Where does this idea come from?  Granted that there are a couple strong unions in theatre, such as The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, which covers everyone from stage hands to master electricians to sound designers in theatre, film and television.  United Scenic Artists is also quite strong and is partly made up of every Broadway scenery, costume and lighting designer.  But what makes these unions stronger than AEA?  Looking at the Actor's Equity from its beginnings in the late 1800's there are many signs of a union that has raised its members from being on the lowest rungs of humanity to theatre employees who are occasionally considered to be heroes in the eyes of the world. The strength of this union can be found by looking at where the actors of this country started to where they are today under the various Equity contracts, and looking at the future of Actors Equity by way of the recent League of Resident Theatres (LORT) negotiations.

Actors Equity is a strong union today partly because of where it began almost a hundred years ago.  In the late 1800's, immediately following the Civil War, a large part of the American theatre was made up of touring groups.  This was actually the way theatre worked in the United States since before the Revolutionary War.  These tours were taken from town to town, theatre to theatre led by a manager and produced by theatre owners, who could be one and the same person.   A majority of these managers and owners made up a booking office in New York which was so powerful that it decided which actors would star in the shows, who their supporting cast and chorus would be, which plays would be performed, and in which venues the productions would play. (Rogers, p. 94) These theatre owners and managers could make or break an actors career, and there was nothing that actor could do.  This group created an alliance on August 31, 1896 and was called the Theatre Syndicate. (Harding, p. 5)  According to Lynne Rogers, writer of the September 1996 American Heritage article The Actors' Revolt, "To the businessmen of the syndicate, the actor was not the backbone of the theater but merely a debit on an income statement, a commodity to be obtained as cheaply as possible."  (Rogers, p. 94)

 This syndicate, unfortunately, could make life extremely difficult for actors.  The syndicate made the rules as they went along, blackballing anyone who dared to disagree with them.  Managers had total control, and unfortunately, this meant that there was no system of checks and balances to keep the managers in line. Their only guide for their actions was their own conscience. (Harding, p. 6)

 This made conditions very harsh for performers at every part of the production process.  Rehearsals could be any length of time during at day, and the average rehearsal period was about eighteen weeks for a musical and about ten weeks for a straight play, and this was all done for absolutely no pay.  Actors were only paid for performances. (Rogers, p. 94)

Also, actors were also supposed to create or buy their own costumes, and maintain them during the run of the show.  For many female actors, these costumes could cost them more than a week's salary. (Rogers, pp. 94-95)

 As soon as a play opened and started touring, there could be up to ten performances per week, and actors performed fifty-two weeks a year.  There were no days off for Christmas or Thanksgiving.  Actually, actors were only given half of their pay for holiday performances, even though those were the busiest days of the year for ticket sales. (Rogers, p. 94)
 
The backstage theatre spaces allotted for dressing rooms for the actors were usually unfit for any worker.  They were usually dirty; they were usually too hot or too cold depending on the season; they rarely had any running water; and, they were usually in some small, odd place extreme distances from the stage, either in the attic or the cellar.  "Charles Shay, president of the stagehands' union, told reporters at the time that he often did not know which sub-cellar had been set aside for coal and which for the actors."  (Rogers, p. 94)

 Along with these uncomfortable and potentially dangerous situations to deal with during a performance, the actors also had to worry about the show closing.  The manager might decide that it just wasn't doing well enough or the money for producing the show might have run out unexpectedly.  Productions could be closed without warning, and when the show closed, the manager often left in the middle of the performance, while the actors were on stage, and as soon as he had collected the money from that performances ticket sales.  If the show closed, actors were usually stranded, without pay or money for transportation to return home, wherever the show closed.   (Rogers, p. 94)  Also, there was no set schedule for actors to get paid.  Payment of wages was at the discretion of the manager.  (Harding, p. 9)

