Strike Talk per Different News Sources

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« Today's News: Our Take Strike Watch: As Midnight Deadline Looms, SAG Prez Downplays Walkout Talk

At midnight tonight, the current contracts under which the Screen Actors Guild and AFTRA have been working expire, and thus far only the latter union has approved (at least on its merits) a new deal. Is SAG set to walk? Guild president Alan Rosenberg maintains, "We have taken no steps to initiate a strike authorization vote by [our] members. Any talk about a strike or a management lockout is simply a distraction."

Come July 7, AFTRA could formally ratify their new contract — thus putting extra pressure on SAG to accept similar terms. Some SAG heavyweights, though, have been urging their sister union to dismiss the new deal, so that better terms (as relating to DVD residuals and such) could be negotiated for both parties.

AFTRA's new deal, however, is based on a model hammered out in recent months by the Writers Guild and Directors Guild, raising questions about the ripple effects that could be felt were the "standardized" new-media tenets to be called into question. — Matt Mitovich

More SAG Talks Coverage:
• George Clooney Tries to Bridge SAG and AFTRA Rift
• SAG Eyes Execs Iger, Chernin to Enter Contract Fray
• Sandra Oh Strikes Back for SAG
• Would a SAG Stoppage Stall TV's Fall Season Plans?


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Hollywood Reporter:

SAG talking, clock ticking
Only one session of talks remain before contract expires
By Leslie Simmons

June 29, 2008, 06:35 PM ET
Related Content Complete SAG/AFTRA coverage
As the final hours of SAG's contract with Hollywood's studios slide away, it's clear that fans of final-reel turnarounds are likely to be disappointed.

With two weekend bargaining sessions complete, only Monday's scheduled talks remain before the union's TV/theatrical contract expires Tuesday at 12:01 a.m.

Barring any 11th-hour surprises, the guild and the studios will have several options once the deadline passes. They could negotiate a contract extension, which could be by day, week or month, and keep talking; the studios could lock out the actors; or SAG could seek a strike-authorization vote from its membership, which will be at least a two-week process as the negotiating committee must vote on whether to bring a strike.

Most industry insiders believe that nothing of substance will come of SAG's talks with the studios until July 8, when the result of the AFTRA membership's ratification vote on its newly brokered primetime TV contract is announced. SAG and the AMPTP have been unable to ink a deal in the 41 days they have been negotiating and have been pointing the finger at each other for the sluggish process.

SAG blames the AMPTP for not offering them a deal that is even close to or better than what AFTRA negotiated with the studios. The AMPTP claims that SAG is diverting its attention to waging an anti-AFTRA contract battle with the 44,000 who are members of both unions.

The weekend meetings were the first both sides have had since starting up Round 2 of talks.

While there is uncertainty surrounding a new contract, there is little doubt that Hollywood already is in the midst of a de facto strike. The industry is still recovering from the 100-day WGA strike, which shuttered TV and film productions and resulted in $2.5 billion in lost wages and other revenue.

"If you're a below-the-line worker, your blood is probably running cold because they're the ones that took the biggest hit from the writers strike," said Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp.

Among those still feeling the sting of the WGA strike are members of the International Cinematographers Guild, IATSE Local 600.

In a letter sent to its members late Thursday about the SAG negotiations, guild national president Steven Poster wrote that another industry strike would deal "a serious blow to our health and pension plans, neither of which has recovered from the WGA strike."

Poster took issue with SAG's unwillingness to get a deal and denounces "dysfunctional leadership" that threatens the guild's livelihood.

"SAG has not brought anything new or promising to the bargaining table, and a factional rift within SAG's membership is threatening to not only damage the union itself but the industry as a whole," Poster wrote.

"This movie has to end soon," he added. "The paltry gains for which SAG continues to fight do not justify the pain a strike or continued slowdown will bring to those who work in this industry, who fight to pay their mortgages, feed their families and keep their health coverage intact."

Relief groups like the Motion Picture & Television Fund are gearing up to help more in need and say the number of calls for assistance have already doubled.

So far, the MPTF estimates that it has distributed close to $1 million in financial assistance to more than 2,000 families since November, when the WGA strike started.

