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After 17 months of negotiations with reps of the ad business, the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) is seeking a strike mandate from its membership.

At issue is the pact with the Institute of Communications Agencies and the Assn. of Canadian Advertisers. The current deal expired June 30 and the groups asked government mediators to step in at the end of July; those efforts will resume Sept. 25.

"All reports indicate the ad industry has been doing very well," said ACTRA national executive director Stephen Waddell. "There's no justification for ad agencies and advertisers to try to reduce the compensation of performers."

Deadline for ballots to be returned is Oct. 14. ACTRA represents 21,000 performers working in the English-language recorded media in Canada.