 Actors also had to worry about the Satisfaction Clause, which stated, simply put, that if a manager didn't like a performer for any reason, he could fire that performer without any warning and without any pay.  The actor could be fired without any justification, as long as the manager found his or her work to be "unsatisfactory."  And to make matters worse, this usually happened after a performer had just come off stage from finishing a performance.  (Rogers, p. 94)  The manager also might refuse to pay the actor for what he considered any "unsatisfactory" performances.  Actors had no recourse for being fired under the Satisfaction Clause.  The manager's word was always final.  (Harding, p.9) It is imaginable that this kind of work situation would be like that of a dictatorship, where actors always had to watch what they were saying and doing in case they might anger their leader in some way, and be punished severely for any misstep.

 Finally, a group of actors decided that they had enough of this horrible treatment of themselves and their co-workers.  They met at the Pabst Grand Circle Hotel in Manhattan in 1913, and one hundred, twelve members founded the Actors Equity Association.  (Rogers, p. 93)  Some of those illustrious members included film and Broadway stars, such as Charles Coburn and Edward Ellis.  (Rogers, p. 94)

 These one hundred, twelve actors decided on just seven demands that they would take to the Theatrical Syndicate.  They were as follows: 1) the actors wanted transportation to be provided to and from New York for all actors on a tour.  2) They wanted to put a limit on the amount of time that a show could rehearse without paying the actors.  3) The actors wanted a standard two-week notice for termination of employment.  4) They wanted actors to be protected from being fired without pay, or some kind of like compensation, if they had rehearsed a play for a minimum of one full week.  (Rogers, p. 94)  5) they wanted extra pay for any added performances to what would be considered a normal performance schedule.  (Rogers, pp. 94-95)  6) The actors wanted to be paid for every performance they did.  They wanted an agreement that said that the manager could not skip town with the receipts, never to be heard from again.  (Rogers, p. 95)  7) Finally, they wanted women to be reimbursed for at least a part of the expenses of buying and maintaining their costumes, since they were so costly. (Rogers, pp. 94-95)
 
The newly formed union of Actors Equity took their seven simple demands to the Theatrical Syndicate, and the Syndicate agreed to sit down and discuss those demands.  So, the Theatrical Syndicate and Actors Equity came together for negotiations, and they negotiated, and negotiated, and negotiated, and then negotiated some more.  These negotiations went on for six years, and they could not agree on one single thing. (Rogers, p. 95)

 During this time, E. F. Albee, a member of the Theatrical Syndicate, grew tired of these few actors making trouble for him and the other Syndicate members.  So, he proposed a way to rid the Syndicate of the nuisance of the Actors Equity Association.  First, he and the other members of the Syndicate tried to lure the influential members of Actors Equity out of the union with promises of large salaries and leads in the biggest shows.  Then, the Syndicate got those wayward actors to form their own union, called The Actors Cooperative Association, which would naturally be loyal to the Theatrical Syndicate.  Then came the final blow to Actors Equity.  The Theatrical Syndicate pulled the plug on the negotiations with the union.  (Rogers, p. 95)
 
The Actors Equity Association had to find a new way to approach the problem of getting their demands recognized.  They decided to turn to the strongest kid on the block, the American Federation of Labor.  The members of Actors Equity debated about this for a long time, worrying that if they allied themselves with a laborer's union they might no longer be considered artists.  Fortunately, reason won the day.  The Actors Equity Association decided to try to join and ally themselves with the American Federation of Musicians, which was already a strong union under the American Federation of Labor.  Unfortunately, the American Federation of Labor didn't want to allow Actors Equity to join because there was already a group of vaudeville performers who had been let into the American Federation of Labor.  Finally, after much debate, the American Federation of Labor created the Associated Actors and Artistes of American (or the Four A's), which was an umbrella organization that covered all unions dealing with every area of entertainment, and Actors Equity became a part of the largest labor force in the country. (Rogers, p. 95)
 The Theatrical Syndicate, in response to this threatening advance by Actors Equity, pulled together even more theatre owners and managers to create a monopoly of sorts which spread out over all of the theatre industry in the United States.  The Syndicate was intent on destroying Actors Equity.  (Rogers, p. 97)
 AEA saw that the Theatrical Syndicate was not going to budge on any negotiation of their demands, so they decide to strike back, literally.  On August 7, 1919, The Actors Equity Association staged its first strike when the cast of a Broadway hit called Lightnin' walked out and refused to perform.  They used the pun of "Lightnin' striking" to their advantage and created signs with like sayings to carry as they picketed the theatre.   Immediately following that first strike, twelve other shows joined in the fight, and on August 8,1919 Actors Equity received 1,200 applications for membership.  (Rogers, p. 97)
The theatre managers tried to promote the chorus members of their shows, who were not covered by Actors Equity, to play the leads in the plays, but those actors refused, and on August 12, 1919 the Chorus Equity Association was created.  (Rogers, p. 97)

