When an actor or stage manager is hired for a show and receives an Equity contract, the rulebook for that contract becomes their bible for the length of the job. It not only delineates baseline terms of compensation, but it also contains job responsibilities, safety provisions, travel and housing rules, time off policies, media provisions and much, much more! While individual members can always negotiate for additions to their contract, the Equity agreement may seem to spring up with a job offer, fully formed and ready to guide the term of employment. However, the reality of what goes into each rulebook for an agreement is far more dynamic.
"Some of the most moving productions grow from a great deal of friction and compromise. Equity agreements are a bit like that."
Theatre artists know that what the audience sees is the product of a massive undertaking long before the curtain rises, involving many workers collaborating to create something cohesive. Some of the most moving productions grow from a great deal of friction and compromise. Equity agreements are a bit like that: formed through give and take as the union and the employers across the bargaining table constantly navigate the reality of the business to create contracts that serve the needs of both parties. They are also each unique. While there is significant overlap among many Equity agreements, each one has specific content not found in others. The process to bargain these agreements is similar: While there are labor law and union policy that provide the common bones of each negotiation, each "room" presents an opportunity to adapt in a way that best serves the contract and the members who work on it.
"A negotiation is a dialogue between the stakeholders in the room: Equity members, staff and the employers," said Equity Assistant Executive Director for the Western Region and Contracts and Membership Alison Harma. "As with most dialogue, you can't always predict what the other party is going to say or do. You have to listen, think creatively and expect the unexpected. Most importantly, the individuals who negotiate the contract must keep a clear vision of what our members need in those specific workplaces so we can be sure the decision we make best serves our members."
Let's take a journey through the bargaining process to see all the steps – and all the people – involved in crafting an Equity agreement. (And for a primer on labor lingo, follow along with the bargaining glossary!)
Phase 1: Information Gathering
Time: Roughly six to nine months before a collective bargaining agreement is set to expire.
While each individual Equity member signs a contract, the terms of those contracts are outlined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement, or CBA. The length of a CBA varies, but most expire every three to five years. The union and employers ideally want the new CBA to be ready to go by that expiration date, so the work begins far, far earlier – sometimes years!
"It's important to discuss issues long in advance to prepare, prepare, prepare!" said Central Regional Vice President Sarah LaBarr, whose negotiation experience includes chairing Central Independent Theatre and vice chairing League of Resident Theatres (LORT) and Council of Stock Theatre Committees. "With lots of time and input from members, the negotiation team can craft the best proposals possible that will benefit the most members."
First, a note about who the Equity staff and members are who have taken on this responsibility. Some agreements, known as promulgated agreements, operate on a small scale. That could be the new Independent Theatre Contract, which is highly individualized to a specific workplace, or a contract for individuals working across different theatres like the Single Engagement Agreement. These are handled in an informal back-and-forth with an employer, often solely by Equity staff before being ratified by the appropriate contract committee. Then, there are "multi-employer agreements" (like the League of Resident Theatres or the Broadway League), CBAs between the union and a professional association for producers at a number of different theatres.
These agreements tend to cover many more members on a regular basis with consistent working conditions. These are the agreements that have dedicated teams of members working closely alongside Equity staff: contract committees that chart a course to the bargaining table, and a negotiating team that selects the final proposals and sits at formal bargaining sessions to determine the terms of the renewed contract.
"From day one, union staff and member collaboration is critical for a successful negotiation," said Assistant Executive Director for the Eastern Region and Discrimination and Harassment Calandra Hackney. "Members provide the lived experiences that speak to the needs of individuals working the contract, and the union staff has the knowledge and expertise to determine, strategically, how to take exactly what our members need and try to achieve the best collective bargained agreement possible."
"I love being in a negotiation and seeing a member share an issue they experienced in a workplace and watching staff jump in to help craft a proposal or contract language to address the issue or pull statistics that support the need to address this concern," said Harma. "When we collaborate in this way, we are able to do great work on behalf of all Equity members."
