SAG-AFTRA’s national board has voted overwhelmingly to approve a new three-year contract with Netflix. The contract now goes to the guild’s membership for ratification.
“We got a darn good deal,” said SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher, who chaired the guild’s negotiating committee. “We advanced significant improvements to exclusivity terms, allowing actors with short pickups to have more freedom to work other jobs and ensuring shorter hold periods between pickups.”
The guild says that the agreement creates a new organization. “conflict-free window”Performers can accept appearances on other shows or networks for a minimum of three months in each season. This is without having to confirm availability with Netflix. The guild claims that the new pact includes “significant changes benefiting background performers, stunt coordinators and dubbing performers, and significantly expands SAG-AFTRA’s coverage of Spanish-language dubbing.”
Netflix and SAG-AFTRA also agreed that the company will join the multi-employer bargaining unit represented by the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers, and that future agreements with Netflix will be conducted concurrently with AMPTP negotiations. “Certain issues are covered by industry wide agreements with the AMPTP and will be addressed in upcoming negotiations, including wage rate (scale) increases and the streaming residuals structure, among others,”The guild stated.
“Testimony from our members offered compelling and convincing arguments in favor of unlocking the shackles the streaming platform had on actors,”Drescher made the following statement. “Everyone was represented and we won unprecedented favorable advancements. It took a long time, a great deal of pushing past their comfort zone and now that it’s all said and done, the committee and staff have a deal they feel most satisfied with. These terms are especially beneficial to the actors who are often found in the middle. We also made significant progress for the background performers.
“As the landscape of the industry has changed, streaming has become one of the most important areas of focus,” said Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the guild’s national executive director and chief negotiator. “Streaming is both the present and the future of entertainment, and this agreement reflects that reality. Our team fought hard for gains across the board, and members from background performers to series regulars will feel that benefit. I am particularly proud of our expansion of Spanish-language dubbing coverage, which results in equal pay for equal work regardless of the language used. It’s another huge step forward in our fight for equity, which is also symbolized by the addition of a holiday acknowledging Juneteenth.”
He said: “I would like to express my appreciation to President Drescher for her service as Negotiating Committee Chair, and to all the members of the Negotiating Committee for their dedicated work on this negotiation. I would also like to acknowledge Lead Negotiator Ray Rodriguez for his extraordinary efforts, together with our brilliant negotiating staff.”
A new Albuquerque Background Actor Zone was also established by the contract. It is located within a 30 mile radius of Albuquerque City Hall. This is the first new background area in 24 years.
The guild stated, “For the first time in any agreement,” “stunt coordinators will be paid a fixed residual for the continued exhibition on Netflix of a high-budget streaming program produced under the Netflix Agreement.”
The Netflix Dubbing Agreement now includes dubbing in Spanish. Spanish-language dubbing will be treated in the same way as English dubbing.
Bargaining began on June 27, and continued intermittently until August 2. Netflix Studios, LLC, can make scripted, dramatic, episodic, or feature-length films.
SAG-AFTRA was able to sign its first-ever direct deal with Netflix in 2013 Before that, the streaming giant dealt with the guild on a production-by-production basis. Guild officials said at the time that with few exceptions, the contract’s terms followed the guild’s Codified Basic Agreement and Television Agreements.