There is a very good reason that our opponents don’t recognize the Solutions presented by Kent McCord, Esai Morales and their Membership First slate…Our Solutions place the interests of the Screen Actors Guild First…and our opponents do not believe in that philosophy!
OUR SOLUTIONS...
RUNAWAY PRODUCTION:
Membership First will pursue all approaches to solving this issue, including actively working with FTAC and the AFL-CIO to pursue a U.S. Trade Commission investigation into Canadian film subsidies. Runaway production is a National problem not a Local problem.
DIGITAL JURISDICTION:
Membership First recognizes that the so-called “jurisdictional war” we have been dealing with is a result of a series of negotiating mistakes of the past that have come back to haunt us. Correcting those mistakes must come first to protect our existing contract terms.
S.A.G. must work with AFTRA to see that their recent resolution of the convention to establish the elimination of existing rate disparities for primetime dramatic programming as its primary objective in the negotiations comes to fruition. That, and their additional resolution to reaffirm its commitment to Phase I during the upcoming Commercials and Primetime negotiations, eliminates any concern that we should have of a jurisdictional war.
If there were ever an attempt by another union to undercut our existing rates, S.A.G. would have no choice but to actively seek relief from contract undercutting and jurisdictional infringement from the National Labor Relations Board.
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ATA FRANCHISE AGREEMENT:
Membership First will uphold and enforce the Screen Actors Guild Constitution that requires that all agents representing Guild members be signatory to our franchise agreement…and that all Screen Actors Guild members are required to engage only franchised agents. We will enlist our high-profile members who, in meeting after meeting, indicated their support for the Guild’s purpose of protecting actors. They can assist us in bringing our agents to the bargaining table to get an agreement that protects actors and does not allow agents to become producers or use GSA’s.
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ONE UNION FOR ALL ACTORS:
Membership First will insist that any plan to consolidate and/or merge with any other union first pass the litmus test of being in the best interests of the Screen Actors Guild and our members. Our concerns over merger have always been what is best for the actors who are the members of the Guild. As elected S.A.G. officers, that is our sole duty.
We have yet to meet an actor who doesn’t want one union with one set of contracts. But to achieve that we don’t want to lose what S.A.G. already is: An autonomous, self-governing actors union, with total control over its finances and destiny. AIMA
didn’t deliver that.
AN OPEN UNION WITHOUT SECRETS:
Membership First will stop the practice that has been instituted by the current administration that has kept vital information away from our membership about issues affecting their careers and futures by claiming confidentiality. The Board should neverbe taking actions they know the members disagree with or be so afraid of the membership that they need to hide their work behind confidentiality. Membership First will not forget that this is YOUR union and YOUR dues money, and that you have the right to know what your leaders are doing to YOUR union and with YOUR money.
This is who we ARE NOT 
Membership First has been accused by our opponents of:
...delaying the end of the 2000 commercial strike and teaching producers to shoot in foreign countries.
...wasting money on a rerun election…
...defeating the ATA Franchise referendum…
...voting to approve a consolidation then actively working to destroy it
...giving Misleading information regarding the “One Minute Movie” deal
THE FACTS
THE ADVERTISERS REFUSING TO NEGOTIATE in good faith prolonged the 2000 commercials strike. Does anyone out there believe that producers really needed to have anyone “teach them to shoot foreign?” The Commercial Contract has had the best year ever as a result of the gains we ALL achieved by standing together as a union. As we prepare to negotiate the next contract, why would this leadership take the demoralizing and inaccurate positions they have?
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THE RERUN ELECTION OF 2001 was a result of numerous violations of federal labor department election regulations by Screen Actors Guild senior staff and the ballot company hired by the Guild. For the record: 1) Two of our opponents’ most vocal and active supporters filed contests to the 2001 election. Under the S.A.G. constitution and Labor Law when a member files a contest to an election they are asking that the election be overturned and rerun. Because the election was rerun, S.A.G. did not pay for the first election, thus little or no extra money was spent.
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THE FIRST UNANIMOUS VOTE OF THE BOARD REGARDING AIMA was to develop a plan that would provide for an autonomous, self governing, actors union; a plan that would be affiliated with other unions under a system of shared expenses for administrative services. What came back from the committee was a “plan” that gave away the autonomy, and the self-governing of the actors union. Opposition did not arise until a good three weeks after that board vote, as a result of the failure of the Consolidation & Affiliation committee to really listen to any meaningful suggestions. The leadership’s goal should be a plan able to pass by a vote of 90% or more, not squeak by at 60% plus one vote. As a result, their plan was defeated at a cost of over $3.5 million to S.A.G. and AFTRA members of your dues dollars.
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THE ONE-MINUTE MOVIE FACTS: Despite what our opponents have been telling you, this is another example of our inexperienced and misguided leadership. The staff does NOT have the authority to sign contracts that are not covered in the existing contract. This requires a vote of the Elected officers. We don’t have anything close to this currently, where a producer can air a product over and over again on both free and cable outlets without paying a residual.
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All though Every Member Counts is known for its humor, we remind you that we are very serious when we invite you to join us and “Get a Board with McCord and the Membership first slate.” www.membershipfirst.com
A.L. Miller editor
For any information from those opposing Mr. McCord, we offer access to their sites in our link section.
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A message from Kent McCord’s Slate: “LET’S TALK ABOUT SOLUTIONS 
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