Contract committees have many rules that guide the process; for example, committee chairs must be members of Regional Boards. New chairs are selected either when the previous chair steps down or at the beginning of a new bargaining cycle. Interested electeds run in internal elections at National Council or Regional Board meetings, where their fellow officeholders vote. (Contracts covering work thathappens in multiple regions fall under National Council's purview, while those specific to certain geographic areas belong to that respective Regional Board.)
Then, it is up to the chairs to decide who sits on their committee (members can apply to join on the member portal). The committee will oversee the process of getting to the table, but not necessarily sit at it – more on that later. There are specific rules about including a certain percentage of members who are new to the committee with each regular election of its chair, to strike the balance between maintaining continuity and hearing fresh voices. The chairs also need to select vice chairs, elected peers who are qualified to chair in case they need to step in during bargaining for any reason. Once again, their elected peers will get to vote to approve committee appointments. All contract committees have staff support who are an integral part of the process.
"Some of the most moving productions grow from a great deal of friction and compromise. Equity agreements are a bit like that."
While contract committees and negotiating teams cannot function without members who work the contract, you may not get selected for a team right away. But members urge their peers to keep trying as the needs of the team can shift over time.
"It took a couple years of applying for committees before I was approved for any, and I filled a spot on the negotiation team because I was in a region (Western) and in a group (stage managers) that was underrepresented on that team at that time," said Laura Zingle, who has served on LORT and Western Independent Theatre Committees. "So if members want to get involved, keep trying! ... You never know when it could be your time!"
Another great way to get involved in a negotiation is by volunteering for a Contract Action Team, ready to spread the word about how negotiations are going and how to push forward if the going gets tough (more on how they help later).
With the team ready to put in the work, long before Equity goes anywhere near a bargaining table, the union will need to understand what members want most. While members of a contract committee typically have experience on the contract, it's important to hear from as many members as possible who have worked on the most recent version of the contract and look for trends and recurring issues among their feedback.
A core part of this fact-finding mission is surveys, sent to members who have worked on the contract in the most recent cycle or two: They make it simple to give feedback and easier to find patterns. But contract committee members will also hold one-on-one conversations, and in some cases the union will hold town halls or focus groups for members to share their thoughts.
Lay members can do more than share their experiences; they can volunteer to serve on the negotiating team, an experience electeds and members at large alike say makes a massive impact.
"Non-elected members usually have a very different perspective than electeds," said Equity member Rachel Sturm, who has volunteered on two New England Area Theatres (NEAT) negotiating teams. "Having a mix of perspectives and voices on the team is so important. Electeds can speak to language that is trying to be universalized in contracts, while non-electeds can question how certain things do or don't pertain to the market the contract is focused on."
"While I work with rank-and-file members on contract all the time, making theatre together is different than making a contract together," said First Vice President Wydetta Carter, whose contract co-chairing has included Touring and Chicago Area Theatres and has served on teams like Production and LORT. "Siloes are the enemy of solidarity. Together, we represent a more holistic view of how the union works, and we learn so much from one another."
Phase 2: Proposal Selection
Time: Roughly three months before bargaining is scheduled to begin – the earlier, the better!
Once Equity has had these exhaustive conversations, it's time for the negotiating team to digest all the information and put it in the context of the union's broader work. The voices of members who work the contract have to stay center stage, but now other perspectives are brought into the conversation.
First, Equity's National Council sets priorities for practices or values that are important to put into contracts whenever possible. And this is where this article gets vague, because the union has to play it close to the vest! A crucial part of a successful negotiation is maintaining confidentiality about what it is most important that Equity gain at the bargaining table… and what might get pushed to another negotiating cycle. If word gets back to a bargaining partner about Equity's strategy, they could leverage it against the union at during negotiations.
The team will usually need to review proposals submitted by cross-contractual committees, which represent groups whose concerns apply across CBAs. A key example are the committees for the Equity job categories of principals, chorus and stage managers. Maybe stage managers have concerns regarding preproduction, or chorus performers may have hope to improve increments, pay bumps for taking on additional duties like dance captain.
Another example is the Equal Employment Opportunity Committee, addressing protected characteristics and the unique needs of members. Each of these committees may highlight concerns that did not come up in a majority of surveys or member conversations but are crucial to serving the needs of everybody who will be working on an agreement.
