Equality
In June 2006, Equity appointed its first Equalities Officer (Max Beckmann), a post designed to pull together all the union's efforts on behalf of members who have been disadvantaged because of their gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or disability. As a result Equity is putting equal opportunities high on its agenda and is putting in place new policies and mechanisms to ensure we are doing everything we can to deliver quality services and the best possible representation on behalf of all our members.
Various initiatives are now underway:
- The development of an accessible information policy and strategies to ensure that members with disabilities are to become fully involved in the work of the union. A project to monitor the recruitment and retention of ethnic artists to ensure that Equity's services are meeting their needs.
- Consolidating Equity's involvement with the UK Film Council's Equalities Charter for Film, a cross-industry initiative where we are keen to push forward action in respect of the Charter's pledge to promote on-screen diversity and positive role models for black and minority ethnic people. A number of projects are being developed where there will be a focus on both casting and writing to address remaining barriers.
- Campaigning to protect the private lives of artists from press intrusion.
- Working to highlight the under-representation and stereotypical portrayal of older women in film and television.
To bring a focus to these efforts Equity is organising its first ever diversity conference in late 2007 to raise key issues on equalities with employers and practitioners from across the industry.
Equity members who want to know more about this work, Equity's four equalities committees or who are interested in helping to make the entertainment industry a fairer place to work, should see the Committees section in the members area of this site.