Federal President’s message for 2023-24
MEAA Chief Executive Erin Madeley speaking at a rally against NSW government screen cuts on September 20, 2023.
A message to all members from Federal President Michael Balk from MEAA’s 2023-24 Annual Report.
It is a great honour to be introducing myself and this first annual report to my fellow MEAA members as our union’s Federal President. To have been chosen for this role was never something I imagined when I embarked on my path as a performer and first joined Equity in 2002.
I was born on Bundjalung country and grew up on the lands and waters of the Yaegl and Gumbaynggirr people. By trade, I’m an actor and producer and I currently live and work in Meanjin.
My values as a unionist were instilled in me by a family member who worked in the screen industry, and whose most important piece of advice to me at the start of my working life was to gift me an Equity handbook and suggest I join the union if I was serious about my career. From there, I became an Equity delegate, Federal Councillor, Branch President and then a MEAA Board member almost by osmosis. It could not have happened without the mentorship of more senior members of the union who saw something in me that I was not aware of myself at the time.
When I was formally confirmed as MEAA Federal President, my initial task with our membership and staff was to reflect and consider deeply on who we (collectively) are, why we exist and what we must achieve. I travelled around the country with our leadership team to meet with and hear from MEAA members. This exercise confirmed our unity is more profound than simply our membership of MEAA.
Story. It’s a culture that’s united humanity since the very first sunrise. Australia’s own First Nations people have sung their geography, danced their stories and painted their history for millennia. Today, as the diverse group of storytellers that form our union, we continue this practice.
We are our stories. Our work reflects our communities, enriches our lives, and informs and shapes our collective culture. Our stories deliver lifeblood; art and truth to our world.
Reflecting on our year, there is much to celebrate. We led successful campaigns and delivered some great industrial outcomes across the board. MEAA made important contributions to the wider union movement at the ACTU Congress in Adelaide in June. We have engaged well with our members and made meaningful contributions to our communities at large.
Following the elections earlier this year, we welcomed many new federal councillors and delegates. And, of course, we’re now stronger with new members across all sections and branches of our union. Our people are our power. I’m encouraged by new energy and commitment from our growing membership.
Union work is never without challenges. There will always be setbacks. However, these are opportunities to listen deeply, learn and embrace leadership. And, despite adversity, our team has progressed with integrity and upheld our values. This perhaps is what I’m most proud of this year. Deliberate optimism; acknowledging our struggles, and choosing regardless to move forward with purpose.
Our mandate remains unchanged: to build a powerful union that delivers well-paid, safe, successful and sustainable work. To ensure we are respected and valued in our communities.
My manifesto is to ensure we are a strong, inclusive and democratic leadership, that works for the collective good of all workers in the media and creative industries. This also includes our communities, in all their various forms. I bring open-minded, openhearted leadership and continue to embrace new ways of achieving our goals.
We have a new four-year strategic plan, developed and refined over months of reflection, acknowledging that we need to change to build our relevancy and capacity in the future. The plan builds on what was working, pragmatically assessed and revised what was not, and, importantly, it will guide us with purpose into the future.
Our leadership and staff are already under way with the work. Artificial Intelligence and diversity of representation in our industries and workplaces are high on our agenda, as is delivering strong, effective industrial power that produces real change for our members. Tackling the anti-worker rhetoric that underpins the worst of the employer/workplace behaviours like wage theft, erosion of entitlements, racism, bullying and the lists of harmful psychosocial hazards is at the heart of our work.
We are positioning MEAA to meet the challenges we will face in the coming years. Change can be demanding. The focus on building union strength and capacity in member leaders and staff will take time. We need to ensure that change is about embedding new approaches and engagement and not simply using new language.
I specifically acknowledge Simon Collins, our immediate past Federal President, and our outgoing board for their immense contribution to our union over the past decade. One of the most important characteristics of our union is stability. And this is in large part due to the strong, tireless leadership of Simon.
I’d like to thank and pay respect to our staff led by Erin Madeley. I acknowledge that over this past 12 months, many of them took on expanded responsibilities and almost all our team have been learning new ways of thinking and organising. Thank you for your work and dedication to our union. Our success is only possible with the collaboration of our staff.
And, importantly, to our members — I acknowledge what each and every one of you has done for our union. And I celebrate every idea, every conversation and every action that you will take with us — to help succeed in our work as a union.
Our mandate remains unchanged: to build a powerful union that delivers well-paid, safe, successful and sustainable work. To ensure we are respected and valued in our communities.
Let’s embrace the challenge. Let’s be ambitious. Let’s proceed with deliberate optimism!
I look forward to working with MEAA members to write the next chapter of our story.
