Freelance isn't Free

chuasam · Oct 28, 2016

This is a bit of a plug but not spam at all.
Friends of mine (and have included me) in this campaign to form a union or guild of Freelance Creatives.

Everyone deserves to get paid. Join the #FreelanceIsntFree Campaign today!

Take a moment to support this movement. It matters to us.

vintagesnaps · Oct 28, 2016

Not having heard of this I started looking it up, and now, I still don't know what it is... It's a union? but it's not really a union? No dues, they don't represent members....

They're a nonprofit? and an insurance business?? They sign people up for health insurance?? but shows there are no longer health plans available.

Shows up on New York state's website from 2008 as a registered foreign nonprofit (whatever the heck that means!) and in 2014 as an LLC. I saw a Tax ID number but no type of nonprofit status (usually a nonprofit will show if it's for example a 501(c)3 but I'm not finding any mention of it).

It says on the website that they're the ones behind the signs in the NYC subway with the beehive logo. I'm not going to retype what it says on the site about insurance etc., anyone can read it on their site and figure it out (or not). Mentions they're approved providers for - dental insurance...?? and sell life insurance. I just keep ending up back on the same page again and again.

No mention that I can find of a board of directors or executive committee or anything. The only name I found was in a NY Times article. Who We Are on their site didn't tell me who 'they' are. They're in Brooklyn, which could mean just about anything.

All I could tell for sure is there's an LLC selling insurance, and what the nonprofit that supposedly owns the insurance company does, well... EDIT I did more looking. They have employees that work for the insurance company and/or the union. They started a clinic which includes an acupuncturist, a yoga studio, and doctors see patients there, but the patients have to be insured thru this union. They helped get a bill passed to require there to be a timetable for payment for freelance work in NYC. They had a party to celebrate.

This just seems to be a lot about selling insurance. I'm not sure how it works having an insurance company owned by a nonprofit, that people join the nonprofit union to get the for profit insurance. I guess...

Advanced Photo · Oct 28, 2016

I used to see services on Freelancer.com. Now I have enough people wanting my pieces that I no longer do side freelance work at all or I might be interested.
I have never known any freelancer that worked for free, I think that's called volunteerism or donation.

chuasam · Oct 28, 2016

I'm not sure. A friend of mine who is a Freelance writer is involved in it and feels that the industry needs a change in the way FreeLancers are treated.

Advanced Photo · Oct 28, 2016

chuasam said:
I'm not sure. A friend of mine who is a Freelance writer is involved in it and feels that the industry needs a change in the way FreeLancers are treated.

Maybe he needs to learn to negotiate with more authority and control the negotiation process.
I don't know if that's the case or not, but I never had any qualms about any of the deals I struck. I passed on a lot of jobs that didn't interest me or didn't have the budget for me to do what I thought should be done to accept it.
I often told prospective clients, "I think you will be a lot happier getting a less experienced person to do this for you with the budget you have set aside for the project."
Often I would then receive a call offering a lot more than the first opening offer, sometimes it was sufficient sometimes I still had to pass.

vintagesnaps · Oct 28, 2016

Well yeah, I think a lot of photography has gone freelance and there's probably a need for change and improvements. I'm more familiar with sports and know photographers with some media outlets got fired, then if they were hired back it was on freelance status. In my area several years ago it was local radio that was hit hard; out of 3 guys I know, only one has been working in PR, the other two ended up in retail/sales jobs.

I just can't quite figure out what this union/insurance company is... I suppose if I lived in the area and was interested I'd go to a meeting or event or something and see what it's about, but from what I saw on the website I have more questions than answers.

chuasam · Oct 31, 2016

vintagesnaps said:
Well yeah, I think a lot of photography has gone freelance and there's probably a need for change and improvements. I'm more familiar with sports and know photographers with some media outlets got fired, then if they were hired back it was on freelance status. In my area several years ago it was local radio that was hit hard; out of 3 guys I know, only one has been working in PR, the other two ended up in retail/sales jobs.

