EQUITY "DOs"
OUR HOLIDAY GIFT TO YOU

By Joanne Borts, Chorus Councillor and Flora Stamatiades, National Director, Organizing & Special Projects

Dear Equity members,

A few tips on Shopping, Shipping, and Thinking of others in ways that support your fellow workers--and your wallet.

Some great shopping options:

As we've mentioned before, there are many discounts on the Equity website. Check for those discounts in the "Members Only" section. A partial list of National discounts includes:

• MAC Cosmetics
• Hertz and Enterprise Rent-a-Car
• Headshot Envelopes.com
• Caroline's Rub-Fine Spice Creations
• 1-800-Flowers (a portion of sales is donated to the AEA Foundation)

There are also many offers for services, such as gym memberships, yoga classes, and salons and spas.

A few websites that may be useful include:

Sites for union friendly gear:

• unionshop.aflcio.org/index.cfm
• www.shopunionmade.org/

  and:

• www.nosweatapparel.com/index.html
  "Bienestar International manufactures union-made footwear and casual clothing under the brand name No Sweat™. Our gear is produced by independent trade union members in the US, Canada, and the developing world."

Two good corporate citizens:

• Target has made a commitment to supporting their communities, not only through the "5% Giving" program for which you may have seen commercials, but through various other programs. Learn more at: sites.target.com/site/en/corporate/page.jsp?contentId=PRD03-001811

• Also, you may have heard that Sears is making a special effort to support our troops. By law, companies are required to hold servicemen's jobs open and available, but nothing more. Usually, people take a big pay cut and lose benefits as a result of being called up.

  Sears, however, is voluntarily paying the difference in salaries and maintaining all benefits, including medical insurance and bonus programs, for all called up reservist employees for up to two years.

Be aware:
We're sure you already know that Wal-Mart is unfriendly to its workers. One website to check if you want an update is http://walmartwatch.com. From that website:

• In Spring 2005, Wal-Mart Watch began a nationwide public education campaign to challenge the world's largest retailer, Wal-Mart, to become a better employer, neighbor, and corporate citizen.

Sorry to spill your coffee…
But did you know that Starbucks has been cited for 30 violations of labor law by the National Labor Relations Board? According to an article in the New York Times on April 8, 2007 ("Latte Laborers Take on a Latte-Liberal Business"), Starbucks is actively fighting an organizing campaign by its workers. For more information, check out http://www.starbucksunion.org/.

And remember, the most economical option is making your own coffee. Pick up a thermos through one of the options above, and you'll save hundreds of dollars a year. It's also a green choice.

I've shopped, now I must ship
Think about the options for having your packages sent: the U.S. Mail ("USPS") and UPS are Union companies, and FedEx is not. For a five pound package sent from New York to Los Angeles, you will pay the following rates for overnight service:

Surprised? Not only is the Unionized USPS. the most economical option, you can now schedule free pickups of your packages by your regular mailman when using Express Mail. If you prefer services provided by other carriers, the non-union FedEx is only $4.00 cheaper, but at what cost to their workers? Unionized UPS is clearly the better option. Who knew? Now you do!

And…the best gift of all!
Donate to a favorite charity in honor of your friends and family! There are so many worthy causes that may speak to your individual interests, or to our industry. Our personal favorites include The Actors Fund, BC/EFA, Career Transition For Dancers and the Actors' Equity Foundation. You can also take a look at www.give.org and www.charitynavigator.org for ideas.

Finally…
You can also add cheer to the holidays through the Stephen J. Falat Holiday Basket Project.

Donations of suitable goods, gifts and direct financial contributions can be sent to Actors' Equity, 165 West 46th Street, New York, NY 10036. Attention: Falat Basket Project through the end of November. To volunteer to help, or for further information, contact Anne Fortuno, Project Coordinator and Assistant to the President, (212) 869-8530, ext. 409.

And remember, recycle, re-use, and RE-GIFT!

Have a healthy, happy holiday season!

(The opinions expressed in this article are the opinions of the authors and do not reflect the opinions of Actors' Equity Association, its leadership, its Council, or its employees.)

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