On Saturday, Screen Actors Guild president Alan Rosenberg asked the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists to delay the ratification of its tentative primetime TV contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. AFTRA declined, upsetting SAG. So this morning, SAG rallied actors together at its Los Angeles headquarters in “solidarity.” The goal? To persuade enough of the 44,000 people who are members of both unions to vote against the AFTRA deal, thus forcing AFTRA to renegotiate its agreement with producers. Several hundred actors showed up for the event, many passionately pumping their fists in the air, chanting “AFTRA sucks” and “Vote No”; their instructions were to shout loud enough for AFTRA to hear them on the 9th floor. (SAG’s New York board was absent, however, reportedly in opposition to the anti-AFTRA message.)
EW.com caught up with Rosenberg after the rally to discuss his expectations. He said that if dual-union members don’t vote down the contract, he’s hoping “they’ll
put a severe dent in that ratification process. And failing that, I’m
hoping for the best deal we possibly can.” Indeed, that’s the ideal scenario: a deal. But if SAG
doesn’t hear what it wants at the negotiating table, that union can still
play its strike card — pending a strike authorization
vote by its members. “We haven’t asked for
strike authorization yet,” Rosenberg told us. “Nothing says that we can’t work past the
expiration date on our contract under the old terms while we’re
negotiating and while we’re working on that strike authorization. We’ll
have to do it in the next week or two. At that time, I’ll tell the
members that doesn’t mean we’re going on strike, but what we need is
that tool in our pocket to achieve the best deal we can. Right now, my
focus is on continuing these negotiations. I’m really optimistic.”
One sign that SAG is fighting an uphill battle: a notable lack of A-listers at today’s rally. While we have a special place in our
heart for Ed Asner, Marg Helgenberger (who is Rosenberg’s wife), Justine
Bateman, The Office‘s Kate Flannery, and Sex and the City‘s Willie
Garson, there wasn’t a Hanks or a Clooney or a Streep or a Fey in
sight. Admitted Flannery, “What the [producers] offered AFTRA is not
going to work for SAG, and we need something to work for all of us. That’s why I’m here to lend my little voice to this big effort. And I
just hope that higher-profile actors decide to step up to the plate,
because their voices are a lot louder than mine.”
In
Saturday’s statements, AFTRA warned SAG that the union should “be aware
that we would view any attempt by SAG or its leadership to undermine or
interfere with our ratification process as a violation of both the law
and the AFL-CIO Constitution.” Ballots will be sent out to AFTRA
members in the next week or so, and they are due back in three weeks,
after the SAG’s contract expires on June 30.
One sign that SAG is fighting an uphill battle: a notable lack of A-listers at today’s rally. While we have a special place in ourheart for Ed Asner, Marg Helgenberger (who is Rosenberg’s wife), JustineBateman, The Office‘s Kate Flannery, and Sex and the City‘s WillieGarson, there wasn’t a Hanks or a Clooney or a Streep or a Fey insight. Admitted Flannery, "What the [producers] offered AFTRA is notgoing to work for SAG, and we need something to work for all of us. That’s why I’m here to lend my little voice to this big effort. And Ijust hope that higher-profile actors decide to step up to the plate,because their voices are a lot louder than mine."
InSaturday’s statements, AFTRA warned SAG that the union should "be awarethat we would view any attempt by SAG or its leadership to undermine orinterfere with our ratification process as a violation of both the lawand the AFL-CIO Constitution." Ballots will be sent out to AFTRAmembers in the next week or so, and they are due back in three weeks,after the SAG’s contract expires on June 30.
Screw these actors! There are hard working Americans in every state losing jobs due to cutbacks and the declining economy. Throw inflated gas and food prices into the mix and many Americans are finding it hard if not impossible to make ends meet. People are cutting back on food and medicine purchases, they are sometimes unable to put fuel in their cars *if* they still have a job. I don’t care if those selfish actors that are *already* rich think they deserve even more money. I say, if they want to work, fine, if not…then good riddance. I’m perfectly happy to watch game shows and reality TV until these selfish a$$holes get a grip on reality.
Alarmpro – Rich actors? Are you seriously under the impression that EVERY actor is pulling down the kind of money that Clooney, Hanks, Cruise and co are making? The FACT is, 99% of the people in SAG are fighting to make a living – most of those don’t earn enough not to have a second and third job. Those are the people we’re fighting for, against the corporate greed that is the powers that be in Hollywood. Get your facts straight. You say, “I say, if they want to work, fine, if not…then good riddance.” Would you say that about the factory worker fighting to keep their families fed in the face of cutbacks and outsourcing? No? Then don’t say that about the hard working members of SAG that find themselves in the SAME POSITION.
As a SAG member as well as AFTRA and Equity, I am outraged that Rosenberg and his cronies are spending our dues money to fight a sister union! What planet is he from? SAG has plenty of power at the bargaining table so why try and kill a good deal that AFTRA has made? Why turn actors against each other? why waste our dues money. Get back to the table with AMPTP and do what you are supposed to do. Bargain!
