Local 706 - The Artisan

Summer 2016

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7 LOCAL LOCAL PERSPECTIVE BY TOMMY COLE Business Representative, I.A.T.S.E. Local 706 By the time this issue of The Artisan goes out to our member- ship, our film and television industry should be in full swing for another season throughout the state. With that in mind, whether a department dead or a day checker, one of the most important skills you should be proficient at when starting a job, besides having an all-around talent of your craft, is to know your contracts and your rights in the workplace. Throughout the year, we get calls from our members asking questions about every subject imagin- able on the multitude of contracts our artisans work under. Many of them have never looked at a contract or know what is expected of them. Whether you are someone in charge of a crew, or jumping from show to show, the more knowledgeable you are of the contracts you are working under, the more prepared you will be for the unforeseen issues that come up. If you don't know the rules, how will you know if you are being taken advantage of? How will you know what questions to ask and to whom? To help you hone your contractual skills, I suggest a little reading and a little studying. For your reading pleasure, we have most major contracts you work under at the Local electronically, and if we don't have the one you need, we will try to get it from the International. If you wish to have a copy of any contract out there, and we have it available, we will be happy to send it or its wage charts to your email. Our union has gained a substantial number of new artisans into the Local in the last few years, who probably don't know exactly what their elected officers do, or what those officers' responsibilities are to the membership. There is not enough room in this article to delineate all, but I will try to hit a few salient points of each office. An abbreviated job descrip- tion of our elected Officers are: the President presides over the union and all meetings, preserves order and enforces the Constitution, By-Laws and Working Rules. He/she shall appoint all permanent committees and all other committees as required; the Vice President assists the President, and in case of absence, will take his/her place; the Secretary-Treasurer has financial responsibility for all monies and other properties belonging to the Local, and makes sure that the bills are paid in a timely manner; the Business Representative is also respon- sible for the union's finances, along with running the Local, and enforcing all rules and regulations of the Constitution, By-Laws and Working Rules of the Local and the International Constitution; the Recording Secretary shall make a hand-writ- ten record of the minutes of all meetings and turn over those notes to the Local to be typed; the Sergeant-at-Arms shall be present at all General and Special Meetings, and shall preserve order and enforce compliance with the rules and regulations as set forth in both the Local and the International Constitution; the Executive Board shall consist of elected members from each craft, and shall have the power to act at any time, and to pass such rulings as may be necessary for the proper functioning and general welfare of the Local, and shall consider for approval, payment of bills recommended by the Board of Trustees; the Board of Trustees, sim- ply put, looks after and protects our financial assets along with the union's property; they look at all monthly bills due, along with monies needed for union travel, lodging, events or other issues that arise and recommends pay- ments to the Executive Board. One thing that I have found after years of working on sets is, if you approach each day with a cheerful and optimistic attitude, you will be able to handle the stress and the everyday issues that arise much better, and you'll be surprised how this kind of positive outlook can be infectious in a good way to your peers around you. There is a quote that I have hung onto that has helped me keep my sanity in this won- derfully crazy business. It is written by Dale Carnegie, and it reads like this … "Many people think that if they were only in some other place, or had some other job, they would be happy. Well, that is doubtful. So get as much happiness out of what you are doing as you can and don't put off being happy until some future date." So, may all of you make the most of your life, and smile a lot! Please enjoy this issue of The Artisan. Sincerely and Fraternally, ... if you approach each day with a cheerful and optimistic attitude, you will be able to handle the stress. " "

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