2024 – Equity Year in Review

What a year it’s been for our union. This year we have moved our industrial outlook from resilience to resistance, we have put arts funding on the national agenda, and we have become an industrial force to be reckoned with. When we have stood together, we have won. None of this would be possible without the collective strength of 50,000 Equity members.   

There are struggles to come in the year ahead, including our High Court case against Spotlight in Summer 2025. But it’s important to reflect on the past year and our collective achievements…    

January  

The year started with Equity members in the English National Opera (ENO) Chorus voting for industrial action with a 100% ‘Yes’ vote for the strike. Our ENO members rejected the 40% cut to their salaries proposed by ENO management. The strike was called off after our members won improvements to the management's original proposals.   

In January we launched legal action against Spotlight. Our lawyers informed the company that if they did not provide us with clear evidence that the subscription of Spotlight members was no more than a reasonable estimate of the cost of production and distribution of their directory then we would take class action at the High Court to enforce a reduction in their fees.   

February   

Throughout the year we have campaigned against arts cuts in every region. In February we delivered a petition with nearly 4,000 signatures to Suffolk County Council calling on them to stop arts funding cuts. Because of our action we won an addition £500,000 funding for arts by Suffolk County Council.   

March   

In March we held a public meeting to save the arts in Northern Ireland. Over 130 members of the community showed up to our Save the Arts, Resist the Cuts public meeting. We brought together trades unions of every sector, arts workers, politicians, and the producers to tell the government in Northern Ireland that cuts are wrong, economically illiterate, and morally inexcusable.  

April   

Following our affiliation with the Cuba Solidarity Campaign in 2023, we were delighted that 82-year-old Equity member Myra Sands, formerly a dancer with the Royal Ballet School, visited Cuba in April to complete a 369km bike ride across the Island.   

We gave evidence to the UN’s Committee on the Rights of Disabled People on the impact of welfare reform on disabled people in the UK. The resulting report was damning of the UK government, finding that the UK has ‘failed to take all appropriate measures to address grave and systematic violations of the human rights of persons with disabilities’. 

May   

In May Welsh National Opera (WNO) management proposed reducing full-time contracts of WNO chorus members to 45 weeks with a salary cut of 15% a year or introducing compulsory redundancies. We could not allow this to stand so began our resistance to these proposals which is still ongoing.  

Equity members from across the UK came together in Birmingham’s Town Hall for our annual conference. As well as 109 delegates, 22 Equity councillors and 30 other members, guests travelled from 15 countries across six continents, including visitors from Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, and Palestine.    

June  

In June we formally started our negotiations with Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television (Pact) to revise the collective agreements across film and TV. We’ve sourced direct input from members, with a range of survey work, open meetings and briefings to inform our claim, including on self-tapes, hair and make-up, accessibility and pay.    

We continued our campaign to protect jobs at WNO. Members at WNO signed an open letter to the Welsh Government, asking them to intervene to save the jobs at risk of redundancy.  

Our members elected Equity's President, Council, Appeals Committee and Conference Business Committee for the 2024-2026 term, with Lynda Rooke elected to serve as Equity's President for a second term.

Ahead of the General Election we ran an non-partisan campaign to demand the long overdue end to austerity. Members emailed every parliamentary candidate to ensure that arts funding was front and centre of the national debate.    

July   

July began with the election of a Labour Government. We called on the new administration to set out a long-term plan for UK arts funding.  

On 11 July eight Equity members filed papers at the High Court in a class action against Spotlight. We are seeking a declaration from a judge that the law regarding fees for jobseekers applies to Spotlight.   

Following years of campaigning, Oldham Coliseum was saved. This victory showed the power of collective action, when unions and community groups come together to protect the arts we can win.    

No sooner was Oldham Coliseum saved than another much loved cultural centre was threatened with closure. Our petition to save Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club (BGWMC) gathered over 10,000 signatures in 72 hours, and more than 100 people turned out in a rally to save the venue on 29 July. BGWMC is a safe haven for all queer and trans people in London. Our venues are disappearing at such a rate we can’t afford to lose this one too, the fight to save BGWMC goes on!  

August   

Following a horrific rise in far-right violence across Great Britain and Northern Ireland, our union offered unequivocal solidarity to members and their communities under threat.  

We launched our Game On! campaign to set the standard for decent pay and conditions in video games, from hours to safety to the use of AI. This was the first time that recommended minimum rates for the payment of video game performers have been published in the UK.   

September   

Over 300 Equity members and supporters staged a rally outside Holyrood on 5 September to protest the Scottish Government’s ongoing cuts to arts funding. It generated an impromptu meeting with the Culture Minister. 

The chorus of WNO voted for industrial action by 93% on a turnout of 100%. We called for meaningful talks with the company, which ultimately led to us pausing planned strike action scheduled for 21 September. Our members took action short of strike which included wearing campaign t-shirts on stage during curtain calls, making speeches to the audience, and handing out campaign leaflets as audiences arrived.  

We took our campaign against Spotlight to the TUC Congress, where the trade union movement unanimously passed our motion to ban upfront fees charged to performers by casting directories.   

October   

In October we announced that we were launching a groundbreaking new package of insurance cover for all members. The new insurance represents the highest value and most comprehensive insurance package ever provided as part of an Equity membership.   

We launched a campaign to #AbolishAuditionFees for drama schools and performing arts courses. The Break Down Barriers campaign, led by our Student Deputies Committee, seeks to address obstacles that prevent aspiring artists from entering the performing arts industry.  

In October we discovered that Bristol City Council planned to sell Bottle Yard Studios. Following our campaign calling for increased transparency, scrutiny and accountability of the sale, Bristol City Councillors backed an amendment forcing Council Officers to bring back sale plans to Council for approval.  

November   

Industrial action short of strike by our WNO chorus members continued throughout November.   

We announced that we are moving our £130m pension into a sustainable fund that has extensive fossil fuel exclusions. Anyone enrolling in the Equity Pension Scheme for the first time will join our new greener, more progressive default fund. Existing members will move in 2025.  

December   

In December Equity members braved the cold and rallied outside Newham Council’s offices to call on the council to save much-loved community performance space Applecart Arts.   

We are campaigning throughout panto season to highlight the lack of arts investment in Northern Ireland. Audiences are supporting the campaign by filling out festive postcards and posting them in Equity post boxes at panto and Christmas show venues across Northern Ireland.  

Finally, throughout the year we distributed millions of pounds in royalties to thousands of performers. The total royalties paid out via the Equity Distribution Service in 2024 is over £17.5 million. All this money comes from union contracts and shows the power of our union.   

And all this is just a fraction of what we’ve achieved in 2024.  

If you’re looking for a New Year’s Resolution, why not get involved in your union or ask a colleague to join? In 2025 we have committee elections – the perfect way for you to take a step up into representing your industry, discipline and colleagues through your union. Or look out for events, training and meetings. We host a wide range of in-person and virtual events throughout the year. 

 Get involved and together we can make 2025 even better.