Jeffrey Reeves (IMDB)
Delegate

I've been a union member for 31 years. I'm currently the Vice Chair of the Los Angeles Local Communications Committee and a member of the Los Angeles Local Organizing Committee. I've worked SAG-AFTRA contracts in commercials, primetime television, daytime serials, variety shows, and independent films. 

Issues I care about:
I joined AFTRA as an actor in 1992 and soon after joined SAG. 
Like many of you, earning my professional actors' union card meant I inherited fair wages, protections, respect, and dignity that generations before me fought to create, preserve, and generously pass forward. 
The nature of performers' work really hasn't changed all that much since I joined--or since our union was formed in the late 1930s. 
We still collaborate with our colleagues in sister unions to craft fantastic stories in film, and over the decades we've added television, commercials, streaming, and more.
But still, the work of an actor performing in front of a camera is basically the same as it's always been.
What has changed over that time is technology and the way entertainment is captured and delivered. 
As you know, the technology behind streaming has changed our business tremendously. 
The thing is, with each technological advancement, we seem to lose a portion of those once-fair wages and meaningful protections. 
New technologies have often increased our employers' earnings. Currently our largest employers show their collective annual revenue in the hundreds of billions. Yet somehow those advancements in technology are continually used as an excuse to pay us less and reduce our members access to our health plan and pension plan.
Our access to respect and dignity doesn't seem to be what it used to be, either.
I want to work with you in solidarity to undo our losses and reestablish our respect and dignity. To my mind, the fix is transparency, communication, member education, and your participation.