SAG-AFTRA's National Board is unanimously seeking permission from union members to strike against a number of video game makers ahead of negotiations resuming later this month.
The union's initial contract with major video game companies, the Interactive Media Agreement, was extended past its initial expiration date last fall as SAG-AFTRA "negotiated with the companies for critical terms need," the union said in a news release. "Unfortunately, throughout the negotiations, the companies have failed to address those needs."
While a strike authorization does not launch a strike, it can be a useful tool at the bargaining table because it gives the union the ability to declare a strike if negotiations break down. Eligible SAG-AFTRA members will be able to vote on authorizing a strike until September 25 at 5 p.m. PT, the evening before discussions resume.
A SAG-AFTRA negotiator who asked not to be named told CNN the video game companies are offering "a nominal dollar increase but a real dollar pay cut." They added under the current proposed terms and due to inflation, "our members will be making less in real dollars in 2025 than they did in 2020." "The voice and performance capture artists who bring video game characters to life deserve a contract that reflects the value they bring to the multibillion-dollar gaming industry," SAG-AFTRA's National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland said in a statement. "Voice and performance capture AI are already among the most advanced uses of AI: the threat is here and it is real.
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