The American Federation of Television & Radio Artists has demanded that Nickelodeon stop offering contracts to actors that gives the cabler a share of non-Nick income earned by thesps.
AFTRA national exec director Kim Roberts Hedgpeth made the demand in a recent letter to Nick outside counsel Bill Zuckerman, asserting that Nick's been imposing a requirement "that the performer grant to the employer a right to a 'profit participation' interest in the talent's third-party income as a condition of employment."
"The collective bargaining agreement between AFTRA and Nickelodeon does not permit this action by the employer," Hedgpeth said. "It is AFTRA's position that Nickelodeon's actions in this regard violate, among other provisions, the exclusivity provisions of the collective bargaining agreement. Further, based upon our preliminary review, we believe this practice may in violation of California law."
Nick said in response that it could not go into detail about the pacts but added that its deals are fair.
"All of our contracts with talent are negotiated arrangements and the terms are private and confidential," the cabler said. "No one is forced to sign a contract with us. We believe our deals reflect a fair balance of interests between the artists and Nickelodeon."
The cabler did not elaborate, but it's understood that Nick's thinking is that the deals are structured so that the net's able to offer higher fees upfront in exchange for recouping part of its initial investment in the talent.
Hedgpeth's letter demanded that Nick provide a list of all performers who have signed employment contracts that contain such a "profit participation" clause, adding that such an agreement is "void and unenforceable."
The structure of the Nick contracts was first reported on the Sagwatchdog.com website.
Contact Dave McNary at
dave.mcnary@variety.com