Free Membership at Canadian Media Guild for Freelancers

[Ali Ledgerwood]

Free Membership Offer for NPAC Members!

One of our frequent sponsors has a great offer for those of you who are self-employed.  The Canadian Media Guild Freelance Branch is offering up a limited amount of free year-long memberships, a $150 value.

Membership comes with a long list of benefits, including a personal account with the software training website Lynda.com, access to non-profit health care benefits, advice on contracts and copyright, professional development workshops and webinars, dedicated email listserv sharing info and gigs, and more. For a list of the benefits and to find out what CMG Freelance is all about, visit http://cmgfreelance.ca/en/member-support-package/

To register for the membership, or if you have any questions, contact CMG Freelance President Don Genova at don@dongenova.com.

[David Chidley]

Good job NPAC/CMG

I have just joined and see nothing but long term benefits from being involved.

At the recent NPAC Convention there was a show of hands poll on how many in attendance were staff vs. freelancers, and it was about 90% freelancers!  Actually the representation by staff photographers (especially GTA area) was pathetic, but that's another topic that needs to be addressed. 

So the Freelance Army certainly would benefit from more organization, education and representation, especially since we are the majority.  Do you see that trend changing?  Time for everyone in the industry to start working on fair, respectful deployment of the Freelancer.

Thanks again NPAC/GMG!

[Jimmy Jeong]

Great comments, David. We definitely need more education about our industry and our new major role in it. I hope that NPAC members will feel comfortable having more open discussions and sharing strategies for success. I'll definitely be looking into CMG.

Cheers

[Blair Gable]

I'm not going to get into a debate here, but I don't see union involvement as being beneficial to me as a freelancer. Just wanted to post this so others don't assume that everyone is in favour of this idea. Shoot good photos, run your business well, make good choices about who you work for, and everything will be just fine. I do not see a future where rates go up and more assignments become available because a union is involved. They aren't the solution just because the sponsor NPAC.

I'm not saying don't join, though. If it looks good to you, go for it.

[Jimmy Jeong]

Hi Blair, thanks for posting that. I totally agree that everyone needs to make their own choices that work for them. But just wanted to clarify that I'm not talking about the Norma Rae-Gets-On-A-Table movement old school union. I'm actually not really interested in a union per-se. What I'm suggesting is that we need to discover new partners in this gig-economy. The Freelancers Union in New York is the perfect example. They are one of the major drivers to help push through the Freelance Isn't Free Act. Which ensures timely payment and proper contracts for all freelancers.

So, I know I need more help. I wish NPAC was more organized and could be that advocate, had more resources, etc.

[Warren Toda]

What I'm suggesting is that we need to discover new partners in this gig-economy. The Freelancers Union in New York is the perfect example. They are one of the major drivers to help push through the Freelance Isn't Free Act. Which ensures timely payment and proper contracts for all freelancers.

In the US and UK, various organizations were able to get their respective governments to pass laws with respect to timely payments. In the New York area and in the UK, you don't have to chase late-paying customers on your own anymore.

In the past, US photo organizations helped negotiate standard editorial contracts with Forbes and Conde Nast as well as commercial contracts with large companies like Kraft Foods. In Canada, CAPIC helped to successfully lobby for changes in our copyright laws. Perhaps CMG might be able to grow into a position like that for the editorial side.

In Canada, large TV networks, especially the CBC, seem to love standard contracts. There is a similar situation with some US TV networks. These "standard" contracts just provide the basic starting points: photographer will supply X photos in exchange for $Y; If situation A occurs then the photographer gets paid $B; If C occurs then the photographer gets paid $D.

Yes, a savvy photographer can often do this on their own but there aren't a lot of savvy photographers. CMG might be able to save some photographers from themselves   or prevent  them from being preyed upon by certain media organizations.

But how many professional organizations can we support? Photo-wise, there's NPAC, CAPIC and PPOC. For writers, there's at least CMG, WGC and CAA. Most freelancers, photo or word, face similar issues.

[Stacey Newman]

What I'm suggesting is that we need to discover new partners in this gig-economy. The Freelancers Union in New York is the perfect example. They are one of the major drivers to help push through the Freelance Isn't Free Act. Which ensures timely payment and proper contracts for all freelancers.

In the US and UK, various organizations were able to get their respective governments to pass laws with respect to timely payments. In the New York area and in the UK, you don't have to chase late-paying customers on your own anymore.

In the past, US photo organizations helped negotiate standard editorial contracts with Forbes and Conde Nast as well as commercial contracts with large companies like Kraft Foods. In Canada, CAPIC helped to successfully lobby for changes in our copyright laws. Perhaps CMG might be able to grow into a position like that for the editorial side.

In Canada, large TV networks, especially the CBC, seem to love standard contracts. There is a similar situation with some US TV networks. These "standard" contracts just provide the basic starting points: photographer will supply X photos in exchange for $Y; If situation A occurs then the photographer gets paid $B; If C occurs then the photographer gets paid $D.

Yes, a savvy photographer can often do this on their own but there aren't a lot of savvy photographers. CMG might be able to save some photographers from themselves   or prevent  them from being preyed upon by certain media organizations.

But how many professional organizations can we support? Photo-wise, there's NPAC, CAPIC and PPOC. For writers, there's at least CMG, WGC and CAA. Most freelancers, photo or word, face similar issues.

Exactly. Thank you for including photo and word. Quite a few of us who work in both...