Actors ask, “Who’s union is it anyway?” as AFTRA members cast ballots

Reaching a peace accord in the Middle East might be easier than what it will take for AFTRA and SAG, the two actors union, to come together after the eventual end of SAG’s divisive campaign to get dual union members (those actors who belong to both SAG and AFTRA) to defeat the new work agreement assembled by AFTRA that is being voted on right now.

July 8 is D-Day in Hollywood. That’s the date AFTRA officials will announce the results of the voting by their members on whether or not to ratify the new contact. SAG has spent a ton of its member’s money in a nasty campaign to attempt to get this contract kicked out of Hollywoodland. SAG says that it can negotiate a better agreement for all actors. But SAG has also made a lot of enemies in the process of their own negotiations with producers and studios, none the least of which are members of their own union.

Regardless of what happens on July 8, one thing is clear: SAG will have a lot of kissing and making up to do once the dust has settled. Whether or not the AFTRA deal passes, the bigger picture of “What next?” will still linger.

Regardless of how AFTRA members vote, the current SAG contract still expires at midnight tonight. Regardless of whether the new AFTRA contract is approved, SAG will still be contract-less, unless a deal is reached today or night, which no one expects can or will happen.

Assuming the AFTRA deal passes (and many industry observers believe that it will), SAG will be left with a big mess to clean up. But that can only happen after they finally get a contract of their own they can present to their members that is worthy of a “yes” vote.

The (union) actors I have talked with about this issue seem to all agreed that they just want the opportunity to work whenever and as often as they can. Yes, they want to be compensated fairly for their talents and their contributions, but the last thing any of them seem to want is a work stoppage, thus titling the playing field into “out of order” status for a community much larger than just actors.

What a tangled web. This is a crisis of image and reputation that will require lots of strategic PR for both unions to fix. In the end, it’s also going to require a lot of bridge building. The two unions exist to serve the same population, not to pit member against member.

How do you feel about the damage done and the need to rebuild those relationships for both unions? Post your comments here or e-mail me at blemack@TheBusinessOfActing.com.

BL