IATSE, AMPTP Reach Agreement, Averting Strike

The potential IATSE strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers was averted on Saturday when the two sides struck a deal. The tentative three-year agreement for The Basic and Videotape Agreements affects 40,000 film and television workers represented by 13 West Coast IATSE local unions.

The proposed contract addresses core issues, including reasonable rest periods; meal breaks; a living wage for those on the bottom of the pay scale; and significant increases in compensation to be paid by new-media companies.

"This is a Hollywood ending," said IATSE international president Matthew Loeb. "Our members stood firm. We are tough and united."

The AMPTP is a trade association that represents major employers and producers of television and film including Walt Disney Studios, Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, Apple, Netflix, and Amazon, among others.

The tentative agreement, which still must be ratified by IATSE members, includes several issues. Many film and television workers had lamented how the workweek commonly ran into the weekend as Fridays and Saturdays became one long workday or a "Fraturday." AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler, in remarks to the National Press Club in Washington earlier this week, said that IATSE members were "fighting for the weekend." Under the terms of the new agreement film and television workers would now have a minimum of rest over the weekend.

Other key gains are:

• Achievement of a living wage for the lowest-paid earners
• Improved wages and working conditions for streaming
• Retroactive wage Increases of 3% annually
• Increased meal period penalties
• Daily rest periods of 10 hours without exclusions
• Weekend rest periods of 54 hours
• Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday holiday added to schedule
• Adoption of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives

IATSE members will be briefed by their local leaders on full details and language of the tentative agreement early this week. A ratification vote will be held with members casting ballots online using a similar process that was used to conduct the recent strike authorization vote.

"Our members will see significant improvements, but our employers also will benefit," said Mike Miller vice president and motion picture director for IATSE. "This settlement allows pre-production, production, and post-production to continue without interruption. Workers should have improved morale and be more alert. Health and safety standards have been upgraded."

This agreement, and the contract campaign before it, should serve as a model for other workers in the entertainment and tech industries, for workers employed by gaming companies, and for so-called "gig workers," explained Loeb. "We're the original gig workers."

"Like non-union, freelance workers, many of our highly-skilled members go to work at different times, for different employers, at different locations," Loeb said. "The difference is, our people have healthcare and retirement benefits, can negotiate for better wages and conditions, and have a voice and power because they work together through their union."

"Solidarity is more than a word," Loeb added. "It's the way to get things done."