Equity (trade union)

This article is about the British trade union. For the American equivalent, see Actors' Equity Association.

Equity

File:Equity logo.png
Founded	1930 (1930)
Members	38,197 (2013)
Affiliation	TUC, ICTU, STUC, FIA
Key people	Malcolm Sinclair (President) Christine Payne (general secretary)
Office location	London, United Kingdom
Country	United Kingdom
Website	www.equity.org.uk

File:Equity building London.JPG

The Equity building, London.

Equity (formerly known as the British Actors' Equity Association) is the trade union for actors, stage managers and models in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1930 by a group of West End performers and, in 1967, it incorporated the Variety Artistes' Federation.

Equity was one of the last of the closed shop unions in the UK. This was criticised in 1981 by the European Court of Human Rights and made illegal in 1988, with the result that it is no longer a requirement that an entertainment professional be a member of Equity.

Equity requires its members to have unique professional names.

History

Like many other British trade unions, Equity operated a closed shop policy—it was not possible for someone to join unless they had had sufficient paid work, and most jobs were reserved for Equity card holders. To allow new members to join, there were a limited number of non-card holding jobs on regional productions. Whilst working on these productions, actors held a provisional membership card, and, on completing the requisite number of weeks, could apply for full membership, and thereafter work in the West End, or on film and television.

In 1976, Equity introduced a policy of refusing to sell programmes to the South African Broadcasting Corporation, an action that led to a virtual blackout of British television in apartheid South Africa.

As a result of reforms of trade unions in the 1980s by Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government, and the introduction of European legislation, closed shop unions became illegal in the UK, and Equity discontinued this policy. However, to join, evidence must be provided of sufficient paid professional work.

General secretaries

• 1930–1931: Alfred M. Wall
• 1931–1934: Alfred Wall
• 1935: Geoffrey Robinson (Heap)
• 1935–1940: C. B. Purdom
• 1940–1946: Llewellyn Rees
• 1946–1958: Gordon Sandison
• 1958–1973: Gerald Croasdell
• 1973–1991: Peter Plouviez
• 1991–2005: Ian McGarry
• 2005–present (as of 2013): Christine Payne

Presidents

• 1932–1940: Godfrey Seymour Tearle
• 1940–1945: Lewis Thomas Casson
• 1946–1948: Beatrix Lehmann
• 1948–1949: Leslie Banks
• 1949–1969: Felix Aylmer
• 1969–1973: Ernest Clark
• 1973–1975: André Morell
• 1975–1978: Hugh Manning
• 1978–1982: John Barron
• 1982–1984: Hugh Manning
• 1984–1986: Derek Bond
• 1986–1992: Nigel Davenport
• 1992–1994: Jeffry Wickham
• 1994–2002: Frederick Pyne
• 2002–2008: Harry Landis
• 2008–2010: Graham Hamilton
• 2010–present (as of 2013): Malcolm Sinclair

See also

• United States:
  • Actors' Equity Association
  • American Federation of Television and Radio Artists
  • Screen Actors Guild

External links

• Official website