Coming to this moment can have unique challenges.
"Sometimes we get boilerplate language from a cross-contractual committee, and we do have to ask, "Does this thing happen on this particular contract?,'" said LaBarr. "I've seen proposals that aren't necessary to put across the table because they aren't applicable to the contract we are negotiating. Good preparation by the team sniffs out the proposals that are more feasible this time, allowing the focus on the true interests/positions that bring the most benefit to the most Equity members."
When sorting and prioritizing the different requests of different groups, the consensus is to default to what the members say they need and focus in on the high priority issues that are widely-felt by the most members.
"Sometimes we get proposals from two different committees that are at cross purposes," said Ariane Dolan, whose negotiating committee service has included chairing the Dinner Theater Agreement and vice chairing COST, Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) and Musical Stock and United Attractions (MSUA), as well as serving on several other teams. "For me, I always want to go back to the survey results – what do the members who actually do this work say they need? That is why it is so important to try to have as many people as possible on the team who have direct experience working the contract."
"A strong proposal has three elements: They are deeply felt, widely applied and achievable."
Now, the negotiating team synthesizes everything on their list into formal proposals to bring to the table, keeping important questions in mind: How big might the changes be from one iteration of the CBA to the next? Where is there room for compromise, and where is there not? What terms might it be more or less feasible to convince employers to accept? And how many proposals is the right number to bring to this negotiation?
"My strategy is always to make it as hard as possible for the employer to say "no,'" said Equity Assistant Executive Director for the Central Region and General Counsel Andrea Hoeschen. "Usually that means a tight package that addresses the priorities that most impact the day-to-day lives of actors and stage managers, while leaving producers with as much operational flexibility as possible. Sometimes it is necessary to challenge how an employer runs a theatre, but a lengthy, complicated package that micromanages a theatre usually doesn't get to "yes' very quickly – if at all."
"The foundation of a solid proposal is that it identifies a problem faced by workers in the workplace," said Third Vice President Erin Maureen Koster, whose negotiating experience includes chairing the Eastern Committee for Independent Theatre and serving on the negotiating teams for the MSUA, COST and Off-Broadway Agreements. "Once you understand the problem, then it becomes a question of asking, "What's the best way to fix this problem?,' and, "Is the best solution to this problem a change in the contract?' … Lastly, you have to consider how much of the membership will be impacted by fixing the problem. And while problems that affect lots of workers are often considered to be the most 'solid,' we must never forget that often the biggest problems impact only a handful of workers, and all workers deserve to have workplaces that work for them."
"A strong proposal has three elements: They are deeply felt, widely applied and achievable," offered Equity's Director of Organizing and Mobilization Stefanie Frey. "Not every proposal needs to have a direct impact on every member, but they need to inspire solidarity, to bring members together in support of a goal."
Something else important to consider is what communication with members will look like throughout the process. Many negotiations include "Dispatches" sent to members who work on the contract and posted on the member portal that let the rest of the union know how the process is going. This means proposal selection also includes asking: What topics will get members excited? What will inspire them to follow the lead of the Action Team (if necessary) in showing the employers that the team has support far beyond the bargaining room?
Staff involvement here is crucial in helping a committee avoid getting stuck.
"Equity's professional staff can provide negotiating teams with tools and context to use their leverage and reach the best possible agreement." said Hoeschen, "We may know about how a certain proposal went over at a different recent negotiation, or we may have knowledge of how labor law impacts both our options and management's options. We're also going to bring the context of what the union's resources are for a fight at the table or any other number of insights that won't come up in a survey or from a committee."
When the committee is ready, its chairs formally present their proposal package for approval, and potentially final changes. Who approves this package depends on the contract; it could be National Council or a Regional Board. But this is an opportunity for more oversight and debate. Is this the slate of proposals that is going to put the union in a position of strength? Is it realistic? Does it account for the needs of all performers and stage managers? When a governing body agrees that, yes, this is the final selection of proposals, it shifts a transition from strategizing on what to bring to the table to focusing on the task at hand – actually bargaining.
