Negotiations Watch: If it Worked for Commercials…
It seems pretty much unanimous that joint negotiations work best, with SAG and AFTRA together at the table against the employers. So here’s the question about to be put to the boards of both unions.
The Commercials Contract process worked. We had joint W&W and joint committees working unanimously under the Phase 1 rules and without evident rancor, perhaps because of the Non Disparagement Agreement. It worked despite the occasional violations.
Non Broadcast is next. Should that contract be negotiated jointly under the same rules?
Both SAG and AFTRA have National Board meetings coming up, with the AFTRA convention immediately after. We’re expecting Non Broadcast to be an agenda item for both unions.
Well let’s see. Membershiv First doesn’t believe that “real actors” do industrials, so they don’t see the need to 1) even HAVE the contract, since when they do those jobs MFers regularly work under the table/off the card and 2) have anything to do with AFTRA and their “concessionary bargaining” (which must mean you got a guy walking through the room selling hot dogs and peanuts while you’re negotiating, since AFTRA seems to be getting the better terms and conditions sooner these days). What kind of mischief can MF get into now that Ubermeister Dr. J. is in the room? Will we get to Seemore play by play at the next meeting? Stay tuned.
It’s like a circus without the elephants, but just as much manure.
David White and staff have to pull this one together. Kent McCord talks about how much work there used to be under this contract and how he’d like to see more of this work union. Maybe there’s hope that MF will not throw a wrench in the works. I’d like to see this contract negotiated jointly under the same rules as commercials. However, I’m worried about the lack of comment on this thread, hearing nothing about a SAG W&W and hearing that AFTRA has already started the process.
I’m not exactly sure what to comment on. I favor a return to Phase I, and if that can be brought about here, that would be a good thing. If AFTRA has already started to work independently, obviously there needs to be some kind of parley between the unions before joint negotiation could occur. According to this article, both boards seem likely to consider the joint negotiation issue at their upcoming meetings.
Does anyone out there think joint negotiation is a bad idea?
VG
Not really sure where to send this since there doesn’t seem to b a way to contact the admin or editors short of comments.
I received this email from Anthony DeSantis by way of the SAG USA group on facebook. (SAG USA was started by Anthony as a non-biased, non-partisan group dedicated to creating an open forum for SAG actors. After he started it he invited Assaf Cohen to be a co-administrator so that all comments would have to pass through a balanced admin.)
One of the messages we heard from the industry about why it is “impossible” for them to agree to any kind of payment formula for actors on internet advertising based on clicks is that they have no agreement within the industry about what a “click” is. Business.com, Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo! are in on the discussion.
Seems they’re coming to an agreement on that.
Read this article.
http://www.iab.net/about_the_iab/recent_press_releases/press_release_archive/press_release/pr-072309
Then download this definition paper on what a “click” may be.
http://www.iab.net/media/file/click-measurement-guidelines2009.pdf
You’ll be surprised by the conversation. I’ve heard actors say many times that “the difference about the internet is that we (important word is “we”) can tell exactly how many times someone has clicked on an ad…..” That information is proprietary AND they don’t even agree to this point on what the information means.
KEEP UP AND KEEP IN THE GAME.
Anthony and Assaf
I recommend reading the article because it will surely be part of the commercials conversation in a year and a half.
My thanks to Anthony and Assaf for sending that out.
Allen
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