"If an agreement can't be reached, MPTF will be there to relieve some of the financial duress on industry workers affected by a stop in production, as well as those still recovering form the writers strike," president David Tillman said. "We would expect the need this time to be higher because many industry workers have depleted their savings and now have no financial cushion on which to fall back."

The pinch also is being felt across the border in Canada, where studio operators say the SAG contract talks are putting a damper on production there.

"The studios that we're talking to about potential for work have all made it quite clear that they are not going to be greenlighting pictures until the SAG (deal) is worked out," Toronto Film Studios president Ken Ferguson said Friday.

"I've never seen Toronto this slow at the end of June," said Paul Bronfman, CEO of production equipment supplier Cornweb Group.

There is one Canadian bright spot production-wise: Vancouver, where U.S. TV series provide welcome work for worried production crews.

"We feel fortunate to have the business that we have, but we're concerned that people might be out of work again, which isn't good for the industry at any time," said Peter Leitch, president of Mammoth and North Shore studios in Vancouver.

The industry sentiments echo similar ones put out by AFTRA members and actor George Clooney, who issued a "can't we all just get along"-type statement Thursday.

While Clooney has not taken sides in the SAG vs. AFTRA battle, several other A-listers have, including Jack Nicholson, Martin Sheen and Viggo Mortensen, who support SAG's position. Supporters of AFTRA ratifying its pact include Tom Hanks, Sally Field and Kevin Spacey.

The division among SAG members has reached its own national executive board.

In an e-mail circulating among members, New York board president and national second vp Sam Freed said that SAG leadership has snubbed his request to send to New York members a letter indicating that the N.Y. leadership does not support the anti-AFTRA campaign SAG.

The message, which includes Freed's letter to members, accuses the guild of having an inconsistent policy when it comes to contacting its members. Freed said that while SAG has allowed "robo calls" and e-mails supporting the anti-AFTRA message to members, it has refused to allow him -- a member of SAG's negotiating committee -- to circulate his message opposing the anti-ratification campaign.

In response, SAG said Freed's statement was inaccurate because not all members of the New York division were consulted about his comments before its submission.

"The statement included further inaccuracies because Screen Actors Guild notified its entire board of directors about the automated calls prior to their commencement. The notification included all Screen Actors Guild New York Division board members."

SAG also said that only SAG president Alan Rosenberg and chief negotiator Doug Allen are the official guild spokesmen when it comes to the negotiations, as reaffirmed by the board of directors in March.

Variety:

SAG, majors play beat the clock
Contract negotiations continue
By DAVE MCNARY


More Articles:
New '300' rallies troopsWith expiration now only hours away, the Screen Actors Guild and the majors have resumed contract negotiations on the guild's feature primetime deal.
Bargaining began Monday morning after stretching into Sunday evening with neither side commenting on the substance of the talks at the Sherman Oaks headquarters of the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers.

Monday marked the 42nd day of negotiations and came with the current deal expiring at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. The passage of that deadline means that that contract's no-strike no-lockout provisions will no longer be in effect, but SAG's been asserting that it hasn't taken any steps toward a strike authorization vote -- a move that would take at least two weeks to complete and require a 75% approval.

Instead, talks are likely to continue talks for at least another week while most production stops due to the uncertainty of whether SAG will make a deal any time soon. The majors have repeatedly accused SAG of stalling so their leaders can fight the ratification of AFTRA's primetime deal, with AFTRA is expected to announce those results July 8.

SAG notified its members that its national negotiating committee and the congloms were continuing bargaining Monday and advised them that they should keep working after the expiration.

"All members should continue to report to work and to audition for new work past the expiration date until further notice from the Guild," SAG said. "Such work will be covered under the terms of the expired television and theatrical agreements."

SAG also said the commercials contract, basic cable live action agreement, basic cable animation agreement, television animation agreement, interactive media agreement, Internet agreement, and Industrial & Educational Contract are unaffected by the the negotiations.

SAG's blamed the AMPTP for the lack of progress at the negotiating table but its opposition to the AFTRA deal has been widely perceived as a way for SAG leaders to take the temperature of their members and their willingness to strike -- without the downside of taking a strike authorization vote.