"It's a moment of clarity for me," said Equity member Brian Robillard, whose negotiating experience included two cycles of the NEAT Agreement. "After years of working on the contract and saying, "Things would be so much better if blank,' having that moment where we say, "These are things that can improve working conditions for being a stage manager or actor in Boston.'"
Phase 3: Negotiating
Time: Beginning any time from six weeks to two and a half months before a CBA is set to expire.
The big day has arrived: the first day of bargaining! On Equity's side are the members of the negotiating team, technically a different group than the contract committee, but usually with some overlap. Not everyone will be available, but there will always be a chair or vice chair present. This is another way that staff involvement is key; Equity respects that member volunteers could be called away any given day for work, but union staff can make negotiating their top professional priority. Staff might include business reps, assistants, organizers and others; the lead negotiator will virtually always be senior or executive staff. In some cases, a lawyer for Equity might also be present.
While Equity has been hard at work, the employers have likely been undergoing a parallel process. In the case of multi-employer CBAs, it is up to that group to decide who gets to sit at the negotiating table on their behalf. Some agreements are single-employer, where everyone on that team represents one theatre or producing entity.
The bargaining table might be literal, but it could be virtual. Since the onset of COVID-19, it has become more common for meetings to happen over Zoom, which can be especially convenient for national contracts where members might be contributing from all across the country. This and other details are established when Equity staff meets with an employer representative as bargaining is about to start to establish ground rules for what's about to come. Ground rules range from simple logistical matters – like the starting agenda to who will speak first to splitting the cost of meals – to more complex issues like raising the possibility of bringing in a federal mediator early on or discussing how to manage interest from the press in the process. Ground rules are usually informal, and they help start negotiations with clarity and a baseline of communication.
Both sides physically or virtually enter the room, and Equity begins. While the room may be very full, there are strict protocols based on the ground rules about who talks when to keep the meeting focused. For Equity, the main speaker will be the staff lead negotiator– it can be intimidating for a working stage manager or actor to sit across from the people who they want to work for in the future and tell them they want change, and a union employee does not have the same complicated relationship.
"Staff's job is to get the best possible agreement for the members," said Hoeschen. "We don't have to go to the theatre the next day and work for these producers – we work exclusively for the members. So we can take the assertive – or even aggressive – approach that serves members but is often uncomfortable for working actors and stage managers."
"It is so good to sit at the table and talk, because it reminds you that we are all just real people, trying to do the best we can for our group."
"Actors and stage managers are in a different sort of position as freelancers – you're not just sitting across from your bosses to hammer out a contract in your workplace, you are facing people who have the potential to hire you (or decide not to hire you) at any point in the future," said Zingle. "That said, it is so good to sit at the table and talk, because it reminds you that we are all just real people, trying to do the best we can for our group. We did something that I'm not sure happens in every negotiation – we all took the time to introduce ourselves and share stories about our experiences in the workplace, which again drove home that we are human."
The Equity lead negotiator makes their opening speech, laying out in broad terms what they want from the new CBA, and why the members need these changes. Then, the employer does the same, making their initial offer for what they say they can manage for the next iteration of the contract.
"This is always the most nervous-making part and one of the times you really have to engage your poker face," said Sturm. "The first exchange across the table often includes their proposals and sometimes there are inclusions that are genuinely ludicrous. It's also one of the times I'm so grateful to have a seasoned negotiator on our side."
The tone in the room can range, depending on factors like how difficult bargaining was last cycle or if there have been any big changes to tackle this time around. But the mood starts civilly; everyone wants to focus on the shared vision of the finished CBA.
"There's a lot of pressure to deliver," said Koster. "But like all negotiations, it's important to remember that those sitting across from you probably feel the same thing. And they need you just as much as we need them. It feels like high stakes, because it is. But it's also fun to connect with your fellow workers and come up with solutions that innovate the industry."
As much as hearing what the employers are offering as an opening is important, this is also the moment to try to read their responses to the union's bigger asks. And even if Equity is disappointed by the initial proposals from the employer, this step of the process often builds a lot of confidence and serves as a reminder that the Equity team is well prepared.
