Want to Find out Even More about Fi-Core?
Below are some curated resources on financial core that will supplement your reading of The Fi-Core Workbook.
Additional Resources Jump Menu
Testimonials from Fi-Core Actors
“Why I Went Fi-Core” – From The Acting Income Podcast, an actor who declared financial core status explains why he made the personal decision.
“How Going Fi-Core Affected My Acting Career” – From The Acting Income Podcast, an actor who declared financial core status explains what his acting career looked like afterward. Listen to the podcast for free bonus material.
“Why I Went from Non-Union, to Union, to Fi-Core All in One Summer” – From The Acting Income Podcast, an actor who had in an earlier episode made a case for remaining non-union explains why he joined the union only to immediately after declare financial core status. Listen to the podcast for free bonus material.
Worker Defense Organizations
National Labor Relations Board – This governmental agency is there to protect, among other things, workers from unfair labor practices. Should you have an issue in declaring financial core status — or have any kind of employment issue that may be construed as an unfair labor practice — this agency may be able to help.
National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation – This non-profit, charitable organization is a helpful resource should you be the victim of compulsory unionism, especially in a right-to-work state. Its website has an assortment of articles on financial core status.
Labor Laws
National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (“NLRA” or “Wagner Act”) – Among many rights it laid out, this foundational Act laid out that workers have the right to join a union and bargain collectively as such. Its current language was amended from the original, notably by the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 (“LMRA” or “Taft-Hartley Act”).
United States Supreme Court Rulings
National Labor Relations Board v. General Motors Corporation (1963) – This ruling contains the origin of the term “financial core.”
Pattern Makers’ League of North America v. National Labor Relations Board (1985) – This ruling stresses that union members may resign from their union membership at any time.
Communications Workers of America v. Beck (1988) – This ruling establishes that union members need only to pay for collective bargaining, contract administration, and grievance adjustment — not for union activities unrelated to those tasks.
Marquez v. Screen Actors Guild (1997) – This case pointed out that the confusing use in union security clauses of the term “member of the union in good standing” may favor a meaning of “full constitutional member” and not the more legally appropriate meaning of “financial core worker.” This case pointed out how unions may use confusing wordings and undefined terms to lead workers into feeling compelled to join a union when they have the option to refrain from joining.
Notable Fi-Core Websites
“Financial core” (Wikipedia) – Wikipedia’s entry gives a general description of financial core and its history.
“Get The Facts About Financial Core” (SAG-AFTRA.org) – A microsite by SAG-AFTRA that purports to convey definitive facts about financial core — but falls short. Read over the microsite to understand the union’s public opinion about financial core. Note that there are labor laws in place that limit resistance a union can put up against an employee declaring financial core.
FiCore.com – A website before the merger of SAG and AFTRA promoting financial core. The website appears to have been last updated in 2011.