2022-23 ECS Section report
By Nikau Irvine, Acting Director, Entertainment, Crew & Sport
Crew on Gold Diggers filming in regional Victoria in April proudly show their union colours.
At the time of writing of this report our industry is grappling with shortages of skilled and experienced crew, whether it be at the Sydney Opera House or on film and television sets across the country. We hear industry bosses repeat the chorus of despair at the lack of qualified crew that are available.
Our message to employers is simple: insecure work, long hours and low pay are not going to attract new crew and they are certainly not going to keep experienced crew engaged in our industry.
As a section we have moved to act with urgency to enforce conditions and rights by engaging our members to defend their entitlements. We have seen members mobilise and act in sites that have never taken action before, Sovereign Hill and the Australian Centre of Contemporary Art to name a couple. Additionally, we have invested in health and safety approaches with the aim of empowering members to enforce safety at work. This includes at times having to educate employers on their obligations and requirements under health and safety legislation.
Significant investment in the past year has also occurred in development of staff, delegates, and activists so that we can work in partnership to address widespread and common industry issues. The introduction of the Secure Jobs, Better Pay Act is welcomed but we know we can’t rely on industrial legislation alone to deliver meaningful change. The government will not do this for us, producers will not do this for us, arts company bosses won’t do this for us, the studios and streamers won’t do this for us; only engaged union members acting in the best interests for all will deliver fairness, employment justice and decent, secure arts and entertainment jobs.
We know that workers’ rights enshrined in law are routinely ignored. To win, we need to constantly examine engaged and non-engaged workers in our industries. We have been educating members that money alone will never be enough to win. We need the action, support, and voices of workers so that we are not mere beneficiaries of employment that is insecure and uncertain but have a real voice at the decision-making table.
Pay, conditions and health and safety are entwined in a way that challenges individual workers to find secure employment that enables them to meet the everyday costs of life and raise and protect families from the ongoing impacts of insecurity and stress. These are the issues the ECS section prioritises so that we can be more relevant and meet the systematic needs of workers in the industry. These challenges mean that ECS must be strategic in developing improved ways of organising members and making changes to how we engage with leaders, activists, and delegates so that we can lift the capacity of our union to meet the challenges of the future.
The Electrics and Hair and Make-up departments on the SBS series Erotic Stories enjoy cake for being 100% crew during a break in filming in June.
Screen sector
Union capacity building in screen production has continued to expand despite ongoing attacks on crew conditions at both local and offshore levels.
Protracted negotiations are continuing with Screen Producers Australia (SPA) to reach agreement on an updated Motion Picture Production Agreement (MPPA). SPA negotiations have also provided an opportunity to negotiate an offshore television template agreement. The Writers Guild and SAG-AFTRA strikes have proved to be a stumbling block in pushing ahead.
What is clear is that our negotiating committee comprised of screen crew union members have had a consistent message throughout negotiations: crew need living hours, living wages and safety and professionalism at work.
Unfortunately, no real progress has been made in these negotiations, not because of a lack of engagement of members and not because the issues aren’t important, but because SPA does not recognise or respect the contribution crew bring to film and television production. This is a critical time and MEAA’s Screen Negotiation Committee is reviewing our next steps knowing that it will take significant member action to move SPA.
ECS members at Sovereign Hill in Ballarat fly the union flag.
Live entertainment and venues
Like screen, crew in live entertainment have seen a concerted effort from employers to reduce pay and conditions. A number of venues have built union capacity and collectively held the line to win improved bargaining outcomes in the past year: Australian Centre of Contemporary Art, Sovereign Hill, Adelaide Festival Centre, Marriner Group.
Sydney Opera House, Arts Centre Melbourne and Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre have all been in holding patterns this year where the focus has been on building membership capacity to take action. Health and safety and bullying and discrimination are two main issues members are facing. Members across the commercial theatre industry have been organising to improve pay and conditions as have those employed by Michael Cassell Group. Negotiations are ongoing.
Finally, I would like to acknowledge the efforts, time and dedication of those staff in this section who have developed their skills and capacity to undertake new approaches in this ever-changing environment.
I would also like to acknowledge the amazing work our ECS President Fiona Donovan has done over the last year. She is a fine union leader and works with such energy and enthusiasm even during difficult challenging times. Fiona brings an incredible depth of knowledge and experience of how the industry works to our union, which is invaluable in supporting the strategic and operational planning and decision making that is central to this section’s continued development and union capacity building.
