Stars push SAG to talk

Some seek reform to eligibility regulations

By DAVE MCNARY

With memories of the writers strike still fresh, the Screen Actors Guild is facing increased pressure from the town -- and from within its star-studded ranks -- to get to the bargaining table as soon as possible and to rethink its voting procedures.

George Clooney, Sally Field, Tom Hanks and Rob Lowe met with SAG president Alan Rosenberg last week to present their concerns -- particularly over criticism of the DGA deal's new-media provisions in a Jan. 29 message from Rosenberg and SAG national exec director Doug Allen to the 120,000 SAG members.

And a petition bearing more than 1,000 signatures from SAG members has been presented to Rosenberg. Those behind the petition seek to implement some form of "working in the trade" requirement -- such as five days per year -- that SAG members must meet in order to vote on the upcoming contract. The guild's current contact expires June 30.

SAG leaders met with Disney topper Robert Iger on Friday to discuss setting up contract talks. Iger -- along with News corp. president Peter Chernin and CBS honcho Leslie Moonves -- was integral in the informal talks that led to both the WGA and DGA deals.

Rosenberg and Allen have been playing their cards close to the vest. They've insisted the guild needs to complete its process of holding "wages and working conditions" meetings over the next few weeks and sort out the details of its joint bargaining arrangement with AFTRA.

"It does not come to me as that much of a surprise that there's pressure to start the negotiations," Rosenberg acknowledged in an interview Sunday with Daily Variety.

Rosenberg said he's against imposing any kind of "qualified voting" requirement -- saying "it disenfranchises people who are marginalized" -- but added that the level of support for the notion will obligate the SAG national board to address the issue at its next meeting in April. It's unclear whether SAG's board would approve any form of qualified voting, given the strong resistance among Hollywood reps who control the panel and among many rank-and-file members. In addition, any elected rep who supports such a move would probably doom his chances of ever being elected again.

Rosenberg also said he's disappointed over the timing of the qualified voting petition, as it highlights longstanding internal divisions at SAG as the guild heads into negotiations.

"Bringing up the issue of qualified voting four months before our contract expires is something that's damaging to our ability to present a united front at the bargaining table," he added. "It's not a problem that the WGA and DGA faced."

In one sign that calmed the town's nerves about a possible SAG strike, guild leaders agreed Feb. 9 to call off their divorce with the American Federation of Television & Radio Artists, asserting they would return to their usual joint bargaining at upcoming negotiations on a new film-TV contract.

SAG had been the WGA's biggest strike ally, so its teaming with AFTRA -- which tends to be far less assertive than SAG -- was cheered by the majors.

Rosenberg said Sunday that SAG and AFTRA leaders are still sorting out the details of how to repair the relationship. AFTRA leaders have indicated they expect both unions to be ready to start talks by March 31; the SAG-AFTRA contract covers feature and primetime TV work, with AFTRA covering a handful of shows.

SAG's national board is insisting AFTRA agree that neither union undercut the other by offering lowball terms -- long a sore point between the unions as AFTRA signed up cable shows at lower initial terms than SAG. Rosenberg said Sunday that the AFL-CIO has been helping in recent weeks to work out the details in the long-running jurisdictional dispute, but he added that nothing's been finalized.