Amid Opposition, SAG Defends “Vote No” Campaign

LOS ANGELES, June 24: The
chief negotiator of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) has issued a statement
defending the union’s “Vote No” campaign, in which it is encouraging members
who also belong to the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists
(AFTRA) to reject the proposed new contract with Hollywood producers.

AFTRA and the Alliance of
Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) announced a tentative agreement
at the end of May. Ballots have been mailed to AFTRA’s some 70,000 members,
with a decision expected July 8, a little over a week after the current
contract expires on June 30.

SAG, meanwhile, is
continuing negotiations with the AMPTP, arguing that the AFTRA deal doesn’t go
far enough on issues such as new-media use, DVD residuals and actors’ consent
for product placement spots. Doug Allen, SAG’s chief negotiator, defended the
“Vote No” campaign in a statement, noting that it “will send the clear signal
that working actors aren’t satisfied with the AFTRA deal and, to get a deal,
management will have to do better. It gives us more leverage not less at the
negotiating table and makes it less likely we would have to consider the ultimate
leverage of a strike.”

A major issue for SAG is
that the AFTRA deal allows the studios to use non-union actors for new-media
programming. In addition, Allen says, AFTRA’s deal doesn’t include residuals
for original new-media content reruns online. “Even if SAG overcomes the
non-union/no residuals problems and negotiates a better contract, AFTRA’s
contract won’t be upgraded with these improvements.… This would set up AFTRA as
the cheaper, more producer-friendly alternative in new media. When unions compete
with different contract terms, actors lose. It starts a race to the bottom that
SAG doesn’t want to win.”

Meanwhile, Tom Hanks is
among a range of stars who have signed a petition urging AFTRA members to
accept the contract. "Either our employers will lock us out, or SAG will
strike," the petition notes. "There really is no alternative if the
AFTRA deal is defeated."

As Hollywood braces for a
possible strike, production has already begun to slow down. An actors strike
would derail a host of blockbuster features scheduled to film this summer, and
would hamper production on the new fall season, in a TV landscape that is still
recovering from the 100-day writers’ strike.

—By Mansha Daswani