Founding documents

The Minister of National Economy and Social Affairs — based on Decree No. 12596 dated 26 July 1948, Article 88 of the Labour Law of 23 September 1946, the proposal of the Director of National Economy and the approval of the Director General, decides:

Article One: A licence is granted to Takla Daher Chamoun, Youssef Hosni Ahmad Qaranouh, Mohammad Rachid Farkadan and Zain Al-Abidine Mohammad Saidani to establish “The Syndicate of Theater and Cinema Actors in Lebanon,” to safeguard its members’ interests, defend them, elevate the profession and improve their conditions.

Article Two: This decision is effective upon its publication in the Official Gazette. Beirut, 10 September 1948 — Signed: Philippe Takla.

The syndicate considers these conditions, classification rules and fee tables the fundamental principles governing the relationship between the actor and production companies. Contracts are made per episode; the maximum filming time is three days for an hour of drama, two days for a half-hour and one day for a quarter-hour.

A standard TV workday is twelve hours excluding breaks; the production covers out-of-Beirut filming costs and life insurance. Non-union actors may not be hired without a syndicate permit, and the actor is entitled to 10% of their fee for each rebroadcast. These tables took effect on 1 March 2018.

Category A: full episode (31–50 min) $500 · half (16–30 min) $350 · quarter (1–15 min) $200. Category B: $400 / $250 / $150. Category C: $300 / $200 / $125. Category D (trainees): $200 / $150 / $100.