In a move to support the Writers Guild Of America’s (WGA) strike strategy, SAG-AFTRA on Monday said going forward it will not grant interim agreements for any projects written under a WGA contract which will be produced in the US.
A statement posted on the SAG-AFTRA website read, “We have been advised by the WGA that this modification will assist them in executing their strike strategy, and we believe it does not undermine the utility and effectiveness of ours. It is a win-win change.”
SAG-AFTRA has issued 207 interim agreements to date and has faced criticism from some members, Viola Davis being a prominent one, who believe they are against the spirit of solidarity with striking members at both unions.
WGA does not offer interim agreements and has been on strike for more than 100 days. Last Friday its negotiators met with their counterparts at Alliance Of Motion Pictures And Television Producers (AMPTP) in what is being spoken of cautiously in Hollywood circles as a productive encounter in which AMPTP offered a counter-proposal to the WGA’s demands.
The SAG-AFTRA statement appears below.
We will now exclude from Interim Agreements any WGA-covered project to be produced in the USA.
The Interim Agreement is an important element of our strike strategy. Because we know some of you had questions and even concerns about it, we have focused over the last week on putting out more information about it, including a letter from this committee, a letter from our president and national executive director & chief negotiator, a live-streamed webinar, increased social media messaging, and more. We appreciate the positive feedback and encouragement we’ve received.
Our staff and attorneys have also been actively discussing with the WGA how we can make sure that our Interim Agreement strategy supports their strike strategy, which does not presently include the offer of any Interim Agreements. After several productive and collaborative meetings, and upon the recommendation of our NED & chief negotiator, we have approved a modification to our Interim Agreement policy. We will now exclude from Interim Agreements any WGA-covered project to be produced in the USA. We have been advised by the WGA that this modification will assist them in executing their strike strategy, and we believe it does not undermine the utility and effectiveness of ours. It is a win-win change.
This means that, going forward, for productions taking place in the USA, SAG-AFTRA will only grant Interim Agreements for non-WGA-covered projects. And our staff will continue to investigate each application for an Interim Agreement to ensure only true independent productions are included.
We created the Interim Agreements for several reasons, all of which are aimed at protecting the interests of our members and members of sister unions, so that journeymen performers and crew may continue to work and pay their bills while demonstrating to the AMPTP that independent producers are eager to work with our members under these terms. The strike action is evolving each day. We are adapting in real time to continue protecting our members while collaborating with our sister unions in fighting for our common cause.
SAG-AFTRA continues to support the Writers Guild of America in its fight to achieve a fair and equitable contract. And we continue to urge independent producers to apply for an Interim Agreement and encourage SAG-AFTRA members to work on projects that obtain approval, along with all the other permissible work we support.
In solidarity,
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