Know Your Late-Night Rights!

If you work on a theatrical or dramatic television production that runs into late night hours, you are entitled to be dropped off at a safe location. Background actors who work on productions that run past 9:30 p.m. must be provided a ride by the production company to the original pickup point and/or one of three designated drop-off points: Grand Central Terminal, Penn Station or Port Authority. This applies unless you are dismissed from work in Manhattan within a zone bordered on the south by 34th Street, on the north by 57th Street, on the east by 3rd Avenue and on the west by 8th Avenue. It does not matter how many background actors may need a ride; even one member is entitled to a ride under the contract. If dismissal comes so late that public service transportation is no longer running, the producer must provide transportation to the member’s home. Note that your work time ends at the drop-off time of the f rst background actor, regardless of the time at which other background actors may be dropped off.

If you encounter a problem, we urge you to call the 24-hour hotline at (212) 517-0909. If you know beforehand that you will be working a late-night production, you may call the SAG-AFTRA off ce ahead of time, and we can remind the production of their obligation to provide transportation. There’s no excuse for leaving our members in an unsafe situation.