The electronic polls close at 9am Eastern Time on January 31st for the ratification vote on the tentative agreement reached between the Canadian Media Guild and the CBC.

Freelance and temporary employees are eligible to vote if they meet certain criteria.  Freelancers must have made 13 freelance contributions in the past 52 weeks or have earned more than $5,000 in the past 52 weeks.

Temporary employees who have 13 weeks worth of work in the past 52 weeks are also eligible. These criteria are meant to show that people have an ongoing relationship with the Corporation.

Don Genova, president of the CMG Freelance Branch, is recommending acceptance of the deal as freelancers will receive the same increases to the minimum rates that employees will receive to their salaries, fine edit premiums will now be rolled into the base rates, and there are gains offered in some categories for freelancers writing their own scripts.

Go to cmg.ca to vote. You will need your 9-digit membership number. If you don't have it, or not sure if you are eligible to vote, you can write to vote@cmg.ca, or contact the Guild office at 1-800-465-4149 or 416-591-5333 during office hours.