"Equity is a progressive union, and we are often pushing our employers to think about things from a different perspective, but sometimes it's a bit of a guess on what an employer will accept," said LaBarr. "The first day of negotiations is always fascinating to watch the Equity staff set the tone with their opening remarks. Being on the team allows you to see how incredibly prepared the Equity side is compared to the employer side."
Inevitably, Equity is asking for terms more generous to the workers than the employer, and the employer is asking for greater flexibility or accommodations from the union. The big, unspoken question is – where will the two sides meet? Following these opening speeches, the sides exchange written proposals and adjourn to read and discuss these documents among themselves. These initial proposal exchanges don't always include all proposals approved for the negotiations – the sides may agree to begin with a certain category or subset of the package of proposals. Each proposal has the potential to evolve over the course of the process, and as each is finalized and agreed upon, it is considered to be a "TA," or tentative agreement. These individual TAs will make up the ultimate "tentative agreement" document that will get ratified into the official new contract.
"Many employers will take issue with even being asked about a new idea, and it can take time to move through the discomfort and point towards solutions."
"How much do we put on the table at that first exchange? That decision is at the discretion of the lead negotiator and the negotiating team," said Hackney. "For some contract negotiations, the first exchange could include all approved proposals at one time and for others, such as a first contract negotiation, the decision could be to put a certain category of proposals forward for the first exchange."
"It is exciting to finally be there to listen to the employer side and determine their wants and needs and look for places of alignment," said LaBarr. "The goal of collective bargaining is to get a deal, and deals happen faster and more efficiently when there is a good relationship with our employers."
Now both teams know more about what they are working with, and they probably need time to process the other side's offer. While this varies from negotiation to negotiation, the two sides may set a date to come back with their counterproposals, and Equity's negotiating team goes to work – sometimes that very same day.
It is time to begin the process of caucusing – extensive private conversations. Equity's team convenes to a private room to talk about what they heard and hear from the full negotiating team.
"It feels like a relief – when both sides are at the table, and each is mainly speaking only through the [lead negotiator or] chair and/or attorney it feels very formal, and there isn't much room for discussion in the moment," said Zingle. "When we were in a caucus, it felt like we could really let our feelings out, ask clarifying questions and fully discuss everything. You really get to know your team quickly in these meetings – emotions can run high, there can be less of a "filter' because people are tired, and you come to know what's really important to each member. It felt really good when we were able to come to agreements about how we wanted to respond to LORT's proposals and counter-proposals."
Caucus can be a quick check-in or last several hours, depending on what's on the agenda.
"Often the first part of a caucus session is getting out all the feelings that you've held in during the session across the table," said Sturm. "You get the feelings out and let everyone blow off steam. Then you take a breath, refocus and actually discuss the meat of whatever you're currently discussing. Often this means reworking language of a proposal item to re-present to the producers, and/or giving the staff member stories, language and parameters for what we want the producers to understand about the issue."
"For me, that's the most fun part – passionate people problem solving," said Western Regional Vice President Jeffrey Landman, whose negotiating experience includes multiple stock agreements, about caucusing, "Try pitching an 'out there' idea and let the team work it out until it's not so "out there.'"
Caucus is also an important moment for Equity staff to provide contextual insight and use their professional management skills to help the room reach internal consensus.
"Something that is a necessity for a caucus to reach consensus during negotiation is to ensure that everyone on the team has an opportunity to express their thoughts and opinions," said Hackney. "There is never going to be a time during any negotiation where everyone agrees all the time, and being able to create a respectful environment where everyone can contribute in the space allows for a level of cohesiveness that then creates a better circumstance for consensus."
When the two parties next meet at the table, the cycle continues, and if everyone is lucky, both sides knock out a bunch of proposals to which they can agree, as they keep a running list of what the terms will be for the comprehensive tentative agreement.
Each proposal can go one of three ways in caucus: Agreement, amendment into a counterproposal or withdrawal/rejection, where it is taken off the table entirely. From there, the focus will shift to fewer and fewer items as more and more proposals get modified and accepted, stretching out over the course of several bargaining sessions – and weeks may go by between sessions as scheduling allows. Financial terms are often the last for both sides to hammer out, and the final details of the TA can be some of the most fraught.
"The team will have a collective instinct about when they've hit the sweet spot."
