It is perhaps the future of the Union of Quebec Writers and Writers (UNEQ) unfolding these days that is resting on an advance in the socioeconomic conditions of writers. Whether or not we agree with the ways and goals of the current board, which called an Extraordinary General Meeting (AGE) on Wednesday where members will vote on two key decisions: union dues and the sale of the Writers’ House.
Posted at 7:15am
As I am not a member of UNEQ I am not taking a position but I have spoken for hours to anger people on all sides. The crisis has been raging for several months and people have been insulted on social networks or in open letters in the newspapers. There are authors who criticize UNEQ for its lack of transparency, gluttony and haste, and others who support its ambitions while asking many questions.
For years, UNEQ had been working to change the status of the Artists Act to include writers, which happened on June 3rd. In particular, the new law S-32.1 makes it possible to strengthen the mandate of UNEQ, which can now oblige “producers and broadcasters” to “negotiate minimum binding working conditions, and to do so in good faith and with diligence”.
I was expecting favors as we have long been talking about abusive clauses in publishing contracts and harmonizing everything so that every new author is not fooled into signing their first contract. A standard contract circulated in the industry, but nobody had to stick to it.
What I thought I understood was that UNEQ is now free to become a union that will have real powers, but that not all writers want to be unionized without a say, or at least within the parameters proposed by the board . However, UNEQ considers that to fulfill its new mission it needs contributions and that it must sell the Maison des écrivains, which would be too expensive to maintain, which the authors consider a mistake given the symbolic value and the importance of promoting literature out Quebec in its mandate.
Things spiraled out of control when we learned that UNEQ wanted to collect 2.5% of income from its members and 5% from non-members, in addition to annual membership fees.
Not only this project caused a stir, but also the way. Two weeks after the law was passed, it was passed at a general meeting where only about forty people approved the contributions, while the invitation email made no mention that this would be the agenda. They decided this for the members of UNEQ and all the writers in the province.
UNEQ has acknowledged a communication error and its President Suzanne Aubry apologized in a statement saying board members “have been working hard to get this new law in place” and we have probably been living in a bubble during this long time.” .
That brings us to the EGM on March 29th. This new assembly was proposed in the face of growing dissatisfaction. The least we can say is that it hasn’t calmed things down because since then, more and more writers have had a thousand questions to ask, despite the release of a 38-page information guide by UNEQ. .
Shouldn’t there be a lower and upper limit for contributions? Is it fair that they should be levied on treaties negotiated without UNEQ? Is it a good idea to model what is done at the Society of Radio, Television and Cinema Authors (SARTEC) or at the Union of Artists (UDA) when the literary milieu has its own specificities and other financial resources? Will the contributions affect the beneficiaries of a deceased author’s work?
Questions abound, I swear. One wonders if UNEQ is not in endless negotiations with all actors in the field and in a financial abyss. For writers to say, “UNEQ wants to defend me, but who will defend me against UNEQ? », we can say that there are concerns.
Since the members have to vote on a budget that will only be presented at the AHV on March 29, a petition signed by around 200 writers has circulated that this AHV should be more informative, more in hybrid mode than just virtual , and that members have a few days to vote on decisions by referendum. That request was denied by UNEQ, which says it is breaching its regulations. Still, about 600 members – out of more than 1,600 – registered, a record turnout in the organization’s history.
For some, UNEQ wants to go too far, too fast. “What annoys me the most is the rush,” says Yvon Rivard, a founding member of UNEQ in 1977. “Let’s take the time to do things right. I don’t want UNEQ to implode. If there are no amendments that can put all the proposals into perspective, I fear that several authors and big names will massively resign. However, UNEQ’s political capital rests on these members. »
“Solidarity is not necessary, it is built,” recalls writer Mylène Gilbert-Dumas, who spent hours pointing out the flaws in the UNEQ plans. “We’re being asked for a blank check. We ask for the budget that we will vote on on the 29th and the answer is that we do not know how it will be spent because it will depend on how it will be done, she points out. But the contribution is not an end in itself, it is a means. To get there, you need to show members what’s in store for them. »
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, PRESS ARCHIVE
UNEQ President Suzanne Aubry
Many also wonder why UNEQ is in such a hurry? is there a fire No, but according to Suzanne Aubry, a clock is ticking. Let’s not forget that UNEQ has already convened negotiations with two groups, the National Association of Book Publishers (ANEL) and Sogides. “The law gives us three years to negotiate collective agreements to prove that we are representative of writers,” she explains. Yes, time is of the essence, there may still be two and a half years left to prove ourselves. There is a chrono who has left the law. Representativeness is everything because if we can’t negotiate collective agreements we could lose them. It is important that we can put all our energy into it. We are talking about a first collective agreement, which is becoming increasingly difficult to negotiate. »
Very clever, who could guess whether recording attendance at the EGM will result in support of the resolutions or not. “I can only tell you: We’ll see,” says Suzanne Aubry. If the board came to these two resolutions, it was because we were convinced that our union mission could not be fulfilled without them. There is no union that operates without membership fees, whether it is an artists’ union or not. UNEQ’s future will be decided in AGE, not in social media. And on March 29th, we will accept the outcome, whatever it may be. »
Only one thing is certain: this EGM will not go flat. But it can end very late.