Chance of actors' strike dwindles
Talks resume after three-day break
Even if the unlikely scenario of a collapse in negotiations were to play out, actors could not launch a strike at 12:01 a.m. July 1, the minute after the current contract expires. Instead, a work stoppage could not come until a month from now at the absolute earliest.
A union official said the actors would first probably need several days for the joint boards of the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television & Radio Artists to approve submitting a strike authorization recommendation to the 135,000 members, followed by a week to formulate the language and then three weeks for members to receive and return the authorization ballots. No such steps are currently planned.
The strategic approach by the unons varies sharply from last year's strike preparations, which included SAG and AFTRA leaders seeking an authorization vote over a month before the March 31 contract deadline. After talks collapsed in mid-April, the unions set a May 1 strike date.
But the possibility of another strike has remained remote since the Writers Guild reached a settlement with studios six weeks ago. Leaders of SAG and AFTRA attempted in mid-May to take a low-key, moderate approach with the overriding theme that they simply want to improve pay for mid-level thesps; SAG/AFTRA have launched only a cursory contract campaign with a recap of issues that has not been updated in over a month; and there is no plan yet for a strike authorization vote.
Talks between actors and studios resumed Monday morning following a three-day break with both sides adhering to the news blackout imposed when negotiations began May 15. It was the 11th face-to-face session at the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers headquarters since talks started.
Most observers expect the talks to bump up against the contract expiration for two reasons -- the complexity of reaching an agreement and the need for both sides to appear as if they have made every effort to achieve the best possible deal.
Should the talks go past the deadline, the usual practice calls for provisions of the expired contract to remain in effect as long as negotiations continue even if an extension agreement with the AMPTP has not been signed. The WGA took that tack during the three-day period that its talks went past the expiration.
