Actors Moving for Strike Vote

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SAG logo The recent elections in the board membership of the Screen Actors Guild seems to have brought Hollywood closer to another strike and potential work stoppage. According to the Hollywood Reporter, SAG's national board has issued a resolution to urge its members to take up the vote:...

"A strike authorization vote of the membership is necessary to overcome the employers' intransigence," the resolution said. It also called for the national board to adopt a campaign advocating a "yes" vote, giving the bargaining team the authority to call a strike when the board "deems it necessary and unavoidable to do so."

Where this puts the potential for a strike seems fairly clear. As The Reporter puts it: "The decision to ask members for strike authorization could be a watershed for the stalled talks. If the request received approval, SAG negotiators could go back to the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers armed with a solid indication of the rank and file's resolve. Should it fail, however, the union would have to choose between accepting the AMPTP's current offer or continuing trying to break the current stalemate from a decidedly weaker position."

The AMPTP issues a statement citing the weak economy as reason not to strike.
"Is this really the time for anyone associated with the entertainment business to be talking about going on strike?" it said. "Not only is the business suffering from recent economic conditions, but if ever there was a time when Americans wanted the diversions of movies and television, it is now."

It's difficult to argue with this position in the face of the evidence. Not just regarding the economic downturn – which is widely referred to as a 'crisis' in most circles – but industry itself is currently on shaky ground. New television shows that got a rough start last season due to the writers' strike – such as Pushing Daisies and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles - are down in the ratings and struggling for viewers as networks work to bring the audience back to their sets. There are a few more steps to go before a strike would occur, and it's uncertain how the general SAG membership would vote.