For its part, AFTRA's trumpeting gains in its deal on minimums, pension and health and new media along with preservation of clip consent and noting that a "no" vote is a strike authorization. SAG, which is trying to persuade its 44,000 members who also belong to AFTRA, has insisted the AFTRA terms are unacceptable and that turning down the deal will mean AFTRA and SAG would go back to the table -- despite AFTRA's denials that it will jointly negotiate with SAG.

Both unions have been actively campaigning for support from the 70,000 AFTRA members. AFTRA's stressing the financial issues such as in recent emails titled "It's not about politics--it's about your paycheck. Don't be suckered into a strike."

SAG president: Stop that strike talk
Published: 6/30/08, 6:00 PM EDT

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) - The Screen Actors Guild has told its 122,000 members to stay on the job even if the union fails to reach a deal with film and television studios before their contract expires at midnight Monday.
SAG President Alan Rosenberg said no strike vote has been planned, and the union's negotiators are "coming to the bargaining table every day in good faith."

"Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction," he said.

The talks have been complicated by a split between SAG and the smaller American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, which has reached its own agreement with the studios. About 44,000 of AFTRA's 70,000 members belong to both unions, and SAG leaders have urged those members to vote against the deal.

But AFTRA President Roberta Reardon said her union's agreement is "a solid deal" that should be ratified -- and she blasted SAG for trying to influence her members.

"The trust between these two unions is really broken," she said. "We did not want to be in a situation where we were spending all our time negotiating with our partner rather than negotiating across the table with our employers."

SAG argues that the agreement between AFTRA and the studios provides no increase for DVD residual payments and would weaken both unions by allowing for nonunion new media production.

"This would set up AFTRA as the cheaper, more producer-friendly alternative in new media," SAG argued in a written statement. "When unions compete with different contract terms, actors lose. It starts a race to the bottom that SAG doesn't want to win."

Reardon said the fight "has caused a great deal of confusion in the membership."

"My dues money as a SAG member is being used against me, and I didn't have a vote in it," she said.

Film and television writers ended a 100-day strike in February after a contract was reached that included use of writers' work on the Internet. Dozens of films and TV shows were stalled by that strike.




Copyright 2008 Cable News Network. All Rights Reserved.

News
CNN


LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) - The Screen Actors Guild told its 122,000 members to stay on the job even as the union failed to reach a deal with film and television studios before their contract expired early Tuesday.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers took a different take on the continuing negotiations, saying the industry was in a "de facto strike."

SAG President Alan Rosenberg said no strike vote has been planned, and the union's negotiators are "coming to the bargaining table every day in good faith."

"Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction," he said.

Actors have a "final offer" worth $250 million in additional compensation. according to the AMPTP.

The offer has comparable terms to deals already inked with other entertainment industry unions, including the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), the studios said.

"Our industry is now in a de facto strike, with film production virtually shut down and television production now seriously threatened," according to a statement from AMPTP.

The parties are scheduled to meet Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. Pacific time (5 p.m. ET).

Hollywood is leery about getting caught in another crippling strike.

A writer's strike in November shut down the industry for three months, gutting much of the 2007-2008 television season and shutting down script development for movies.

The talks have been complicated by a split between SAG and the smaller AFTRA, which has reached its own agreement with the studios. About 44,000 of AFTRA's 70,000 members belong to both unions, and SAG leaders have urged those members to vote against the deal.

But AFTRA President Roberta Reardon told CNN that her union's agreement is "a solid deal" that should be ratified -- and she blasted SAG for trying to influence her members.

"The trust between these two unions is really broken," she said. "We did not want to be in a situation where we were spending all our time negotiating with our partner rather than negotiating across the table with our employers."

SAG argues that the agreement between AFTRA and the studios provides no increase for DVD residual payments and would weaken both unions by allowing for non-union new media production.

"This would set up AFTRA as the cheaper, more producer-friendly alternative in new media," SAG argued in a written statement. "When unions compete with different contract terms, actors lose. It starts a race to the bottom that SAG doesn't want to win."

Reardon said the fight "has caused a great deal of confusion in the membership."

"My dues money as a SAG member is being used against me, and I didn't have a vote in it," she said.




Copyright 2008 Cable News Network. All Rights Reserved.