I just can't quite figure out what this union/insurance company is... I suppose if I lived in the area and was interested I'd go to a meeting or event or something and see what it's about, but from what I saw on the website I have more questions than answers.

It's always good to have questions. Many friends have been forced to go Freelance. Even experienced media photographers. Newspapers no longer have any budget whatsoever. Freelancers by nature are somewhat anarchistic and hard to organise. A guild would sort of help the industry as in providing minimum work standards and minimum payment for work.

vintagesnaps · Oct 31, 2016

Yes it would. I think existing organizations would like to see industry standards. But this group that seems to sell insurance seems iffy to me. They did have some involvement in helping to pass the recent law to help freelancers (not necessarily photographers) in NYC get payments owed to them.

This is for freelancers, not just photographers. So who the other freelancers are or what type businesses they run I don't know. And I don't think it would necessarily help photographers.

It just seems like this 'group' has their beehive logo on signs in the subway in Brooklyn and apparently have been selling insurance for some years. I don't get how it went from that to a freelancers union. Unless it's been around as a union for a number of years?? I'm not sure, they don't have any info. on their website as to who's involved in running this, what experience/expertise they have, etc. I don't even know if it's a group, or a one person show.

Reminds of the so-called 'organization' that 'sells' credentials. It's been around for years but is one person (or I think maybe a couple) that print 'credentials' and people pay a 'membership' to get them. It doesn't seem to actually exist as an organization. The credentials are not worth the paper/plastic they're printed on, but people have been sending them money for years.....

Advanced Photo · Oct 31, 2016

vintagesnaps said:
Yes it would. I think existing organizations would like to see industry standards. But this group that seems to sell insurance seems iffy to me. They did have some involvement in helping to pass the recent law to help freelancers (not necessarily photographers) in NYC get payments owed to them.

This is for freelancers, not just photographers. So who the other freelancers are or what type businesses they run I don't know. And I don't think it would necessarily help photographers.

It just seems like this 'group' has their beehive logo on signs in the subway in Brooklyn and apparently have been selling insurance for some years. I don't get how it went from that to a freelancers union. Unless it's been around as a union for a number of years?? I'm not sure, they don't have any info. on their website as to who's involved in running this, what experience/expertise they have, etc. I don't even know if it's a group, or a one person show.

Reminds of the so-called 'organization' that 'sells' credentials. It's been around for years but is one person (or I think maybe a couple) that print 'credentials' and people pay a 'membership' to get them. It doesn't seem to actually exist as an organization. The credentials are not worth the paper/plastic they're printed on, but people have been sending them money for years.....

That's true of most all credentials unfortunately, they are all for sale and all it means is you paid the right people.
The only credentials that matter is work product.

chuasam · Oct 31, 2016

vintagesnaps said:
Yes it would. I think existing organizations would like to see industry standards. But this group that seems to sell insurance seems iffy to me. They did have some involvement in helping to pass the recent law to help freelancers (not necessarily photographers) in NYC get payments owed to them.

This is for freelancers, not just photographers. So who the other freelancers are or what type businesses they run I don't know. And I don't think it would necessarily help photographers.

It just seems like this 'group' has their beehive logo on signs in the subway in Brooklyn and apparently have been selling insurance for some years. I don't get how it went from that to a freelancers union. Unless it's been around as a union for a number of years?? I'm not sure, they don't have any info. on their website as to who's involved in running this, what experience/expertise they have, etc. I don't even know if it's a group, or a one person show.

Reminds of the so-called 'organization' that 'sells' credentials. It's been around for years but is one person (or I think maybe a couple) that print 'credentials' and people pay a 'membership' to get them. It doesn't seem to actually exist as an organization. The credentials are not worth the paper/plastic they're printed on, but people have been sending them money for years.....

Thanks for the question. I shall go ask my friend some more.
The other Freelancers are Designers, and Writers and Artists.
Also gotta make sure it isn't Trump University rehashed.