"Usually the early days are more chill, and then the heat turns up as you clash a bit," said Koster. "Many employers will take issue with even being asked about a new idea, and it can take time to move through the discomfort and point towards solutions."
In the meantime, there is no formal policy on sending bargaining dispatches to members beyond the negotiating team, and the practice varies from negotiation to negotiation. But the bargaining team needs to keep in mind that many members outside the room are eager for updates and ways they can help – and that nothing published to our membership can be considered truly confidential. If the team feels that dispatches align with their strategy, members of the team write these summaries in partnership with a staff organizer, letting the broader union know anything from what the energy in the room is like to which topics are proving the most difficult to resolve.
If the clock on the terms of a CBA runs out, that is not necessarily a big deal. Legally, the terms of agreement will remain in place (with or without an extension date) until the new one is in place, and in many cases, the union bargains for a new CBA to have retroactive effect – which may mean after-the-fact pay bumps for Equity members! But what does often change is the expiration of a "no-strike clause"—Equity CBAs actually preclude the union striking mid-contract (standard in the labor movement), but if negotiations have stalled so long that the contract expires, it may well be time to start considering escalating action! In other cases, the parties may extend a contract – which is sometimes the necessary compromise to guarantee those retroactive payments.
If negotiations drag on, perhaps past the point of expiration, the Action Team's role is likely to intensify, working alongside organizing staff, communications and whoever else can provide professional resources. Recent negotiations that featured strong Equity Action Team involvement include the new Touring Agreement, when members handed out flyers about negotiations outside of union tours across the country, as well as the previous and current negotiations for the Second City Agreement, where volunteers run a social media account to keep members and the public alike up to date on how they can help.
The chances of striking notwithstanding, eventually, the dust settles, and both sides agreed to the fates all of the proposals – from acceptance to withdrawal – and the tentative agreement is complete. Negotiating is over!
"It's always a very mixed feeling," said Sturm. "On the one hand, there's a great sense of accomplishment. But there's also always things that you've had to let go or compromise on, and there can be a great sense of loss or hurt that accompanies those things. A good negotiation is when both sides got some things they wanted and also have things they didn't get. And so you have to learn to really highlight the wins for yourself and the team, so your head and heart doesn't get stuck on the things that you couldn't accomplish this time around."
"I've sat at quite a few negotiating tables and it's always a mixture of HOORAY and also OOF," agreed Koster. "The gains feel amazing. But the things you had to leave behind, the frustrating last assessments of how much farther you can push for that extra few dollars or that one more item can take a bit of time to get over. But generally, I've found, the team will have a collective instinct about when they've hit the sweet spot."
The new agreement is almost ready to roll out – but key steps remain.
Remember: Strikes at Equity do happen, but they are rare! If both sides of the negotiating table feel stuck, there are steps they can take before it comes to a work stoppage, such as taking intermediary direct actions, which might involve the Action Team mobilizing volunteers to hold a public event like a rally or handing out flyers outside a theater. It might also be time to bring in outside mediators to help get everyone across the finish line. Council has the authority to authorize the lead negotiator to call a strike.
Difficult negotiations are also an opportunity for members outside of the negotiating team to get involved. The negotiating team may call for public shows of support to remind employers how powerful Equity is when the going gets tough. Even if you're not on a contract negotiating team, you can still volunteer for a Contract Action Team, rallying your fellow members for anything from spreading the word on social media on what is going on to (if it should come to it) organizing a picket line!
Phase 4: Ratification
Time: As soon as is practicable once a tentative agreement is reached.
This process began not only with hearing from members working on contract, but checking in with the leaders elected to serve those members' needs. Just like there was a vote on the makeup of a contract committee or proposals list, it is time for one final formal approval. Depending on the oversight structure for each contract, the tentative agreement goes back to National Council or the relevant Regional Board for a vote. (First CBAs work a little bit differently, read more here.)
Usually, ratification happens at the next scheduled meeting of National Council or a Regional Board, but sometimes the union can schedule special ratification meetings with just a day or two of notice.
The chairs introduce their tentative agreement, with the staff involved in the negotiations explaining the details, speaking not only about what is in it, but sharing openly about what bargaining was like, why the team made the choices they did and why this is the best possible result right now.
