denis moran

That's what I was told as well. I was also told that Local 44 voted not to ratify but that didn't give us enough votes. Denis

Here are 2 websites that may be of some interest. http://dropline.biz/News_Bulletin-IATSE_We...cals_Rally.html and www.votedownthecontract.com The latter is pretty new but has some interesting letters. Denis Moran

I thought I would forwars this: SOC East Coast Members: HELP SPREAD THE WORD Should the Camera Operator Classification be an Option??? We were able to pack the rooms in the west. Now let?s help get the voices together in the Big Apple! Call your member friends and coworkers! East Coast Regional Membership Meeting. MEMBERS OF IA LOCAL 600: A MUST ATTEND MEETING CONCERNING THE LATEST CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS AND THE ?OPTIONAL? CAMERA OPERATOR POSITION! Listen, question and learn the facts of the fate of a job classification that is threatened. Do something about it!!! Sunday, January 29th, 2006 12 pm to 3 pm (eastern standard time) Local 802 AFM Local Hall 322 West 48th Street New York, NY 10036 All Local 600 members welcome and urged to attend.

The latest I?ve heard about the Operator issue? We must be careful how we present ourselves to some of the other locals. It seems some of our more ?enthusiastic? members may have been coming across a bit too strong when discussing the issue of the current contract with some members of the other locals. There was a letter sent to 600 regarding a camera crew member making a member from a different local feel pressured by the ?vote NO? . I don?t know the specifics but Local 600 could run into trouble with the IATSE if this continues. I?m sure someone knows the proper ?code of conduct? that should be used in these situations. I sure as hell don?t. The frustration I?m feeling is when I have spoken to friends in other locals about what is in the new contract, none of them know what they have won or lost. Until they have the contract to read? they are in the dark about it. Respect people?s space. Don?t be pushy. Just keep them aware of how the operator position is in trouble. I don?t know if you are even allowed to let them know how it could effect the Hollywood Contract if we fold on this one this year. Three years from now? who knows what might be on the chopping block. If someone has some insight on this issue, please respond. Sincerely; Denis Moran

There should be more information coming out in the next few days. As for general information as I understand it... The contracts (with the recommendation from the NEB to vote NO) will be mailed out to 600 members at the end of this month and the ballots are to be returned by March 1st. My assumption is that the other locals have a similar timetable. There was a committee set up at the NEB to move ahead on this issue and we will hopefully be hearing from them very soon. Denis

I'd also like to thank Tim Tyler for allowing this topic to continue. It was a bit off topic but it kept it out in the open for the operators. Thank you. Denis

Just returned from the NEB meeting of local 600. We were hoping to get the board to vote 51% in favor of recommending NO on the current contract. We thought it was going to be tight vote based on personality and "party line" voting. The results were 100% in favor of a NO vote. I don't know when 600 last had this type of unity. Our elected board really cut through the politics and came through for us. Thanks to everyone who showed up to lend their support and voice. Next up is to get the word out to our brothers and sisters in the other locals and make sure the rank and file know what is at stake. It is not just about saving the job of the operator. It is about finally making a stand and stop giving in. Thanks to everyone who showed support. Denis Moran

I received a phone call late last night to tell me that Tom Short has informed the Local that he will now not be attending the NEB tomorrow. Unfortunately, any information we have is second hand so I will call 600 today to confirm this. The debate will still take place and we must let our board know how we feel. By the end of this weekend, the NEB will still need to decide to recommend a YES or NO vote. I know a lot of people who RSVP?d wanted to let Tom Short know what a disaster this contract would be for the Local (and the entire IA) and We can still do it. Come out tomorrow and let our elected officials speak for us. There has been talk about some members of the NEB possibly voting along ?party lines?. Get to the meeting and let them know that as elected officials they need to speak for the Rank and File not the party. Like most, I wanted to hear how Tom Short would try to defend this contract. But I can also understand how it might not be in his best interest to attend. With over 150 people RSVP?ing to attend, it is obvious that this is extremely unpopular with the general membership. If even 2/3 of the group of people who said they were going to attend showed up it will probably be more than most of our general membership meetings. That speaks volumes to the NEB but also to the other locals. They are watching this closely. The other IA locals know that if we fold on this one? The genie is out of the bottle. I would hate to see what we will be expected to give up next contract. Hope to see you at the Hyatt tomorrow. Sincerely, Denis Moran

