In the UK, Equity is the leading trade union for professional performers and creatives working across stage and screen. It represents a wide range of performers and behind-the-scenes professionals, including dancers, stage managers, and comedians. Established in 1930, Equity has a long history of fighting for performers’ rights and campaigning for a fairer entertainment industry.
Here’s how Equity works, the benefits of joining, and how to apply for membership.
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There is strength in numbers, and the more actors who join Equity, the stronger its bargaining power when it comes to things like better working practices and fairer pay.
Other membership benefits include Public Liability Insurance, free legal advice, a host of member discounts, access to grants from the Equity Benevolent fund, and the Equity Pension Scheme.
“Unions are vitally important for the struggle for equitable treatment for all,” says actor and drag artist Francesca Renée Reid. “I know they will be fighting in my corner to ensure better working practices and to install and uphold safeguarding for myself and those who don't have the privilege and legal might to challenge unscrupulous employers, bullying, and the like.”
When you become an Equity member, you also get your Equity card and name. Your Equity name is the one you will be known by professionally, and no two Equity members can have the same name. For that matter, no two Equity members can have a too-similar sounding name. For some performers, joining Equity is worth it for securing their name and protecting their professional brand alone. Both an Equity card and name are internationally recognised indicators of your status as a professional actor.
The support Equity provides is the reason many actors join. “As a working-class actor, I joined Equity to have someone in my corner when dealing with the more sinister people in fringe theatre and on the independent film/TV circuit,” says member Lisa Lynn. “I'm happy to report they've been exactly that. From unpaid invoices to dealing with inappropriate behaviour, Equity has your back.”
The cost of membership depends on your average gross annual income. To work out how much membership will cost, take your gross annual income as an actor in the UK from the past three tax years, then calculate your average annual income.
If your average income is under £40,000, you’ll pay the lowest rate, which at the time of writing is £168 per year. At the other end of the scale, earning anything over £240,001 will see your annual membership shoot up to £3,360. There are further rates within that range, so it’s worth checking the breakdown before applying.
Joining Equity for the first time as either a full or subsidised member also incurs a one-off payment of £38 (reduced to £9.50 for those in education and training). Regardless of your rate, Equity offers a £6 discount if you pay by direct debit.
As an Equity member, you are free to join other unions in the UK and abroad, and, unlike in the US, you can take work on a non-Equity contract. However, this freedom has its drawbacks. It undermines the power of Equity as a union if actors are willing to accept work at rates below Equity minimum.
Like all unions, Equity is not a perfect system. Some actors complain of not feeling supported when a problem arises. The fees can also be off-putting when you’re just starting out and struggling to make ends meet.
Still, given the overall benefits of being an Equity member – including the status, the insurance, and the support it offers in a sometimes difficult and lonely industry – are often considered worth it.
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If you are an actor, there are three options available: Education and Training, Full, and Subsidised memberships. As of 2024, all Equity members are entitled to the full union benefits.
Education and Training membership
If you are training to be an actor and studying on a course which is an NQF Level 4 or above (such as an acting BA or MA), you can become an Equity member through its Education and Training membership at a heavily discounted rate of £42 (or £36 if you pay by direct debit). You will also be expected to pay a one-off joining fee of £9.50.
If you join Equity as a student member and renew your membership after you’ve graduated, you will automatically be eligible to upgrade to either a full or subsidised membership (depending on your rate of income) without having to pay another joining fee.
Full membership
To become a full member of Equity, you need to demonstrate earnings of at least £750 from work as a professional actor (across your whole career). You can provide contracts, invoices, emails, letters, or payslips as proof, so long as they confirm the dates of the job and how much you earned. The £750 can come from a single job or multiple jobs where the combined income totals a minimum of £750.
Alternatively, if you’ve undertaken a job on an Equity contract, you will be able to join Equity regardless of the income you earn.
Finally, if you’ve worked internationally and can provide proof of membership to an FIA-affiliated union, such as MEAA (Australia) or SAG-AFTRA (US), you are eligible to join Equity in the UK.
Subsidised membership
If your average annual income is £40,000 or under, you could be eligible for the subsidised membership of £84 a year (or £78 with the direct debit discount).
In order to qualify, you need to either be aged 10–17 or older than 66, or have graduated from a BA or MA acting course (anything NQF Level 4 + or equivalent) in the past two years.
You still have to demonstrate your eligibility to join Equity based on the full membership criteria, and you will need to provide your date of birth or the details of your eligible course to qualify.