A Letter from Your Hawaii Local President

Aloha Sisters and Brothers,

You will receive or may already have received a postcard with a PIN number and instructions on how to vote online or how to request a paper ballot regarding the TV/Theatrical agreement approved by our National Board. The board approved it by a super majority of 67.61% to 32.39% with the recommendation to vote “yes” to ratify the proposed new contracts.

I urge you to vote YES!

Package Value

• This is the most lucrative deal we have ever achieved — a 4% increase overall vs. 3.6% average over the last couple of contract negotiations. What’s more, the $318 million is in meaningful areas like wages and benefits for all members. That’s real dollars in your pockets.

Background

• An increase in jobs: We added one additional background to the count in the Western Zone Zones beginning in the second year, which will result in an additional 2,100 background jobs per year under historical employment patterns. The general wage increase translates to millions in wage increases for background performers.

Streaming Improvements

• Getting a 26% increase in fixed streaming residuals over the first three years is terrific, and it’s what our members were asking for. This is where the work is going, and we need to make sure our money follows. 

• This deal is helping to eliminate “grandfathering,” meaning new episodes of existing series will pay at these new residuals rates for new seasons starting July 2021. 

Revisions to Nudity, Simulated Sex, Sexual Harassment Provisions

• No more on-set “gotchas,” where they try to coerce you into a nude scene you hadn’t already committed to. 

• Interviews/auditions in hotel rooms and private residences are now prohibited unless there’s no other place to do them. 

We are truly blessed here in Hawaii and hope to celebrate the return to work just as soon as it is safe. This is a great deal at any time, but it is an amazing deal in these bad times. 

Again, I urge you to vote YES!

If you don’t have your PIN, you may retrieve it at the voting website. Whether submitted online or by mail, ballots must be received by 5 pm PDT on Wednesday July 22, 2020.​

In solidarity and looking forward,

David C. Farmer
President, SAG-AFTRA Hawaii Local