SAG-AFTRA

Fall / Winter 2024

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10 SAG-AFTRA | Fall/Winter 2024 | sagaftra.org A Letter from the Executive Vice President L I N D A P O W E L L Fellow Members, A s I type this, intimacy coordinators have just voted unanimously to join SAG-AFTRA and begin negotiations with the AMPTP. It's incredibly moving to witness the excitement of all those who worked so hard to shepherd the industry to this moment. It's a big deal. It's also a reminder to me of the importance of the "long game" when we set goals as a union. I was a board member in 2017 when the #MeToo movement took over our conversations. What began as a viral hashtag quickly became a watershed moment for workplace equality, particularly for women and marginalized groups. High-profile cases highlighted systemic issues of power dynamics, harassment and exploitation; decades of pain and shame were revealed and it was crystal clear that SAG-AFTRA had an urgent responsibility to respond. Looking back from my current perspective, I have such admiration and respect for the leaders who met that moment. Presented with the opportunity to take a visible and proactive stance on difficult issues, SAG-AFTRA created a comprehensive set of reforms, policies, and advocacy initiatives. A new Code of Conduct on Sexual Harassment, contractual protections around nudity and intimacy, and new confidential systems for reporting issues were soon in place. The widespread adoption of intimacy coordinators, however, would take more time. Prior to those initial rapid response meetings, I had never heard the term intimacy coordinator. It was a new position that only a few productions had embraced, but the feedback we heard from those casts made it clear that having an advocate on set dedicated to the safety of performers engaged in intimate work was a game-changer. Making that change the new normal has demanded continuous focus, passion and persistence. Requiring coordinators for every intimate scene could not happen without a healthy partnership with the burgeoning intimacy coordinator community to create a framework for how IC's are used, how productions are educated, and how to recruit and train enough coordinators to meet demand. That's where the long game began. • 2020 SAG-AFTRA establishes and releases Standards and Protocols for the Use of Intimacy Coordinators. • 2021 The union announces Recommended Standards for Qualifications, Training and Vetting of Intimacy Coordinators. • 2021 A convention resolution is passed recommending that the National Board pursue a path to membership for intimacy coordinators. • 2022 The National Board approves and prioritizes the recommendation. • 2022 SAG-AFTRA publishes a registry and pre-registry list of intimacy coordinators that meet the minimum standards of qualification and training. A list of accredited training programs is also published. • 2023 TV/Theatrical negotiations achieve contractual language requiring producers make best efforts to engage an intimacy coordinator for scenes involving nudity or simulated sex. • 2024 SAG-AFTRA files an election petition with the National Labor Relations Board to represent intimacy coordinators employed by the AMPTP companies. It passes with a vote of 100%. That's seven years of head-down, one- foot-in-front-of-the-other persistence. Long game for the win. I am so thankful to the fierce advocates who led this effort. Thankful to the early voices who bravely shared their stories, to the tireless members of our Sexual Harassment Prevention Committee, to the early intimacy coordinators who created a way out of no way, to President Carteris and President Drescher who kept the issues front and center, to our staff who keep the strategies moving, and to everyone who supported it along the way. There is still work to do in this space. We have to stay vigilant. But today we celebrate. In solidarity, Linda Powell "… the importance of the 'long game' when we set goals as a union."

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