August 12, 2024

Dear ACTRA Montreal members,

At the end of this year the IPA (the Collective Agreement that governs our work conditions and pay in film and television) will expire. We will be heading into bargaining to negotiate a new IPA in November. 

It is the most important round of bargaining in our history and there are three reasons why.

Firstly, we will be fighting to increase our minimum rates to keep pace with the cost of living. We cannot be expected to simply absorb the record-breaking inflation of the last three years.

We will also be pushing to regain the “back end” income we used to get from residual payments. The Producers changed the business model when they went to streaming services and created a system where we no longer share in the profits our work generated. That has to change. 

Finally, the existential threat that is Generative AI. We must have protections. We are not so naive as to believe that AI can be stopped, but there must be fences built to contain it and it must not be used to replace us.

What I ask is that you back your bargaining team. In the coming months we will need your support more than ever. Stay informed, join us and connect with your fellow members at our upcoming events and while on sets or in studio. Together across the nation we stand 30,000 members strong!

Simon Peacock,
President, ACTRA Montreal
speacock@actra.ca