A Letter from L.A. Local President Jane Austin

My Fellow Brothers and Sisters,

The strength of SAG-AFTRA is contingent upon our commitment to one another, and it is our combined voice from which we have the power to negotiate wages, residuals, safety in the workplace, health care and retirement.

A labor union is defined as “an organized association of workers, often in a trade or profession, formed to protect and further their rights and interests.” In recent years, labor unions have been demonized and discredited in spite of the benefits and standards they set for all workers. It is so important that we think of our SAG-AFTRA union not as a building located at 5757 Wilshire Blvd., but as team. Staff is an integral part of that team. They are our troops who organize, negotiate and enforce contract terms, with members leading. It is imperative that members uphold their responsibility. The more involvement and engagement we have from members, the stronger is our negotiating power. I want to thank our Los Angeles Local membership for your ongoing participation.

As a reminder, members must adhere to Global Rule One, follow the terms set by our collective bargaining agreements, assist in efforts to organize and abide by Do Not Work notices. (Click here to review Do Not Work notices.) These actions strengthen the power of our contracts and our union. It only takes one member knowingly violating a contractual term for the bar to be lowered for the rest of the membership.

Members live and support the contract terms every day on sets around the world, and so we must all speak up. Each of us has an obligation to be the eyes and ears of the team. Staff cannot fight for us if they do not know what they are fighting against. Report violations when you see them; not doing so is just as harmful as committing them yourself. Hours and hours are set aside for the upcoming wages and working condition meetings to provide members with the opportunity to ask elected leadership and senior staff about contracts and inform them about what you would like to see in the collectively bargained agreements. You can feel pride knowing that you will be contributing to the bettering of fellow members’ lives. Keep an eye on your SAG-AFTRA e-blasts to be notified of upcoming meetings.

We also need members to assist and support in organizing. This means volunteering for events, getting out to rallies and simply keeping informed of union news. (Click here to see the SAG-AFTRA newsfeed.)

It brings me much joy to report a major win for our union that we cemented just a few weeks ago when we reached a historic agreement with Zeus, the new subscription video-on-demand streaming service founded by television executive producer Lemuel Plummer and co-founded by social media stars King Bach, Amanda Cerny and DeStorm Power. The ad-free streaming service will feature exclusive, premium original scripted and unscripted series and video content, all covered under SAG-AFTRA contracts. The influencers involved will immediately draw upon their more than 120 million social media followers. (Click here to read more about the Zeus television agreement.)

Additionally, July 12 marked yet another historical announcement! SAG-AFTRA finally reached a first-ever tentative agreement with Telemundo television studios, which covers Spanish-language television performers. Through organizing efforts, unwavering courage and determination, performers took a NLRB vote in March 2017 to unionize and were officially recognized as a bargaining unit. After 15 months of strenuous and vigorous negotiations, SAG-AFTRA emerged with a group of new Spanish-language members who will now work under contracts. These contracts will include the first-ever guaranteed minimum rates for all covered performer categories with annual increases, contributions to and participation in the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan and SAG-Producers Pension Plan, residuals for both foreign and domestic exploitation and streaming platforms, and newly established working conditions and safety protections. (Click here to learn more about the Telemundo agreement).

Help us keep our contracts strong. In the coming weeks you may be notified of a call to action for the animation and commercials negotiations (Click here for animation news. Click here for commercials contracts news.) Keep an eye on your SAG-AFTRA emails to stay in the loop and learn what you can do.

Being a union member is a great privilege that comes with much responsibility. As secretary-treasurer, L.A. Local president and vice-chair of several committees, I understand how much work holding oneself accountable to the union can be, but the reward is so worth it. As I have said before, it is my honor and pleasure to serve the membership. Thank you.

In solidarity,

Jane Austin