Canadian Actors' Equity Association (CAEA) is an association of performers in English Canada who are engaged in live performances before paying audiences in theatre, opera and dance. It negotiates agreements and working conditions for its membership, and represents about 6,000 professional artists, which includes actors, dancers, and opera singers, as well as theatre directors, choreographers, fight directors and stage managers.

History

Stage actors in Canada had been represented informally by

ACTRA The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) is a Canadian trade union representing performers in English-language media. It has over 30,000 members working in film, television, radio, and all other recorded media. Th ...

since the 1940s, but at the time of the founding of the

Stratford Shakespeare Festival The Stratford Festival is a Repertory theatre, repertory theatre organization that operates from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson (theatre producer), Tom Patterson in 1952, th ...

in 1953, they sought their own union representation. As a result of meetings in Montreal between the Canadian Council of Authors and Artists (an umbrella organization) and the American Actors' Equity Association,

AEA The AeA (formerly the American Electronics Association) was a nationwide non-profit trade association that represented all segments of the technology industry. It lobbied governments at the state, federal, and international levels; provided acces ...

, the actors worked under AEA contracts. The first meeting of the Canadian branch was held in Toronto in February 1955. In 1972 the Canadian government called upon Equity members to decide their tax status, and members voted by a narrow margin in favour of

independent contractor Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any oth ...

status, thereby forgoing the benefits of being employees. By 1974, a survey revealed that the membership wanted to form its own independent union, and on April 1, 1976, Canadian Actors' Equity Association was formed, transferring 2000 members from AEA. Reciprocal agreements were signed with

, and

AGMA Agma is a name for the velar nasal speech sound and the letter ⟨⟩ that stands for it. AGMA may refer to: * Alliance for Gray Market and Counterfeit Abatement, an anti-counterfeiting and gray market organization * American Gear Manufacturers ...

. On April 1, 2011, Canadian Actors' Equity celebrated 35 years as an autonomous organization.

Present

Today, Equity has a National Office in Toronto, Ontario with a staff of 20, and a Western Office in Vancouver, British Columbia with a staff of 2. The head of the association is the executive director, who is hired by the elected Council and is responsible for staff operations, acting as Equity's liaison with other arts and cultural organizations. Administration and enforcement of Equity's agreements and policies is the responsibility of Business Representatives, who visit productions around the country to ensure that contractual rules and working conditions are enforced.

References

Sources

* McQuarrie, Ruth. ''Face to Face with Talent: Featur ng2,400 Members of ACTRA and f theCanadian Actors' Equity Association''. Toronto: ACTRA, a. 1985 6

External links

Canadian Actors' Equity Association

Canadian Actors Equity Association fonds (R4040)
at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. T ...

Actors' trade unions Trade unions in Canada Trade unions established in 1955 1955 establishments in Canada {{canada-org-stub

History

Present

See also

References

Sources

External links