The Chorus Equity Association only had three demands: 1) Non-paid rehearsal time was limited to four weeks.  (Rogers, p. 97)  2) after four weeks of non-paid rehearsals, chorus members' pay would have to be equal to one half of a full week's salary.  (Rogers, p. 97-98) and, finally, 3) the theatre owner or manager would have to pay for shoes and stockings, which could wear out quite quickly for chorus members who danced in musicals.  (Rogers, p. 98)

Although quite impressive, the strikes of performances in New York City didn't seem to make a huge difference to the members of the Theatrical Syndicate.  Even though they were losing a lot of money due to show closings in New York, they were still making even more money on their country-wide touring shows and their theatres in other cities.  So, Actors Equity, convinced a group of actors in Chicago, who were performing a play called Up in Mabel's Room, to join the effort, and in no time at all, those actors were striking as well. (Rogers, p. 98)

Still this did not seem to cause a great deal of disturbance among the members of the Theatrical Syndicate, and the Actors Equity Association itself was starting to run low on funds.  On August 18, 1919, Equity held a fundraiser at the Lexington Avenue Opera House, which was completely sold out on opening night, including the five hundred tickets sold for standing room only.  That single performance made $31,000 in profits for Actors Equity. (Rogers, p. 98)

Ethel Barrymore, a prominent Broadway actress, also started a campaign within AEA.  She donated five hundred dollars of her own money to the union, and then promised to get five hundred dollars from at least 199 other actors who could afford to donate their money.  In one single meeting she collected $21,500 to help support the fight against the tyranny of the Theatrical Syndicate.   (Rogers, p. 98-99)
That was just one part of the change in favor of Actors Equity's fight for the rights of actors.  On August 26, 1919, Samuel Gompers, head of the American Federation of Labor, publicly voiced the AFL's support of Actors Equity, saying, "Whatever influence or power there may be in the great American Federation of Labor to help you, rest assured that power and influence is behind you until the end."  And that power and influence came in the form of other union workers who had the ability to affect the theatre owners in several different ways.  From the stagehands who did the backstage work for the productions, to the musicians who added the accompaniment for the musicals, to the bill-posters' union who were in charge of putting up the posters to publicize a performance, each of these groups did their part to make life unbearable for any theatre owner or manager who stood against The Actors Equity Association. (Rogers, p. 99)

Finally, on September 3, 1919, the Theatrical Syndicate gave in to AEA and agreed to discuss the Actors Equity's Standard Minimum Contract.  But then, the Syndicate members tried to change the provisions to fit their needs. (Rogers, p. 99)  The Syndicate seemed unwilling to change their ways until Actors Equity made one final push.  On September 5, 1919, after threatening to get 169 union stagehands to join in the striking, which would have close down all of the Schubert theatres, the theatre managers finally conceded, and the Actors Equity Association and the Chorus Equity Association won their first major battle. (Rogers, p. 99)

After a long struggle, came a short battle that lasted less than a month, and that short battle was the basis for the Actors Equity Association that works to protect actors and stage managers today.  The beginning of the Actors Equity Constitution states:

"We hereby constitute ourselves a voluntary Association to advance, promote, foster, and benefit all those connected with the art of theatre and particularly the profession of acting and the conditions of persons engaged therein."

