Time’s Up Entertainment released three new guides to working in and reporting sexual harassment in the entertainment industry on Friday.
Called The TIME’S UP Guide to Working in Entertainment, the downloadable guides provide resources on legal hotlines, how to identify harassment and what to know if you’re thinking about reporting. The group also provided two additional sets of guidelines, including one on maintaining safety during auditions and another for knowing your rights when it comes to nudity on set.
“The entertainment industry is not a typical workplace, so figuring out your rights and options around workplace harassment, discrimination, and misconduct can be confusing,” actress Alyssa Milano, who consulted on the guide, said. “As a community, we came together to develop these resources to help people in entertainment understand that no matter your situation, you do have the right to be safe and respected on the job.”
Time’s Up collaborated with actresses, filmmakers, intimacy coordinators, production crew members, union workers, attorneys and allied organizations to devise a guide for people in the entertainment industry who find themselves in situations that are at best awkward, or at worst, dangerous.
The first of the three guides outlines considerations to make before reporting any harassment to your employer, the advantages and disadvantages of doing so, how to report to your labor union, and specific rights for workers in New York and California. The other guides focus on the areas in which most people have historically been preyed upon, including auditions, intimate, nude and simulated sex scenes. The guides also include practical guidance on individuals’ options and rights for addressing inappropriate behavior.
“It’s time for survivors to feel empowered over the predators. Artists and other entertainment workers must know we have rights, that we are not alone, and that we can and should speak up without retribution when we feel unsafe, bullied, or intimidated,” actress Michelle Hurd said. “There is power in our words and voices. It’s time that we are heard, and consequences are enforced.”
“Too many people in the entertainment industry are facing physical, emotional, and financial harm. We know because we unfortunately hear about it all the time,” Tina Tchen, president and CEO of the Time’s Up Foundation. “This resource is one of many ways Time’s Up is working to ensure everyone is treated with safety, respect, and dignity in the workplace, no matter what work you take on.”
Time’s Up released its first guide almost two years ago, shortly after the 2018 Golden Globes. The group helped turn the red carpet black to highlight issues of workplace discrimination occurring across industries, geographies, occupations, and economic status.
To download the Time’s Up Guide to Working in Entertainment, click here. Entertainment professionals can also access these guides instantly in moments of need – anytime, anywhere – by texting SAFESETS to 306-44.