday was working on voting for resolutions. We had a lot and we knew it would take all 3 days. We wrapped up around 5 and then I got ready for the Convention Gala. I’ll write more about the gala tomorrow, but I again had a late night and knew the next day would be an early one.

Saturday was more of the same for me. I did work my job while there, but it was only for the first few hours and then I could just be focused on the convention. We did more voting for resolutions before lunch and after lunch, there were different breakout sessions we could attend. But instead of going to a session, I went to the NextGen Performers meeting. I go to NGP events from time to time, but this meetup was with different NGP committees from around the country. We discussed some of the resolutions that people had coming up so we could brainstorm and give feedback. And we got to learn about the different NGP committees in different parts of the country and see what things we wanted to do for the LA committee. It was a great meetup and I got a lot out of it.

Saturday afternoon was more voting before we concluded for the day. I had been invited to a casual dinner with some of the different NGP people and originally planned on going. But I was tired and knew I needed to get some things done at home, so I had to change my plans and just go straight home. I wish I could have gone, but I really needed to try to get some sleep and I know I made the right choice.

The last day of convention started earlier than the others, but we needed that time to finish the work. We got through voting all the resolutions which was a big accomplishment. There were more resolutions this year than any other year and it’s not easy to get through all of them. We did move quickly, so I was glad I knew a bit about all of them ahead of time so I wasn’t that confused and conflicted about how I wanted to vote. We also got to hear speeches from the Executive VP, Secretary-Treasurer, and President. I have been lucky enough to get to know them each during the election season, but they still continue to inspire me when they speak.

When the convention was done, it was time to take official delegate photos. And then it was all over. It was a very intense long weekend, but just like the past 2 conventions, I left exhausted and encouraged. It was overwhelming, but I loved having all the information presented to the group. I am more motivated than ever to continue with my union service. I want to keep making SAG-AFTRA amazing for those of us who are members now as well as members that will be joining in the future.

I was a bit sad when I looked back at the photos I took and I realized that I didn’t take that many. Most of them were from after the convention was done and I was running around trying to get pictures with my friends. But I have so many memories from the past few days and I don’t need photos to remind me of those. But I am glad that at least I have a few with some of the amazing people that I am lucky enough to get to work with.

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Default ThumbnailStarting My Delegate Term (or The First Of Several Meetings) Default ThumbnailIt’s Convention Time (or I’ve Been Waiting 2 Years For This!) Default ThumbnailTime For Convention (or I’m Ready To Get To Work) Default ThumbnailSAG-AFTRA National Convention (or I Had No Idea It Would Be Like This) Default ThumbnailThe Convention Gala (or Casino Night And Awards) Default ThumbnailThe Convention Gala (or An Evening Under and With The Stars)

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Observing a Board Meeting (or Finding A New Goal)

Posted on September 24, 2019 | Comments Off on Observing a Board Meeting (or Finding A New Goal)

When I was running for delegate and local board in the union election, I really didn’t know if I’d be elected to the local board. I was hoping that I would, but I also knew that realistically I probably wouldn’t. I’m a bit sad that I didn’t win the local board seat, but I was prepared for that loss. I’m still very excited that I was elected as a delegate again and can’t wait to get to work at the convention. But it’s still a loss of an election and I want to do what I can over the next 2 years to try to be in a better position to win a local board seat if I have the opportunity to run for it again.

I know a lot of the elections are about who knows you and that’s why many celebrities run and get elected. Some of them do give up their seats after that to someone who doesn’t have a name, but I’m proud that the more famous people on my slate that ran did so with the intention to serve. We did have someone who had to give up their seat because they were cast in a show, but that’s not something they knew when they were running. But there are other ways to be elected besides being famous. And that’s by participating in the union so others are aware of who you are and what you have done.

I have submitted my requests to be on both national and local committees, but I’m not in control of getting on those committees. So I have been looking at things I can do that are in my control and one of those things is going to as many local board meetings as possible and being an observer.

I have been an observer in the past, but those times have usually been when it was combined with convention orientation. I have been an observer once or twice outside of those combination meetings, but I haven’t been dedicated to doing so. There have been times that my work hours prevented me from going, but I don’t have that excuse anymore. So when there was a local board meeting this past week, I made sure to register to observe it and to keep my schedule clear so I could attend.

Because of confidentiality and other policies, I can’t say too much about specifics of what happened in the boardroom. But I can share some general things. I have to say it was a very different type of meeting than I have been to before. I did see a lot of partisan things happening in the room, and that wasn’t fun to see. I watched behavior that I wasn’t happy with. And I watched things happen that people claimed happened a different way. And while I was in the room watching the meeting, I realized how important it is for all members to observe these meetings.

The Los Angeles local board meetings are open to any paid-up member of SAG-AFTRA. I know that many members aren’t aware of that or have taken advantage of that. It’s so important to see what happens in the room so that people see the truth behind some of the campaign statements. I don’t know why I haven’t seen this until now, but I have been told by many members that this was the first meeting that they ever had been to that was like this. So maybe witnessing what happens wasn’t as important back then as it is now. But it always has been important and I now understand that.

So while I have made it a goal to attend as many board meetings as I can for my own benefit, I realized that my purpose is to do so much more than that. I want to spend the next 2 years getting as many members as I can to these meetings. It is so important to be an informed union member and going to these meetings is a great way to do that. Hopefully, after seeing union politics in person, members will be more motivated to vote or to encourage other members to vote. I would love to get our turnout to be much higher, and this could be just the thing to do that.

So if you are a SAG-AFTRA member in Los Angeles, please join me for a local board meeting. The next one is November 4th, but they are announced via email so you should be paying attention to the emails we get. It’s easy to register because you just have to send in an email. And you don’t have to do anything at the meeting but observe. You aren’t allowed to speak up, which can be frustrating when watching, but it also takes the pressure off of what responsibilities you have in the room.

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Default ThumbnailAnother Union Meeting (or Getting Into The Routine Of Things) Default ThumbnailDoubling Up On Union Days (or Really Trying My Best To Focus) Default ThumbnailMy First Official SAG-AFTRA Duty (or Learning What’s In Store) Default ThumbnailObserving The Local Board Meeting (or The Beginning Of My Second Term As A Delegate) Default ThumbnailSAG-AFTRA Local Meeting (or Coming To The End Of My Delegate Term) Default ThumbnailAnother Observer Opportunity (or Watching The Local Board)

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