Those categories that are listed above are used in determining several different rules concerning the employment of AEA actors and stage managers.  Some of the rules are concerning salaries, rehearsal hours and schedules, performance schedules, travel arrangements, housing on and off tour, safe and sanitary work and travel conditions, costume rentals, and rules concerning show closings and termination of employment.

It is interesting to look at how far the rules have come concerning those first seven demands.  In regards to the first demand of getting transportation to and from New York while on tour, Actors Equity has taken it just a little bit further.  Today, not only is the theatre responsible for getting an actor to and from tour engagements, they must be transported in vehicles that are of the same standards as any commercial, long-distance travelling vehicle.  They must have a working heater and air conditioner and enough seats for every member of the company.  The luggage must be stored in a separate compartment from where the company is seated, and the vehicle must stop for bathroom breaks for ten minutes out of every two hours unless there is a bathroom on board the vehicle.  The AEA deputy of the company must have a full itinerary of the travel arrangements that include a timetable, mileage, and all stops on the tour.  If the actual amount of time spent travelling goes over what the theatre estimates, the actors is paid $16-20 in overtime, and if the time delay is two hours or more, that amount of money is doubled.  (AEA, Agreement, p. 97-98)

Along with the tour travel provisions, there are also rules about travel for actors performing at a resident theatre not located in their hometown. If an actor is housed, by the theatre, more than half a mile from the rehearsal space, the theatre, or any restaurants, the theatre has to provide free transportation (meaning no taxis, trains or buses) for that actor that must get the actor to any of those places.  Events that would be included are rehearsals, performances or any other requirement of the production that requires the actor to leave his or her housing at least a half-hour prior to the beginning of that event.  Also, if the actor lives more that one quarter of a mile from any shopping or other necessary facilities, the theatre has to provide transportation to and from these areas at least once a week.  (AEA, Agreement, pp. 28-29)

The next demand made by Actors Equity in 1919 was that there should be a limit on the number of weeks of free rehearsal time.  Today, there is no such thing as a free rehearsal period.  Actors and stage managers are paid for every week of rehearsal and performance, and stage managers are even paid for one full prep week before rehearsals even begin.

There are also several rules concerning how and when rehearsals will happen.  Rehearsal dates must be set before the actors and stage managers even begin working on a show.  (AEA, Agreement, p. 17)  The number of hours that actors may work on a show per week is determined by the number of people in the cast and by what genre (i.e. musical, straight play, new work, or experimental) the production is.  Small casts cannot rehearse over forty-eight hours of rehearsal per workweek (i.e. Monday to Sunday), and a large cast cannot rehearse more than fifty hours per workweek.  The only exception to this rule is during tech week, which is the seven days leading up to the first public performance.  (AEA, Agreement, pp. 56-57)

During a rehearsal day, actors must be given a certain number of breaks including a lunch break if the rehearsal is longer than five hours long.  The actor must also have a five-minute break after every fifty-five minutes or a ten-minute break after every eighty minutes of rehearsal.  There must also be a twelve-hour period of rest between rehearsal days.  Any breach of these provisions result in overtime for the actors and stage managers in the form of $8 for every half-hour until the next official rest period is met. (AEA, Agreement, pp. 60-61)

A two week standard notice of termination and actors not being fired without compensation were next on the original list of demands.  Today, actors and stage managers cannot be fired from a contract unless Actors Equity approves it.  If an AEA member is not performing his or her duties to the level of satisfaction of the theatre, the theatre must give a written warning to that person, and if the problem persists, the theatre can then appeal to Actors Equity.  Termination of employment in the case of a show closing unexpectedly still requires that the affected members of AEA will receive salaries for two full weeks following the final performance date.  (AEA, Agreement, pp. 92-93)