PLEASE fix the typo in the headline! “Solidarity” not “solidary.” C’mon EW!
Awriter, I feel what you are saying, but face it, the American Public is not going to see it that way if SAG goes on strike and destroys yet another TV season. The public thinks of television actors as very highly paid, they see the average television actor as getting $100,000 or more an episode. While this might not be reality, its the reality that the public will see and the reality that AMPTP will gladly promote. The American public will not be behind a SAG strike for one second.
Alan Rosenberg is a washed-up actor who is thoroughly enjoying his 15 minutes. As far back as February he was adament about not starting negotiations, even after being urged to do so by members of his union. He knows that as long as this conflict continues, he will be in the limelight. There will be a strike. This sad, pathetic man will drive SAG to it. I have NO sympathy for SAG. Impeach your president and get on with the negotiations!
No sympathy from me for SAG and particularly this president. The fact he’s waging a high profile campaign to sabotage another union’s already in place deal; turning members against each other for those who are members of both. Now I agree, they may have more of a case if there hadn’t been a lengthy strike that pretty much ruined Hollywood and the current television lineup. If there is another one; television will never be the same. And People will be out of jobs. I realize only a percentage of those in the union have high profile jobs and I know SAG actors should have what they are entitled to. But the fact it’s president is waging a high profile sabotage job on another union is only made for trouble and serves SAG no help. They should have started earlier to negotiate. So no sympathy from me.
I don’t know how I feel about unions in general. But I will say that I’m more likely to support a striking teacher, nurse or other necessary job over someone who is making or trying to make a living in entertainment. That said, if any of these actors or writers strike, they can prepare by living off their huge salaries or by the other jobs they have to sustain. However, the makeup artists, caterers and all of the other support industries are really screwed. The message I see is if you can’t support your sister union, why would you support your sister industries? As for those of us you entertain, I’ve started watching sports and American Idol. And if tv doesn’t come back, I think we’ll likely find alternatives.
It drives me insane when folks associate SAG with just movie and television stars. This isn’t for those folks that are making well above SAG scale. These negotiations are for the folks that are working in the trenches. If we don’t support those actors that are scraping by, they won’t be able to hang in long enough to become the next big movie stars. If the networks want to use an actor’s performance on a website that brings them advertising money everytime it is viewed, then that actor should get even just a little bit of income from that. The producers are making more money off of new technology, and they don’t want to share with those that are actually creating the product that is being sold over the new technology.
While I feel for the out of work actors and struggling actors who make up most of SAG, i feel attacking AFTRA is stupid and harmful in the long run. Now if the AFTRA members do indeed vote forth their contract, it will be SAG vs. AFTRA, with the producers sitting on the sidelines waiting to capitalize on the fall-out. A thought both organizations should take into account: after dealing with the writer’s strike and now with higher gas prices, a struggling economy, and a shakey job market, most Americans will not be sympahtic if and when the actors go on strike, no matter what the facts are.
Impeaching Rosenberg is the only solution to the SAG mess. A president who will not compromise and negotiate is not helping his union. After living through the WGA strike and the billions of dollars lost to this state because of it, I will not support a SAG strike, nor do I have any sympathy for its members. Life isn’t perfect and you can’t have everything you want. Get rid of Rosenberg, go back to the negotiating table and hammer out a contract. End of story.
Why should actors get that extra income? They do a job, get paid, and it’s done. I don’t understand why actors think they’re so special that they deserve a piece of every pie. They do a job and get paid. That’s enough.
Perhaps more actors could find work if the big “stars” didn’t have to be paid a life’s wages for every episode.
Perhaps more people would be pro-union if they remembered that the corporations they are negotiating with still make billions of dollars in profit after paying the top actors and actresses rather nicely.
No actor or actress necessarily suffers because another is getting a bigger slice of the pie. They suffer because of the pie-maker’s decision on just how much of that pie they’re willing to offer up.
When AFTRA rejects solidarity with their union brothers and sisters, I really think they don’t have much grounds to complain about it to the AFL-CIO.
I’m SAG, and was asked to help on a film in a job that was considered ‘crew’, when they needed extras I was told that being an extra was acting, and fell under SAG jurisdiction… the film’s stars were relatively well known actors, SAG actors, so certainly the extras were SAG, right? WRONG – SAG has for some time allowed producers to hire outside of SAG for various reasons in ‘smaller markets’ (basically, everywhere but NY and LA, we were shooting in the midwest). To add insult to injury, the ocean of IATSE members there didn’t care about the film’s management bringing in non-union actors — they did make the new hire sign up with IATSE before he could start working in their jobs, but they had no loyalty to the other unions. I left the job feeling the whole thing was a sham. Solidarity? PS – while Producer’s don’t have to follow SAG rules in ‘smaller markers’, the actors do. SAG allows producers to hire some non-SAG actors, but insists members not work in non-SAG jobs.