National Writers Union
Encyclopedia
National Writers Union founded on November 19, 1981, is the trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...

 in the United States for freelance and contract writers: journalists, book and short fiction authors, business and technical writers, web content providers, and poets. Organized into 17 local chapters nationwide, it has been Local 1981 of the United Automobile Workers, AFL-CIO
AFL-CIO
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, commonly AFL–CIO, is a national trade union center, the largest federation of unions in the United States, made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 11 million workers...

 since merging with them in 1992.

NWU is an affiliate of the International Federation of Journalists
International Federation of Journalists
International Federation of Journalists, IFJ, is a global union federation of journalists' trade unions—the largest in the world. The organization aims to protect and strengthen the rights and freedoms of journalists...

.

The best-known activity of the NWU is probably the 2001 victory in Tasini v. Times
New York Times Co. v. Tasini
New York Times Co. v. Tasini, 533 U.S. 483 , is a leading decision by the United States Supreme Court on the issue of copyright in the contents of a newspaper database...

, in which the United States Supreme Court in a decisive 7–2 ruling affirmed the copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...

 privileges of freelance writers whose works were originally published in periodicals and then licensed by the publishers to electronic databases without explicit permission of, or compensation to, the writers.

The union seeks to defend the rights of and improve the economic and working conditions for all writers. It offers contract advice; grievance assistance; advocacy; member education; a job hotline; press passes for qualified members; writer alerts and warnings; and access to health and dental insurance (in certain geographic areas). The union issues various publications, and an irregular journal called American Writer. NWU members are voting member of the UAW, and eligible for various benefits offered through the UAW and the AFL-CIO
AFL-CIO
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, commonly AFL–CIO, is a national trade union center, the largest federation of unions in the United States, made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 11 million workers...

.

Ultimate power in the NWU rests in the biennial Delegate Assembly (DA), subject to the provisions of the UAW's constitution. Delegates are elected to the assembly by local chapters and serve a term of two years. Each chapter is allocated a number of delegates according to the size of its membership. The DA sets over-all union strategy and policy, charters new locals, and establishes national working bodies that carry out union activities. Delegates are unpaid volunteers.

The National Executive Committee (NEC) consists of 11 officers directly elected by the membership. The NEC administers the union between meetings of the NEB, oversees union staff, initiates new union activities, and implements strategies, campaigns, projects, and policies adopted by the Delegate Assembly.

The President is paid a full-time salary and the Vice Presidents and Financial Secretary/Treasurer are paid part-time salaries. (The question of salaries is the subject of perennial debate within the NWU.)

There is a National Executive Board (NEB), consisting of the 11 officers of the National Executive Committee plus the chairs of the 17 local chapters. The NEB meets annually to approve the annual budget and to review the implementation of policies adopted by the Delegate Assembly.

Contested elections for the National Executive Committee officers have occasionally been the subject of great controversy within the NWU, a considerable level of acrimony has inevitably developed.

In 2008, NWU joined over 60 other art licensing businesses (including the Artists Rights Society
Artists Rights Society
Artists Rights Society is a copyright, licensing, and monitoring organization for visual artists in the United States. Founded in 1987, ARS represents the intellectual property rights interests of over 50,000 visual artists and estates of visual artists from around the world .- Member Artists &...

, Association of American Editorial Cartoonists
Association of American Editorial Cartoonists
The Association of American Editorial Cartoonists is a professional association concerned with promoting the interests of staff, freelance and student editorial cartoonists in the United States, Canada and Mexico...

, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators is a nonprofit, 5013 organization that acts as a network for the exchange of knowledge between writers, illustrators, editors, publishers, agents, librarians, educators, booksellers and others involved with literature for young people.The...

, the Stock Artists Alliance
Stock Artists Alliance
Founded in 2001, the Stock Artists Alliance is an international trade association of photographers who produce images for stock photography. The mission of SAA is to support and protect the business interests of professional stock photographers with regard to the worldwide distribution of their...

, Illustrator's Partnership of America and the Advertising Photographers of America, among others) in opposing both The Orphan Works Act of 2008 and The Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008. Known collectively as "Artists United Against the U.S. Orphan Works Acts," the diverse organizations joined forces to oppose the bills, which the groups believe "permits, and even encourages, wide-scale infringements while depriving creators of protections currently available under the Copyright Act."
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