The next demand was that actors would be paid for extra performances.  Today, there can be no more than eight performances scheduled per week in the original performance schedule.  There cannot be more than two performances per day, and actors and stage mangers cannot do more than five shows in three days.  There can be up to two extra performances added to that schedule per week, of which the actors and stage manager must be notified at least two weeks prior to the performances.  The actors and stage managers are also given additional salaries equaling three-sixteenths of a weekly salary for the ninth performance and one-quarter of a weekly salary for the tenth performance.  (AEA, Agreement, pp. 55-56)

The next demand was that actors would get paid for every performance, and under the 1996-1999 LORT contract, actors and stage mangers are paid quite well for a week of work.  The salaries are determined by the actors and stage managers' work positions (i.e. stage manager in a non-repertory theatre, stage manager in a repertory theatre, assistant stage manager, lead role, dance captain, deputy, etc.) and the category designation of the theatre.  In the 1996-1999 contract minimum salaries for AEA members were as follows:

Job Description Weekly Salary

Actors $647.00 to $459.00
Stage Manager in Rep  $938.00 to $639.00
Stage Manager in Non-Rep  $938.00 to $565.00
Asst. Stage Man./ Rep  $787.00 to $530.00
Asst. Stage Man./Non-Rep  $783.00 to $465.00
Dance Captain  additional $75.00 to $30.00

Along with these provisions in the LORT contract, there are also several others that are too numerous to mention.  In addition to these provisions, the Actors Equity Association also provides pensions for its members under the Equity League Pension and Welfare Trust Fund that was created in 1960. (Ennis, p. 3)  There is also an insurance plan under Actors Equity that is available to members after ninety days of employment under the union contract.  The insurance plan is provided by the Health Benefits Trust Fund.  (AEA, Agreement, p. 26)
 
This spring saw a new agreement of the LORT contract agreed upon after only a couple months of negotiation.  A sample of the initial demands from Actors Equity in those negotiations is as follows: 1) AEA wanted higher salaries for its members to meet the demands of inflation.  2) They wanted free housing plus per diems for Equity members on tours.  3) They wanted to increase the number of stage managers working on shows.  4) They wanted to require that there were understudies for all primary and secondary roles.  5) They wanted a higher number of AEA actors required to be hired in the ratio of Equity actors to non-professional actors.  6) They wanted all raked stages to be limited in height for safety purposes.  7) They wanted more specifications on requirements for local housing for out of town actors.   8) And they wanted more money for actors and stage managers working on a show which would be going on to a Production contract. (AEA LORT Neg. 2/19)
 
As in all negotiations, not every demand was met, but the ones that were are great accomplishments for the Actors Equity Association.
 
The first of the provisions won by Actors Equity was that of salary increases.  The following table shows how minimum salaries will increase for AEA members through March of 2002.

Actors

Theatre designation Current wages 3/1/2000 3/1/2001 3/1/2002 Total change
A $647 $673 $700 $728 12.00%
B+ $619 $638 $663 $690 11.00%
B $594 $606 $626 $646 8.50%
C $560 $571 $588 $606 8.00%
D $459 $472 $486 $500 8.75%

Stage Managers (Non-repertory)
Theatre designation Current wages 3/1/2000 3/1/2001 3/1/2002 Total change
A $938 $976 $1015 $1055 12.00%
B+ $820 $845 $878 $914 11.00%
B $709 $723 $747 $771 8.50%
C $671 $684 $705 $726 8.00%
D $565 $581 $598 $616 8.75%

Stage Managers (Repertory)
Theatre designation Current wages 3/1/2000 3/1/2001 3/1/2002 Total change
A $938 $976 $1015 $1055 12.00%
B+ $858 $884 $919 $956 11.00%
B $784 $800 $826 $853 8.50%
C $728 $743 $765 $788 8.00%
D $639 $657 $676 $697 8.75%

