2008–09 Screen Actors Guild labor dispute

The Screen Actors Guild labor dispute of 2008-2009 is an ongoing labor dispute that could lead to a strike by the Screen Actors Guild, the American labor union (WP) representing actors in the film industry. The anticipated strike would be against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), a trade organization that represents the interests of American film producers, production companies, and movie studios. A strike could stem from the handling of royalties from the sale of films distributed through new media methods. This includes royalties earned from Internet distribution services such as iTunes, as well as DVD sales, neither of which are currently written into actors' contracts. The SAG contract expired on June 30, 2008 with the two sides still far from mutually agreeable terms. The strike has been delayed several times due to the poor US economy.

SAG works without new contract: July 2008 - ballots/strike date
The strike date was originally set for July 2008, due to its coinciding with the expiration of contracts between the labor union and the AMPTP. Regardless, talks continued until July 16, and members of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists voted to renew their deal with the AMPTP; SAG opposed that deal due to the quasi-competitive nature of the two unions. Since July 16, both sides have negotiated only sporadically, with SAG members continuing to work on television and movies under the terms of the expired contract. On November 22, 2008, the union's negotiating committee announced it was unable to come to an agreement with the AMPTP in a session with federal mediation, and has asked for a strike authorization vote.

The Screen Actors Guild says it will send strike authorization ballots to its 120,000 members on January 2, 2009. The votes will be counted on January 23, which will not be in time to potentially disrupt the Golden Globe Awards like the writers' strike did last year. Approval by 75 percent of members is required to pass the measure. If approved, the SAG national board can call a strike. Guild President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement that the future of professional actors is at stake. SAG remains at odds with Hollywood studios over treatment of Internet productions and actor benefits in the event of unplanned work stoppages. The timing of the SAG strike-authorization vote may aid its passage. As of December 9, the Screen Actors Guild has not yet called a strike.

Some shows may be affected by a possible upcoming strike.

The Screen Actors Guild has delayed the strike authorization vote for after a meeting on January 12, 2009, pushing back the timeline by no more than two weeks.

The Screen Actors Guild is at this moment planning to stop Doug Allen and Alan Rosenberg from authorizing a strike vote.

The Screen Actors Guild is holding an emergency meeting on the situation.

Doug Allen may be ousted from the Screen Actors Guild.

SAG President Alan Rosenberg has backed off from authorizing a strike vote and is beginning a vote on the latest contract offer from the AMPTP.

On January 23, 2009 the Actors Union lost support for a strike vote. Though the SAG hasn't officially revoked the call for a strike, the walkout chances are now slim.

The SAG has moderated a file document that puts Doug Allen out of business.

It's official. Doug Allen has been fired from the Screen Actors Guild.

The SAG, the AMPTP and the Hollywood Studios have agreed to a meeting in Los Angeles next week.

The meeting between the SAG and the AMPTP has been delayed because Alan Rosenberg is threatening to reinstate Doug Allen.

An attempt to reinstate Doug Allen has been blocked.

The ouster who got Doug Allen fired has returned to the SAG agenda.

An attempt to reinstate Doug Allen has been denied a second time.

The SAG is ready to resume talks with the AMPTP.

It's official. Doug Allen has been fired from the Screen Actors Guild for the second time. Talks between the SAG and the AMPTP are expected to resume on Tuesday, February 17, 2009.

The SAG and AMPTP are ready to resume negotiations.

Alan Rosenberg's special appeal to halt negotiations between the SAG and the AMPTP has been denied.

The SAG and AMPTP are to resume negotiations this Tuesday at Sherman Oaks.

Talks between the SAG and AMPTP are finally underway.

No resolution between the SAG and AMPTP has been reached, but the two sides have agreed to meet Thursday at 1:00PM Eastern/12:00PM Central.

Talks between the SAG and the AMPTP have once again hit a real snag.

The Screen Actors Guild has rejected the latest contract offer.

The SAG and the AMPTP need a third party to pass out the olive branches.

A divided SAG board is urging leaders to send the final contract offer from movie and television producers to SAG members for a vote.

The SAG and the AMPTP have reached a tentative deal.

The SAG board approved the deal by a 53% vote.

The Screen Actors Guild has approved a new contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.

Resistance to strike
The Screen Actors Guild's New York board, which split with the union's national leadership, urged members to oppose the strike because of the worsening U.S. economy. A faction of the Screen Actors Guild wants the strike vote suspended indefinitely because of the economic crisis. Over 100 actors have written a letter of protest to the Screen Actors Guild about the likely strike vote. The Screen Actors Guild called a meeting on the New York board split on December 19, 2008. Among the actors joining the strike resistance are Robert Redford and Russell Crowe.

Effect on film industry and independent film
Gradually, TV studios are shifting from the Screen Actors Guild to the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists in case of a strike. Because the unions involved represent many working film actors in America, industry leaders agree that if the strike does occur, film production (including scripted television programming) would be at a veritable standstill. Therefore, production companies are preparing for the strike by accelerating production of films and television episodes to stockpile enough material to continue regular film releases and TV schedules during the strike period. However, some Hollywood studios, such as The Jim Henson Company, are not affected by the strike, due to the terms of their contracts. Also some shows such as reality shows like The Amazing Race and soap operas General Hospital and The Young and The Restless, and regular shows like 90210, Curb Your Enthusiasm, all shows on Nickelodeon including SpongeBob SquarePants, Victorious and iCarly, all shows on Comedy Central including South Park and The Daily Show are also not affected. This is possibly due to the fact that the actors associated with those shows belong to AFTRA, a union that indirectly (or involuntarily) competes with SAG.