The outcome of last nights meeting was that we have a hell of a fight in front of us. Gary D.?s position was that we were strong armed into this situation and if we don?t ratify, it could be worse. The general feeling from the members in the room was that this is an attack on our position and our livelihoods. It would be worse to say that we are weak and willing to accept whatever falls off the table. If this goes through, there was a general feel that we will be sitting at the next contract in 3 years trying to save the Still photographers, tech rate, loaders ect. We have to make a stand somewhere. The contracts will be mailed out sometime in late Jan., early Feb. With the contract will be a recommendation by the NEB to say Yes or No on this contract. This our current fight for Saturday. We need to get the NEB to recommend a NO vote on the contract before it goes out to the General membership. If you know someone on the NEB, let them know that you don?t agree with the contract and would like it turned down. Next on the agenda would be to get the membership to vote it down. And last but certainly not least is to get the support from a few of the other locals to send in a NO vote. There will be a website set up (hopefully in the next few days) that you can send people to if they want more information on this subject. Let other crew members know how you feel now. I was shocked to find out how few people knew that all this is going down. Talk to the other locals. Their vote will be needed next. Denis Moran PS . I never thought that I would agree with phil but he is right? there are those 2% of productions that have taken advantage of mandatory staffing but the vast, vast majority of shows benefit from this situation. I?m sure phil would be more than happy to tell us about what happened to the once powerful UK unions when they decided to let the producers break the unions.

CAMERA OPERATORS CALL TO MEETING Join us at an Informational Meeting Called by the President of the Society of CameraOperators Welcome SOC Members, Local 600 International Cinematographers Guild Camera Operator Members Camera Assistants, Directors of Photography Wednesday January 18th at 7 PM The Local 600 Union Office, Ground Floor Meeting Room 7755 Sunset Blvd Hollywood, CA This is an Informational Meeting brought to you by the interested parties of the SOC. Local 600 President Dunham will be available at this meeting for details on the memorandum of Agreement and how it affects us. Bring your questions, share your feelings, be heard and hear what we know as we approach the NEB concerning the newest contract negotiations. This meeting will be held with the agenda that it will be a constructive proactive planning session for the NEB and the future of the position of Camera Operator in our Union. Please join us in the hope that we can prevail. There will be an Q & A forum following opening remarks by SOC President David Frederick and Local President Gary Dunham. RSVP: Pres@soc.org

Here is a bit of what we were told by 600 at last night?s meeting. Yes, the operator position was seriously hurt during the negotiations for this contract which goes into effect in October, 2006. A producer can ask the DP to operate a-camera on features and b-camera on TV. This agreement must take place during pre-production and must be agreed to by the union. There will be an NEB meeting on Jan 21st in LA and Tom Short has agreed to come and address the members of the board. As far as I know? if you RSVP, you can attend. I can say that I?m still not sure why the operators were screwed in this contract and perhaps we will find out more on the 21st. There was quite a bit of finger pointing and accusations and I?m still not sure where blame lies. There was unanimous support from all the board members at the meeting to vote NO on the contract but we haven?t been told if we were the only local to suffer such a hit on the contract. 600 voting NO will not stop the contract from going through. We will need the support of the other locals to vote the contract down. As for comments about European countries having weak unions. Who knows, if we let this go through? we might be in the same boat in a few years. What can they take from us next? BTW. I?m not a board member of the union. I?m just a concerned member trying to keep people up to date. Thanks. Denis Moran PS. Thanks to everyone who showed up last night.

Just to let people know what was up with the 600 operator situation... There will be a meeting at the union hall in LA at 7:30pm on Wed. Jan. 11th to discuss what went wrong with the contract. Please remember that this is not a "done deal". It is what the Producers have put forward and IA has agreed to. It is up to the membership to vote on it. Thanks. Denis Moran (ex-steadicam op)

This may not effect many of the overseas operators but I wanted to keep local 600 operators in the loop. It seems that the new contract does not have mandatory staffing of operators anymore. I haven't seen the contract but from what I was told... the hiring of an operator is at the whim of the DP and the producer. I'll keep you posted. Denis Moran

Does anyone have a Mini-Worrell (sp) they would be interested in selling? Drop me an email. Dmoran5144@aol.com Thanks. Denis Moran