British Wrestling promotion Revolution Pro Wrestling, have reached an agreement in regards to their code of conduct going forward. RevPro was one of the most involved promotions during the Speaking Out movement, and still faces fan criticism in regards to their working relationship with Will Ospreay and Bea Priestley.
We are delighted to announce that Revolution Pro Wrestling and Equity have reached an agreement regarding a code of conduct. The code sets out terms and conditions for performers and promoter in writing, provides a dignity at work policy, allows time and access for performers to engage with the union as well as educational opportunities at grass roots level through Revolution Pro’s associated Portsmouth School of Wrestling. This will be supported by an agreed formal disciplinary and grievance policy.
Equity Organiser Steve Duncan-Rice said of the agreement, “Equity are very pleased to have established this Code of Conduct with RevPro. The set of policies which comprise the Code were mutually agreed upon following a series of discussions with RevPro management and their implementation will be monitored on an ongoing basis. By providing Equity with regular access to their roster, enabling unionisation, Andy and his team are setting a powerful example. With this Code RevPro have established a framework of accountability with their talent whilst also providing performers with a means of accessing advice and support regarding their rights as self-employed artists. We very much look forward to working with RevPro and we hope that their example will encourage other promotions to engage with the union.”
Revolution Pro Wrestling Promoter Andy Quildan said, “after over two months of discussions we’re pleased to finally be able to formally put our agreement in writing & share it with the world. Whilst it may seem unusual for a promoter to welcome a trade union to their work place with open arms, I firmly believe that this is a logical step to take in an industry that is unregulated. I hope that this agreement will open the door for many more groups to follow our lead and allow for both performers and promoters to re-establish the word ‘professional’ in professional wrestling. I have maintained that we have, and always will provide a safe and happy working environment for our performers. But it is very easy to talk the talk. This agreement essentially puts us in a position where we have to walk the walk as we formalise our procedures and are held accountable by Equity: an independent third party, who have an understanding of this unique industry, recognise our performers as the highly trained and skilled professionals they are and have the interests of the performers not the promoter at heart.
We recognise that this is just the first step of the journey as for this to be effective we need to encourage our roster members to engage with the union. But we commit to opening the doors, providing union representatives access to our roster and doing our part to explain the benefits and the legal right of any individual to have representation. We will have regular meetings with the team where we can learn from best practice and hope to continue to evolve this agreement for the betterment of our performers and the industry as a whole.”
You can view the documents on https://www.revolutionprowrestling.com/post/equity-revolution-pro-wrestling-agree-to-code-of-conduct