By Joy Tanner
Your agent offers you an audition for a romantic holiday comedy filming in Ottawa. Yes! It’s been a quiet year so, of course, you immediately start memorizing. You then see on the casting breakdown the terms include that you will be “Working Local.” Makes sense as you’ll still be in Ontario. And even though the production company WON’T pay for your hotel expenses, your buddy from uni’ will let you sleep on their couch, so it shouldn’t be a problem, right? Survey says… BEEEEEP. WHY do you ask? Great question and one that needs addressing.
While Ottawa IS in Ontario and you reside in the GTA or Hamilton, for instance, you are not actually an Ottawa local (the same goes if you reside in the GTHA and get a job in Montreal, Winnipeg or Sudbury). Meaning, you won’t be paid for some basics that are covered in our Independent Production Agreement (IPA). You’ll be out of pocket to pay for your travel expenses, hotel expenses and lose out on your per diem. Taking that gig will most likely cost you more than you earned for your bread.
Working as a “Local” while outside of your town of residence is not only a contravention of the IPA, but it diminishes the rights and protections of your ACTRA colleagues. Not only SHOULD you be paid for travel time and given a per diem (advanced to you prior to arrival at your shooting destination, by the way, and not buried in your paycheck), but you should do it out of solidarity for your sibling ACTRA performers. By acting as a local (vs. actually being a local), you end up losing out on the backstops your sibling union members have worked so hard over the course of countless rounds of bargaining to put in place to protect YOU. These are your rights. And when we don’t play by the rules, it ends up hurting us all. Because it’s a slippery slope to the bottom. When that precedent occurs, the backstop moves further and further away from our IPA. ACTRA knows it happens more frequently than we’d like.
The IPA specifically addresses Travel Time and per diem, specifically section A17 (see pg. 52 of the IPA/pg. 63 of the PDF if you want to take a peek). “When the Producer requires a Performer to travel within a forty kilometre radius, the Producer will be obliged to ensure that public or private transportation is available. If such public or private transportation is not available, and subject to prior approval by the Producer, the cost of taxi transportation from location to residence within that forty kilometre radius shall be paid by the Producer. If travel by the quickest means of surface public transportation exceeds one hour each way, transportation shall be provided by the Producer.” To reiterate, you should be paid for your travel time.
“Travel time shall be calculated from the Performer’s city of residence by the quickest means of regularly scheduled carrier, unless the Producer requires the Performer to travel by alternative means. Travel time shall be calculated from door to door or from central point to central point, as agreed between ACTRA and the Producer.” [IPA A1701]
To remind you about your per diem, it’s a daily “allowance of $65.00, in the case of a Nearby Location or Distant Location, to cover all personal expenses.” [IPA A1704e]
You’ve worked hard to get where you’re at in this business and you shouldn’t be asked to work for less than the minimum. Shouldn’t you be treated with the respect you deserve? Our IPA ensures this happens. By not “Working Local” outside of your hometown, so do you.
Joy Tanner is the Editor of Performers Magazine, and Performers on Set. She has voiced Candy Kong in Donkey Kong.
