Personal Managers Association
Hi Everyone,
I sent round info about Equity’s stand on vaccinations last week (copied at the end of this email to save you searching).
Yesterday we met with Hilary Hadley, Equity/Theatre. Her message was in line with the notes below. However she did ask us to expand on the complexities inherent in that fact that none of this has yet been tested in law. She emphasised that:
– whilst an actor may have rights not to be discriminated against by a provision, criteria or practice imposed by the Company such as vaccination, either at audition, or at point of contract, or during a contract, those rights have to be tested by the Tribunal, Court of Appeal or even the Supreme Court, which can take many months if not years to resolve. Given there is likely to be a fundamental issue at stake in a claim to a Tribunal it is likely that any decision would be appealed and so on. –
Here are the notes I circulated last week:
1. Vaccination Status. Equity’s overall stance is that actors should not be required to disclose vaccination status. This applies at the point of submission, along with auditions and offers. If you are pressured for this information please do contact the relevant Equity sector officer.
2. Contractual Obligations. Once an offer becomes contractual the Union supports testing and Covid safety measures. At this point is is reasonable to ask about vaccination, but not to make it a requirement of work. An exception to this may be if travel is involved and vaccination is a requirement for entry to the country.
Please note Equity is not saying it is unlawful to ask about vaccination status for work â but the law has not been tested in court. Until such time as legal precedent exists, Equity take the position that vaccination should not be a requirement of work.
3. Covid Safety Protocols. If no Covid safety measures are in place Equity suggests you contact the relevant Equity sector officer immediately. An industry-wide framework for safety protocols has been agreed and can be found here (I understand the information in this link is regularly updated) . British Film Commission (BFC) Film & TV Production Code of Practice: http://britishfilmcommission.org.uk/guidance/regarding-covid-19-coronavirus/
4. Agents asking for (and storing) information about your clients’ vaccination status. I know that some of you are, for obvious practical reasons, asking your clients for their vaccination status. If you are doing so, be aware of your data protection obligations. In very broad terms if you wish to collect and store vaccination information your clients must be willing to share this personal information; the information must be directly relevant to your work; and only shared outside your company with the express permission of your client. (You may also want to check your agency data protection policy).
CC