LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: On Wednesday, November 8, the SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) reached a tentative deal with AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) in a new three-year contract before calling off their 118-day strike, Deadline reported.
The official social media account of SAG-AFTRA took to X (formerly Twitter) to announce that the union will finally suspend the historic strike, which began in July 2023 and became the longest strike in the history of the union.
"12:01 AM (PT). Thursday, Nov. 9. The #SagAftraStrike is suspended. Pickets are closed. We are #SagAftraStrong," the SAG-AFTRA wrote.
The combined labor unrest in Hollywood that saw members of WGA (Writers Guild Association) and SAG-AFTRA hit the picket lines to protest over labor dispute against the studios became the industry’s first joint strike in more than 60 years.
A look at the conditions of SAG-AFTRA's tentative deal with the AMPTP
The SAG-AFTRA union announced that the TV/Theatrical Negotiating Committee voted unanimously to approve a tentative agreement with the AMPTP after spending 118 gruelling days on strike.
The union mentioned that the full details of the agreement will not be provided until the tentative deal is reviewed by the SAG-AFTRA National Board.
It shared that the contract, valued at over one billion dollars, have helped SAG-AFTRA achieve "a deal of extraordinary scope" that will include "'above-pattern' minimum compensation increases, unprecedented provisions for consent and compensation that will protect members from the threat of AI" and establish a "streaming participation bonus" for the first time.
The SAG-AFTRA further shared that as part of the tentative deal, the pension and health caps of members "have been substantially raised," which will reportedly bring "much needed value to our plans."
It announced that the deal also includes "numerous improvements for multiple categories including outsize compensation increases for background performers, and critical contract provisions protecting diverse communities."
The union also said that the contract will "enable SAG-AFTRA members from every category to build sustainable careers" and assured that "many thousands of performers now and into the future will benefit from this work."
The SAG-AFTRA union reached the tentative deal after spending about two weeks on renewed negotiations. The agreement came shortly before the 5 pm deadline provided by the AMPTP for the union to decide on whether they had a deal.
The tentative deal will reportedly be reviewed by the SAG-AFTRA National Board and will be ratified by a vote of eligible members.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, the contract could soon go into effect if the deal is ratified but members could essentially send their labor negotiators back to negotiating with the AMPTP otherwise.
More details about the conditions of the tentative deal will likely be revealed in the next few days prior to the union’s ratification vote, the publication reported.
What did the AMPTP say about its tentative deal with SAG-AFTRA?
The AMPTP also issued a statement about its new deal with SAG-AFTRA and said, "Today’s tentative agreement represents a new paradigm," as per the Hollywood Reporter.
"It gives SAG-AFTRA the biggest contract-on-contract gains in the history of the union, including the largest increase in minimum wages in the last forty years; a brand new residual for streaming programs; extensive consent and compensation protections in the use of artificial intelligence; and sizable contract increases on items across the board," it mentioned.
"The AMPTP is pleased to have reached a tentative agreement and looks forward to the industry resuming the work of telling great stories," the statement concluded.
