IATSE-2nd2018_web

ecame law over President Harry Truman’s veto) established
the structure for multiemployer plans governed by boards
made up of equal numbers of labor and management representatives.
Through collective bargaining, employers would
contribute a certain amount of money to these plans per employee,
and the plans would provide the workers with health
and pension benefits.
That’s why two broad plans were launched to meet the retirement
and health needs of members — the Motion Picture
Industry Pension & Health Plans, and the IATSE National
Benefit Funds.
MOTION PICTURE INDUSTRY
PENSION & HEALTH PLANS
The Motion Picture Industry Pension & Health Plans are
multiemployer, non-profit, Taft-Hartley Funds established
by collective bargaining agreements to provide pension and
health benefits for IATSE members working in the production
of motion pictures or engaged primarily in furnishing materials
or services for motion picture productions.
The first plan was establisehd in 1952 to provide health
and welfare benefits to members of the entertainment industry
without any lapse in coverage when a participant went from
one job to another. Now known as the Motion Picture Industry
Health Plan, it currently provides coverage to more than
130,000 people.
One year later, a second plan was established to provide
retirement benefits to members. The Motion Picture Industry
Pension Plan currently distributes nearly $25 million (before
taxes) in pension payments to more than 18,000 retired participants,
their survivors or beneficiaries.
In 1979, a third plan was established to provide supplemental
retirement benefits funded by employer donations.
The Motion Picture Industry Individual Account Plan (IAP)
has grown significantly since its founding, both due to the
performance of its investments and increases in wages and the
number of work hours of its hard-working participants. It is
not unusual for someone who has been in the industry for
thirty or more years to withdraw an IAP account balance in
the six figures.
In 1990, the administrations of the Health Plan and the
Pension Plan merged. Although they are two separate legal
entities, the Plans are known as the Motion Picture Industry
Pension & Health Plans (MPI). Since then, several other pension
and health plans merged with the MPI, including several
on the East Coast, which led to the establishment of an MPI
New York office.
In 2017, more than 1,800 employers contributed to MPI, and
upwards of 96.5 million hours were reported by employers on
behalf their employees. These record-setting numbers show the
strength of the entertainment industry — and IATSE’s dominance
of its workforce. Today, the combined investments of MPI
total more than $8.4 billion.
IATSE NATIONAL BENEFIT FUNDS
The IATSE National Benefit Funds (NBF) were launched
more than sixty years ago to provide retirement and, later,
health security for members. They are also multiemployer,
non-profit, Taft-Hartley Funds established by collective
bargaining agreements, ensuring continuity of coverage in
fields where employment is temporary, sporadic or episodic,
involving multiple employers. There are now four primary
funds.
The first plan, the
IATSE National Pension
Fund was established
in 1957. Now known as
Plan A, its first partici-
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