AFTRA, Screen Actors Guild Members Ratify New Non-Broadcast/Industrial Contracts

Posted June 08, 2011

LOS ANGELES (June 8, 2011) - Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists announced today that members have approved three-year successor agreements to the AFTRA National Code of Fair Practice for Non Broadcast/Industrial/Educational Recorded Material and the SAG Industrial and Educational Contract.

Overall, the memberships of SAG and AFTRA voted 95 percent to 5 percent in favor of the new agreement.

AFTRA Chief Negotiator and Assistant National Executive Director Mathis L. Dunn, Jr., said, “It is our belief that this new agreement is a win-win situation: it provides opportunities for more producers to create high-quality, polished productions by employing AFTRA’s professional performers, and enable us to increase union work opportunities for our members.”

“The voting results show SAG and AFTRA members embrace the gains being delivered by this agreement,” said SAG Deputy National Executive Director for Contracts Ray Rodriguez. “We expect this contract will also provide a foundation for increasing the number of non-broadcast, industrial and educational productions, providing additional work for our members.”

The agreements are effective retroactive to May 1, 2011 and will continue through April 30, 2014, and call for all minimum rates to be increased by 2 percent at the start of the contract and by another 2 percent effective November 1, 2012, as well as a 0.2 percent increase in total contributions to the SAG-Producers Pension and Health Plans and the AFTRA Health and Retirement Funds. Specific language has also been added to require a 0.3 percent contribution to the AFTRA-Industry Cooperative Fund. In addition, programming for new media is defined and specifically covered.

To more clearly reflect the type of work produced under these agreements, the contracts have been renamed the AFTRA National Code of Fair Practice for Corporate/Educational and Non-Broadcast Recorded Material and the Producers-Screen Actors Guild 2011 Codified Corporate/Educational & Non-Broadcast Contract.

The agreement was negotiated by the Joint SAG and AFTRA Negotiating Committee. On April 25, the National Administrative Committee of AFTRA approved the agreement and recommended member ratification. At its meeting on April 30, the Screen Actors Guild National Board of Directors took the same action.

Ballots were mailed May 9 to 136,585 eligible SAG and AFTRA members, and the deadline for returning them was June 8. The vote represented a 22 percent return in ballots among members. The final vote was certified by Integrity Voting Systems, an impartial election service based in Everett, Washington.

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About AFTRA
The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, AFL-CIO, are the people who entertain and inform America. In 32 Locals across the country, AFTRA members work as actors, broadcasters, singers, dancers, announcers, hosts, comedians, disc jockeys and other performers across the media industries, including television, radio, cable, sound recordings, music videos, commercials, audio books, non-broadcast industrials, interactive games, theInternet and other digital media. The 70,000 professional performers, broadcasters and recording artists of AFTRA are working together to protect and improve their jobs, lives and communities in the 21st century. From new artforms to new technology, AFTRA members embrace change in their work and craft to enhanceAmerican culture and society. Visit AFTRA online at aftra.com

About SAG
Screen Actors Guild is the nation’s largest labor union representing working actors. Established in 1933, SAG has a rich history in the American labor movement, from standing up to studios to break long-term engagement contracts in the 1940s to fighting for artists’ rights amid the digital revolution sweeping the entertainment industry in the 21st century. With 20 branches nationwide, SAG represents more than 125,000 actors who work in film and digital motion pictures and television programs, commercials, video games, industrials, Internet and all new mediaformats. The Guild exists to enhanceactors’ working conditions, compensation and benefits and to be a powerful, unified voice on behalf of artists’ rights. SAG is a proud affiliate of the AFL-CIO. Headquartered in Los Angeles, you can visit SAG online at SAG.org.

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