Assistant Stage Managers (Non-repertory)
Theatre designation Current wages 3/1/2000 3/1/2001 3/1/2002 Total change
A $783 $814 $847 $881 12.00%
B+ $691 $712 $740 $770 11.00%
B $601 $613 $633 $654 8.50%
C $564 $575 $593 $610 8.00%
D $465 $478 $492 $507 8.75%

Assistant Stage Managers (Repertory)
Theatre designation Current wages 3/1/2000 3/1/2001 3/1/2002 Total change
A $787 $818 $851 $885 12.00%
B+ $743 $765 $796 $828 11.00%
B $708 $722 $746 $770 8.50%
C $620 $632 $651 $671 8.00%
D $530 $545 $561 $671 8.75%

(AEA, Negotiated, 3/24)
It is important to note that the minimum actor salary in a LORT D theatre will finally be reaching $500.00 per week in 2002.  (AEA, Negotiations, 3/24)

 Increases were also won for dance captains and chorus members, as you can see on the following table:

Dance Captain Increments
A $112.50/week
B+ $97.50/week
B $90.00/week
C $60.00/week
D $45.00/week

Chorus Part Payments
A $15.00/week
B+ $13.00/week
B $12.00/week
C $10.00/week
D $8.00/week

(AEA, Dance, 3/24)

The fight captain also, for the very first time has been given a minimum additional weekly salary of $35.00.  (AEA, Negotiations, 3/24)  The previous contract had only defined what a fight captain does and never required a payment for those services. (AEA, Agreement, p. 79)

 Other changes to the LORT contract included getting rid of the Lottery audition system, and implementing a system that will use smaller local auditions which would happen more frequently with fewer theatres involved in each one (AEA, Negotiations, 3/24).  The Lottery system required LORT theatres to attend one audition per year, and actors were picked for the auditions by a lottery selection.  This system had several problems including the fact that an actor may not have been seen by a company they wanted to audition for, because they were not at the same time.  (AEA, Agreement, p. 7)
 
The new contract has improved the housing for actors who are performing at regional theatres not in their hometown.  There is now a more specific list of all furnishings and necessities required in the provided housing to make the space livable.  (AEA, Negotiations, 3/24)  The previous contract did provide a short list of furniture and necessities, including kitchen supplies and linens, but it was not very detailed. (AEA, Agreement, pp. 26-27)  The housing in the new contract has also added that free local telephone calls must be included in each dwelling.  (AEA, Negotiations, 3/24)  The previous contract only required that a telephone was made available on the premises of the dwelling.  This meant that the phone could be a pay telephone in the lobby or any other public access space. (AEA, Agreement, p. 26)

 Free housing was also won for actors and stage managers on tour.  Now they will not have to worry about finding the cheapest housing possible, and their per diem will be $35.00 per day for the first two years of the contract. In the third year of the new contract, that amount will raise to $40.00 per day.  (AEA, Negotiations, 3/24)  In the previous contract, actors and stage managers were given $70.00 per day to pay for room and board while on tour.  If the hotel chosen by the theatre cost more than $45.50, the theatre would reimburse the actors and stage managers for the amount over the $45.50.  (AEA, Agreement, pp. 71, 96)  The new provision simplifies the math, and will probably save someone on some major headaches.

The Actors Equity Association has by far increased the standard of working conditions and salaries for actors and stage managers.  Looking back at where the actors were less than a century ago, it is easy to see that Actors Equity is not a weak union with no power.  It is a union that has the strength to protect its members from unscrupulous attacks from those people who are interested in making money more than protecting their employees.  It has also brought actors from being viewed as little better than criminals to a place of respect and admiration as people who can stand together to achieve a common goal.  Too often theatre artists take for granted many of the rights that Actors Equity have spend eighty years fighting for.  Considering all the battles won for actors, how can the Actors Equity Association be considered in any way weak?  AEA has provided a world of theatre in which actors and stage managers can create art without worrying about salaries or safety.

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