Rebecca Damon

Since October 2021, there has been a familiar face leading the staff at the New York Local: SAG-AFTRA New York Local Executive Director, Labor Policy & International Affairs Rebecca Damon, former union executive vice president and New York Local president.

Damon began her union service two decades ago as a member leader and activist.

“I first got involved because I saw places the union needed to grow,” said Damon about her early experience as a member volunteer. She later served on the board of the former Screen Actors Guild New York Division, eventually being elected to vice president. In that role, she was a founding member of both the SAG President’s Forum for One Union and the joint Group for One Union, helping lead the effort to unite SAG and AFTRA. As co-leader of the Operations Workgroup, Damon was a key architect of the merger.

A champion for workers’ rights, Damon was recognized as one of the most noteworthy figures on the front lines of the New York labor movement by City and State Labor Power 100. In 2022, she received a Leaders of Labor Award and, this year, was named by PoliticsNY and amNY as a Labor Power Player. Previous awards for her outstanding advocacy on behalf of SAG-AFTRA members and her longstanding dedication to and support of the labor movement include the New York LaborPress Leadership Award, the Irish Echo Connecting America Award, the SAG-AFTRA George Heller Memorial Award and the SAG-AFTRA New York Local’s Joseph C. Riley Award.

Reflecting on her new role, Damon said, “It has meant so much to have the support of our New York membership over the years. The accomplishments we have achieved together have laid the groundwork for our work ahead. I’m especially grateful for the faith the SAG-AFTRA New York Local Board has shown in me. I am honored to have this opportunity to advance and deepen the work during a time when it has never been more clear that the power of collective action is critical to creating a more just and equitable society.” l

Upstate Revs Up

IN LATE 2018, the Member Outreach and Volunteer Efforts, or MOVE, New York Committee established a subcommittee for the Western, Central and Upstate New York regions, and members in those areas have been actively engaged in showing their union support ever since. Led by Co-Chairs Louise Simon Schoene and Joe Wooley, the subcommittee has marched in Memorial Day parades and hosted coffee socials and informational meetings, including a discussion with local upstate resident and SAG-AFTRA National Board member Stephen McKinley Henderson about his long and storied career. While the pandemic put a pause on some of the subcommittee’s activities, WNY/ CNY members were back in action in September, marching alongside fellow unionists in the Buffalo Labor Day Parade. Union pride extends to every ZIP code in New York state!