labor
Equity Stands in “Total Solidarity” With Sister Union SAG-AFTRA Amid Video Game Strike
The British sister union of SAG-AFTRA is standing in “total solidarity” with its U.S. counterparts after a strike was called against major video game studios. SAG-AFTRA had been in talks over a new contract agreement for close to two years. It would cover voice and performance capture workers on titles from Disney Character Voices, Activision […]
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SAG-AFTRA Calls Strike Against Major Video Game Studios
For close to two years, SAG-AFTRA has been in talks with major video game companies on a new contract agreement that would cover voice and performance capture workers on titles from Disney Character Voices, Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts, Warner Bros. Games, Insomniac Games and more. Now, at an impasse over artificial intelligence concerns, the union’s […]
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‘World of Warcraft’ Development Team Unionizes In Notable Step for Game Worker Organizing Efforts
In a major step forward for the still-nascent video game unionizing movement, hundreds of development team members at massively multiplayer online role-playing game giant World of Warcraft have unionized. A majority of workers voted to join a union aligned with the Communications Workers of America in a contest that took place between June 24 and […]
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American Federation of Musicians Endorses Kamala Harris for President
The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president. The union’s backing comes after a unanimous vote of the U.S. members of the AFM International Board, and what they see as the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to labor. This follows President Biden’s decision not to seek reelection and […]
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In Changing Theater Landscape, Labor Organizing Picks Up Pace
IATSE has been organizing workers Off-Broadway in a push for greater benefits and a say in the changing theater landscape. Thus far, workers at commercial productions of Titanique and Little Shop of Horrors have won organizing victories, as have the nonprofit Vineyard Theatre and Atlantic Theater Company, which has developed notable shows such as The […]
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Would You Do It Again? A Year After Strikes, Hollywood Reckons With the Aftermath
“What are we doing, moving around furniture on the Titanic?,” SAG-AFTRA leader and former star of The Nanny Fran Drescher asked a packed conference room of reporters on July 13, 2023. Her union of 160,000 performers had just announced it was going on strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. It was joining the Writers Guild of […]
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SAG-AFTRA Beats Lawsuits Challenging COVID Vaccination Rules
SAG-AFTRA has defeated a series of lawsuits over its COVID safety guidelines outlining terms to return to work, which for a time mandated vaccination against the virus. Dorian Kingi, a stuntman with credits on dozens of films who declined to get vaccinated due to his faith and other “science, political and philosophical reasoning,” brought in […]
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IATSE Members Vote to Ratify Major Contract Deals
Crew members belonging to Hollywood’s major below-the-line union have voted to ratify two new three-year contracts. According to the union, 85.9 percent of voting members supported the Basic Agreement in the ratification vote tally. The Basic Agreement covers around 50,000 members who are represented by 13 West Coast Locals, including the International Cinematographers Guild (IATSE […]
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Musicians’ Union Pension Plan Gets More Than a Billion Dollars in Federal Funds, Avoiding Insolvency
The pension plan for the American Federation of Musicians and Employers is set to receive a $1.5 billion cash influx to save the plan from becoming insolvent. The money comes as part of the American Rescue Plan, backed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), which was passed in 2021. The pension plan for the […]
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Teamsters Warn That They Remain “Far Apart” From Studios in Hollywood Basic Crafts Negotiations
A Teamsters Local is warning that it and the Hollywood Basic Crafts labor coalition remain “far apart” from major studios and streamers on key issues in ongoing contract negotiations. The remark came as part of a Teamsters Local 399 update on Friday night on the negotiations, which began on June 10 and are covering issues […]
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CBS Pays $3M-Plus in Settlement With Writers Guild West Over Labor Dispute
The Writers Guild of America West has negotiated a settlement with CBS over work that occurred after writers rooms were shut down on several shows that has awarded $3.05 million to 24 writers, union leaders informed members on Wednesday. According to a member message, the settlement resulted from an arbitration claim that the union filed […]
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As Hollywood Cuts Back, IATSE Members Size Up Pros and Cons of Their Tentative Deal With Studios
The last time West Coast IATSE crewmembers — including cinematographers, editors, costume designers and gaffers, among many other craftspeople — voted on a Basic Agreement contract deal, they narrowly rejected it in the popular vote. Amid an outcry over working conditions in 2021, 50.4 percent of voting members of IATSE’s West Coast Locals voted down […]
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