SAG-AFTRA

Fall 2016

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16 SAG-AFTRA | Fall 2016 | SAGAFTRA.org D AV I D W H I T E A Letter from the National Executive Director "When fairness and respect are missing, the balance between employers and members is thrown off …" negotiations, which have resulted in SAG-AFTRA's first strike as a merged union. The negotiators for these video game employers have unfortunately worked overtime to attempt to trivialize our position as focused on "terminology" when they are fully aware of the serious nature of our underlying concerns. We have story after story of members sustaining short and long-term injuries when performing the stunts and daredevil action that make consumers love these games, or who damage the primary tool of their profession — their vocal chords — when they must scream and yell for hours on end in order to bring these games to life in a manner that is authentic and lifelike. These issues are best addressed through the practical solutions we have proposed regarding increased transparency into the nature of each job and the addition of stunt coordinators when the action on a set requires skilled oversight. As important, the addition of a fairer, secondary payment compensation structure for the performers who work in this space is critical. It has long been established that performers, who even at the height of their professional success face an unpredictable and intermittent work life, rely on residuals to make ends meet between jobs. Our proposal is reasonable, focusing only on the most profitable games where companies and talent can share Dear Member, W e certainly live in interesting times, a time of disruptive activity across many industries, our nation's body politic and throughout society more broadly. Such periods of change can have big implications for the daily work life of our members, and for the approach that this union, SAG-AFTRA, must take to represent and protect our members. Our goal is, and must always be, to strive for productive partnerships wherever possible with the employers that hire our members, to ensure the businesses we all want to see grow and thrive have the best opportunity to do so. But this growth must be balanced with fairness and respect: in the work rules that are negotiated across the bargaining table, in the compensation structures on which our members rely for their livelihood, and in the way that each employer applies the rules on production sets, broadcast shops and the many rooms around the country in which recording artists and other members ply their talents. When fairness and respect are missing, the balance between employers and members is thrown off, which expands the opportunity for conflict between the parties. A prime example of a major breakdown in the balance we seek is in our Interactive in a small portion of the success that our members have helped to create. These proposals and our strike action reflect a desire for the very fairness and respect that is critical to the productive, long-term relationship between these companies and the professionals they hire. I finish this short note along the lines that I began: Representing professionals during a period of unruly change only heightens the responsibilities we feel as a labor organization. SAG-AFTRA strives to be a place of stability for our membership, where members can build community, share concerns and work collectively on issues of importance to them. We also strive to work with partners across the industry to ensure the protection of our members and the growth and evolution — even rapid evolution — of the industry. But this can only be done in true partnership with employers and their representatives, who must find ways to ensure that the twin pillars of fairness and respect are ever- present as we work together to advance our respective goals. In unity and looking forward, David White

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