UPDATED with AMPTP statement: The Hollywood Basic Crafts have sealed the deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, ratifying their new three-year contracts with the studios by overwhelming margins.
SAG-AFTRA Hits Picket Line At Warner Bros. Demanding “Baseline Of Respect” From Major Video Game Companies
The new deals encompass the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 399 (IBT), International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 40 (IBEW), Laborers International Union of North America Local 724 (LiUNA!), Operating Plasterers & Cement Masons International Association (OPCMIA) Local 755, and United Association Plumbers Local 78 (UA).
The Teamsters Local 399 Black Book Agreement received 96% approval, while the Location Manager Agreement saw a 98% approval. Both had over 80% turnout, Teamsters said.
LiUNA! Local 724 had a 96.36% yes vote on its contract, IBEW Local 40 had 92.4%, OPCMIA Local 755 saw 97%, and UA Local 78 managed 97.14%.
“Our member-led negotiating committee worked for months on end to prepare for this negotiation cycle. While we are proud of what was accomplished for our members regarding wage increases and adjustments across many classifications and improved working conditions, it will never be enough for the hard work, skill, and expertise of our members, Teamsters Local 399 Chief Lindsay Dougherty said in a statement Thursday. “Our focus now will shift from negotiations to education and enforcement to make certain contract gains are actualized by our members. Preparation for the next round of negotiations starts now. We will continue to keep an eye on technological advancements, advocate for increased work here in California, make certain Teamsters and Teamsters only are doing our work and fight for all Motion Picture Teamsters for the compensation, working conditions and respect that is owed. I want to thank the Hollywood Basic Crafts for the collaboration throughout this process.”
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Lucky for them, the ratification vote comes just as the previous contracts expired on July 31. Negotiations seemed as though they might come down to the wire, with the two sides still at odds as recent as July 27. One day later, though, Teamsters Local 399 announced just before midnight that the parties reached an agreement.
The AMPTP said in a statement this afternoon: “The AMPTP congratulates the Basic Crafts unions on the overwhelming ratification of their respective deals, which contain important new protections and some of the largest increases in decades. The significant economic gains, benefits, additional safety measures, and quality of life improvements in these new contracts reflect the immense value and contributions the hard-working members of these unions bring to Hollywood daily. These deals will contribute to a stronger and more stable future for the motion picture industry – one that can continue to innovate and create and maintain well-paid jobs for its employees.”
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The ratification process was quite quick, with the approval coming just days after the tentative deal was made. It also comes just a few weeks after IATSE members strongly ratified their new Basic Agreement (85.9% approval), and the Area Standards Agreement (87.2%.approval) with stronger unity of purpose than we saw in 2021.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that all is well in Tinseltown, though — at least not yet. While film and TV is reaching a stable point, SAG-AFTRA is now on strike against 10 major video companies after talks stalled on a new Interactive Media Agreement.
Following more than 18 months of talks, the actors union officially called for the work stoppage on July 25 against the likes of Activision Productions Inc., Blindlight LLC, Disney Character Voices Inc., Electronic Arts Productions Inc., Epic Games, Inc., Formosa Interactive LLC, Insomniac Games Inc., Take 2 Productions Inc., VoiceWorks Productions Inc., and WB Games Inc.
On Thursday, voice actors hit the picket lines at Warner Bros. studio lot in Los Angeles as the first labor action in this current strike. The one and only issue that is preventing a deal on that contract is artificial intelligence provisions, according to SAG-AFTRA leadership, which is a departure from the rest of these contract negotiations where AI has been one of several sticking points alongside residuals and wage increases.
“I don’t understand how any company could look at what happened last year and think that we aren’t serious about making sure that all of our members are protected with basic AI protections, including informed consent and fair compensation, and this negotiation has really boiled down to that,” National Executive Director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland told Deadline on the picket line.
On the horizon for the Teamsters is the looming National Labor Relations Board election scheduled to begin in early August for freelance Casting Assistants seeking representation from the union . If all goes according to plan, they will be represented in the upcoming Casting negotiations with the AMPTP, set to begin at the end of the month.
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