IATSE Contract Talks Reach ‘Critical Juncture’ as Strike Threat Looms

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterNegotiators from the International Association of Theatrical Stage Employees and the studios returned to the bargaining table on Tuesday in hopes of averting a TV and film production strike, but no deal was immediately in sight.The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents the studios, presented its latest proposal.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterThe members of the International Association of Theatrical Stage Employees has voted to approve a strike authorization, giving the union president the power to shut down film and TV production across the country.The vote passed with 98 percent support, and 90 percent turnout.The vote comes after talks stalled between the union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents the studios.

The Directors Guild of America (DGA) has named the three individuals to its negotiating committee who will lead its contract talks in 2023.Directors Guild president Lesli Linka Glatter announced Friday that director Jon Avnet has been appointed chair of the DGA Feature Film and Television Negotiations Committee, and directors Todd Holland and Karen Gaviola have been appointed co-chairs.

The DGA’s current film and TV pact doesn’t expire until June 30, 2023, but the guild is already gearing up for those contract negotiations. Director Jon Avnet has been named chair of the negotiating committee, and directors Karen Gaviola and Todd Holland have been named co-chairs. The DGA National Board unanimously approved their appointments. DGA national executive director Russell Hollander will be the guild’s chief negotiator.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorThe Directors Guild of America is wasting no time in preparing for the 2023 cycle of contract negotiations, naming the co-chairs of the negotiating committee as the industry awaits resolution of tense talks between the major studios and IATSE.The DGA on Friday appointed union veterans Jon Avnet, Karen Gaviola and Todd Holland as heads of the committee. The DGA’s current contract expires on June 30, 2023.

EXCLUSIVE: The countdown has officially started this morning in what could be one of the largest labor actions in Hollywood history.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterSome 60,000 members of the International Association of Theatrical Stage Employees received ballots on Friday morning asking them to authorize the first nationwide strike in the union’s history.Members will have three days to vote, with ballots due at 9 p.m. PT on Sunday night.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterA year after the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered the entertainment industry worldwide, the studios are churning out content at a breakneck pace.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterIn 2006, Haskell Wexler made a documentary about brutally long hours on film sets entitled “Who Needs Sleep?” The issue had become a flashpoint years earlier, when Brent Hershman died in a car crash after working a 19-hour day on the set of “Pleasantville.”Wexler wanted to know why nothing had been done. In the film, he adopted a “Roger & Me” pose — only his villain wasn’t some big corporation.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterAs a strike authorization vote looms, some IATSE members have decided to cancel their streaming subscriptions in hopes of sending a message that would hit the studios in the pocketbook.Workers in the below-the-line entertainment unions are gearing up to vote to authorize a strike this weekend, amid anger over long production hours without adequate break periods.

Leaders of IATSE’s largest local – the International Cinematographers Guild Local 600 – are urging their members to authorize a strike against film and television productions across the country. The local’s national executive board voted unanimously on Sunday to support a nationwide strike authorization vote and to recommend that members vote “Yes” on it.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterThe major entertainment unions issued a joint statement of solidarity with the International Association of Theatrical Stage Employees on Friday, as the craft union looks towards a strike authorization vote next week.The statement was signed by the heads of SAG-AFTRA, the Directors Guild of America, the Writers Guild of America, East, and the Teamsters.“On behalf of our hundreds of thousands of members working across film and television, we stand in solidarity

EXCLUSIVE: Before its contract negotiations with IATSE broke off, the AMPTP proposed making it much more difficult for workers to qualify for pensions by raising the qualification cutoff from the current 400 hours per year to 950. That would preclude hundreds, if not thousands, of IATSE members from earning pension credits each year, and is just one of the many issues on which the union says the two sides “remain far apart.”

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterIATSE on Monday called for a strike authorization vote, after the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers declined to respond to the union’s latest contract offer.The vote, assuming it passes, would strengthen the hand of union negotiators who are seeking concessions on issues including pension and health care funding, hours, and rest breaks.“Today, the AMPTP informed the IATSE that they do not intend to respond to our comprehensive package proposal

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