Ratification is not just a formality, but an opportunity for Equity's elected leaders to talk out what happened and voice their excitement or concerns over a new contract. That said, although it is extremely rare, the ratification vote could theoretically fail. And in the meantime, the employers are going through their own ratification process, which might mean anything from a theatre getting approval from their board to a multiemployer group letting their producing members vote on it.
"Look what we did together. Nobody did this for us. We did this for us."
"After the TA, at that point there's so much anticipation," said Robillard. "You've worked so hard, you just want the validation of, "Yep, you did it'… I'm just bouncing up and down like, "So when can we talk about it, when can we talk about it, when can we talk about it?' I'm always so eager to share what new parts of the agreement there are with members and say, "Look what we did together. Nobody did this for us. We did this for us."
For just Production, Touring, LORT and Walt Disney World, council's vote is simply a recommendation, and the formal approval vote goes to eligible Equity members who have recently worked on the contract.
"When the tentative agreement came out and folks who were able to vote were discussing it online, there was of course some disappointment," said Zingle. "Since LORT is made up of a huge range of theatres all across the country, union members everywhere have a lot of different problems they want solved – which is totally understandable. The whole voting period, I felt like, "If only they knew how hard it was to get to this, they'd understand how hard we really fought and why we felt we made good gains.' But you can't talk about everything that happened at the table, and everyone's priorities definitely aren't going to align perfectly. So it was great to have our work validated by ratification [by vote]."
If the TA fails to pass ratification, the ideal (and usually mandatory) path forward is returning to the bargaining table to revisit what the sticking points were. However, eventually the employer can refuse, citing what's called "last, best and final offer," which means, take it or leave it. Once again, not ratifying a TA is extremely rare at Equity, and almost always, the tentative agreement becomes the new CBA!
The CBA takes effect as soon as the old one expires, or immediately upon ratification if that date has already passed.
Onward and Upward
Bargaining is a long process for gradual change. Equity gets one chance every few years to improve a CBA, and even then, no single negotiation process can accomplish everything the union wants. But it is a way that ideally finds the balance between negotiating from a place of strength with a sense of realism. The employer legally has to renegotiate with Equity every time a CBA expires, so each bargaining period is a step forward, a chance to make a contract better and fairer and adapt to changing times, economies and industries.
"Sometimes you achieve what I think of as a crack in the door," said Koster. "And it feels like nothing because you don't see an immediate change when you go to work upon ratification. And often workers don't even notice it. Then the next time, you kick the bottom of the door until you can slide an arm or leg through. Then maybe a couple of workers will feel the impact. It's hard to accept the length of time some changes can take, but if I focus on the totality of the deal and remember the things that will be true right away, that helps."
In the meantime, members who serve on negotiating teams go back to working on- or backstage with a stronger sense of ownership of the contract, and the ability to better communicate with their colleagues about the work.
"Participating in contract negotiations opens your eyes to both how our union works and how our contracts work in a way that you truly cannot understand unless you've been through the process."
"Participating in contract negotiations opens your eyes to both how our union works and how our contracts work in a way that you truly cannot understand unless you've been through the process," said Sturm. "Every tiny piece of language is a labor of love from the contract committee. You learn how hard fought any gains are, and how often you have to let go of certain wants in order to focus on something that is more important in that moment. You also get much better at reading contracts and understanding that language."
"It certainly makes me more aware of how much work goes on behind the scenes to our benefit," said Dolan. "I am able to defuse dressing room myths and help other members and future members understand the rule book. I've personally become pretty good at helping to build consensus, and better at listening."
The process is never frictionless, and the results are never perfect, but Equity members who serve on bargaining teams take it as the sign of their direct impact on the industry, their chance to sit across from those in power and claim some of that power, too.
"One of the reasons I even got involved in governance itself was to actually create a way and a path for our members to live the career they want to live, to negotiate with our theatres and producers for a contract that is reflective of the work that we do," said Carter. "We're all in the same room battling back and forth to see the positive outcome which is: an agreement that has mutual respect and that will always continue to grow every time."