At the end of 118 days of strike, SAG-AFTRA members celebrated the end of it with what was heralded as a history-making contract, the current tentative deal reached with the AMPTP.
Keyword: tentative. The deal needs to be ratified by the union members. When the celebrations died down, disagreements regarding the gains and AI protections have turned to “crazy Internet infighting,” one member said to The Hollywood Reporter.
The question is what happens now with the ratification vote closing on Tuesday, Dec. 5. According to the guild's recent history, there has never been an instance when the union refused to ratify a tentative TV/theatrical agreement.
SAG-AFTRA ratification vote: crazy, heated, stressful
SAG-AFTA 2023 strike captain Kate Bond said, “I have no idea how people are voting or what the split is going to be. The whole thing is pretty stressful.”
Ever Carradine, an L.A. Local board member, added, “It’s been a crazy, heated time.”
“If Twitter is an indicator or Instagram, I’m concerned [that the deal won’t be ratified]. But if I have conversations with actual people, my level of concern comes down,” she continued.
However, SAG-AFTRA national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland is “fairly confident” that the union members will approve the agreement.
“I do believe that our members will see this deal for what it is, which is an extraordinary and groundbreaking deal — not perfect, no deal ever is. [But] it really advances our members’ interests,” he said.
Watching the arguments play out on social media, it seems that for one member who says they feel “frustrated w/ shortsighted & erosive GAI ‘protections'”, there is another who, such as Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston, outlines their reasons for voting “yes.”
It's still AI
As for the issue of generative AI, Frances Fisher and Jason George have defended the deal's language, while Matthew Modine, an L.A. and national board member, opposed it and said that the union isn't prepared to deal with the impending “AI tsunami.”
Still at the heart of the dissenters' issue is AI. The union's leaders have said that the language in the deal is only a starting point. The current tentative agreement only lasts for three years and they can renegotiate. The contract does state that SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP need to meet at least twice a year to discuss the AI provisions.
The voter turnout is expected to be higher than in previous years for the 2023 ratification vote. In 2020, 27.15% of the SAG-AFTRA members voted, and in 2017, only 15.33% turned out.
Like in any election, Bond says what's important is they exercise their right to vote.
“We each get one vote. And I think that the power of each person’s one vote is what the power of the union is,” she said.
Bond voted “no.”
“So I think that no matter what, if we have a high turnout, whether we vote yes or vote no, that’s a real show of strength for the union,” she concluded.
Follow Us
Subscribe