Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/716514
30 SAG-AFTRA | Summer 2016 | SAGAFTRA.org and the reason SAG-AFTRA contracts set limits on what a performer may be asked to do. Still, not everyone follows the rules, and when contract provisions are violated or performers are put in dangerous situations, it is members' responsibility to report it to their union. That's when SAG-AFTRA can spring into action. "For more than 80 years, SAG-AFTRA and its predecessor organizations have stood fast for our members. We enshrine hard- fought protections in our contracts, and enforcement is the pillar that holds up those protections and makes them meaningful," said Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez. The union works every day to resolve members' issues, and most of the time, employers are cooperative and willing to abide by the contracts to which they have agreed. But from time to time, certain disputes require an escalated response. It is in this spirit that the union has undertaken a series of recent high-profile contract-enforcement actions. When it comes to video game safety standards, Carson's case was not an isolated incident. The union has been hearing more and more complaints like these, and the results are disturbing. Otolaryngologist Warren Line Jr. and speech language S A G - A F T R A TA K E S A S T A N D Union Vigilant on Performer Contract Enforcement F O R A s a voiceover performer, you don't want to hear the sound designer tell you, "Be careful. This can be dangerous. We'll probably blow you out with this one." But that was the experience of one SAG-AFTRA member — we will call him Carson because he wishes to remain anonymous — while doing vocally stressful screams for a video game voiceover. And this callous disregard for Carson's safety came after he told the employer he had a session the following day that would require his full vocal range. "What really sucks is this: I was furious at being relatively helpless in the situation," Carson said. "Something that should have been fun and collaborative was awful. It made me want to walk away from ever doing another game. It's not worth it to me. And that makes me sad. "Since the session, I have told my agents that I will no longer audition for games that require that kind of vocal stress, which will ultimately limit me for certain jobs," he said. Carson's experience is not unique. In the complex process of creating today's entertainment, performers' well-being can sometimes be collateral damage. But protecting performers' health and welfare is precisely the reason the union was formed