Labor Matters Compiled by Jeff Burman Commercial Actors’ Strike Gathers Support At press time, negotiations in the SAG/AFTRA commercial strike appeared to be close to a resolution, but a settlement still seemed just out of reach. A groundswell of support from union rank Tom Hanks speaks with the media. Behind him is CA State Senator, Sheila Kuehl. and file as well as high-profile actors such as Harrison Ford, Tom Hanks, Jay Leno, Paul Newman and Kevin Spacey and pop sensations Britney Spears and ’N Sync were helping the actors’ cause considerably. If you’ve ever wanted to pique the interest of a pre-teen in a labor struggle, here’s your chance. In a joint statement, Spears and the quintet ’N Sync endorsed the strike and pledged to donate a portion of their concert income to the unions’ strike fund. Spears cancelled a planned non-union commercial shoot for Clairol’s Herbal Essences shampoo line, which is sponsoring the teen singer’s current tour. Both ‘N Sync and Spears promised that they would not participate in any additional commercial film shoots until the strike is resolved. The strike, which began May 1, is the longest in the unions’ histories, and has been deadlocked over proposed reductions in residuals. For more, see www.sag.org WGA & SAG Strikes on the Horizon With the Writers’ Guild contract running out in May of 2001 and the actors’ contract up in July, many are concerned about interruptions in their work if these unions strike. Key contract issues include foreign and cable residuals and Internet compensation. Industry observers anticipate a difficult, lengthy negotiating cycle. If contract talks deadlock, and stockpiled shows run out, many of our members will see less work coming their way. Production companies all over town are preparing for a long battle by concentrating their production in the first half of the year. "If I were in a craft union, I’d be very nervous about next year," says Dick Wilson, of ‘Charmin’ fame, says, "Please don't squeeze the actors!" Jack Kyser, chief economist at the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp. "Even if there are no strikes next year, there’s bound to be a slowdown in the second half because so much production is going to take place in the first half of the year." Some argue that the networks will learn to make do with fewer writers, and in the case of popular "reality shows" and game shows, they may well get by with fewer actors, too. TV historians believe the last writers’ strike in 1988 helped start the proliferation of newsmagazines in primetime: CBS started '48 Hours' that year, and ABC launched 'PrimeTime Live' in 1989. Others argue that the studios and networks will use a strike to shake out expensive staffers, as they did in 1988. To address this problem, the WGA has a "suspend and extend" agreement, preventing studios from terminating writers during a Guild strike. Instead, deals are suspended as long as the strike lasts. When the strike is over, a producer adds on the lost time to a writer’s deal. In 1988, only NBC was owned by a multinational corporation. Now all six networks are owned by giant parent companies, which could cushion them from the financial repercussions of a strike. But with cable channels and the Internet competing vigorously for their audience, the networks can ill afford to be without programming for long. Even if they can weather a long strike financially, the possible damage that the strike could eventually inflict on their market share may turn out to be a powerful incentive for them to settle. "I have no idea, under any conceivable configuration of labor negotiations, why talks have not been ongoing for the last month or six weeks," said 'Law & Order' producer Dick Wolf in September. "This has to be settled or we’re looking at the end of network television as we know it." Any new strike would have an unsettling effect on the local economy. The SAG/AFTRA commercial strike has cost Los Angeles County about $1 million each weekday in direct costs, not to mention another $1 million lost in ripple effects to related businesses, says economist Jack Kyser. The total lost revenue passed $200 million long ago. "The strike is clearly having an impact on the local production community, although it tends to get submerged amid the size of the overall Los Angeles economy of $310 billion annually," Kyser added. The economist noted that even though the strike’s economic losses have mounted, the industry’s overall employment picture has brightened. The latest state job numbers show that county employment in the film and TV production category has grown 7 percent during the strike from 134,900 in April to 144,300 in August. Unions Score Landmark Gains Several unions made inspiring breakthroughs since our last issue. Their gains are evidence of a new momentum in the labor movement, especially in high-tech industries, with quality of life and job stress issues taking on new prominence. Members of United Steelworkers Union outside Bridgestone facility. United Airlines, the nation’s largest domestic carrier, settled a strike with 10,500 pilots represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). The strike and work stoppage focused on stress issues, with pilots refusing to work mandatory overtime. The strike caused delays and cancellations of hundreds of flights and, coming at the height of the summer travel season, put tremendous pressure on United to settle. The pilots won an immediate raise of 21.5% to make up for lagging wages, not including annual wage hikes, which total 16% over four years. At Verizon, the giant telephone company that resulted from the recent merger of GTE and Bell Atlantic, 86,000 telephone workers ended their strike with a contract that gives them a 4% raise each year for three years, along with stock options and profit sharing expected to be worth at least 1.5% more a year. But like the United strike, the communications workers’ key issues were non-economic: job stress, work rules, mandatory overtime and the union’s ability to organize the new company’s many non-union workers. The Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers won significant victories on most of these issues. Bridgestone/Firestone, Strikers outside New York’s Museum of Modern Art. the beleaguered tire maker, averted a strike by granting its 8,000 workers raises that run from 15 to 30% over three years – raises that far exceed the inflation rate. Their union, the United Steelworkers of America, also delivered pension increases of 22 to 50%. Ironically, the talks, which began in March, could only have benefited from the company’s recent woes regarding tread separation and vehicle rollovers.Finally, the Museum of Modern Art in New York agreed to end a bitter 134-day walkout, further illustrating the scope of the "new union" movement. Its 250 striking archivists, assistant curators, librarians, and bookshop workers are members of the Professional and Administrative Staff Association (PASTA), of the United Auto Workers. The contract awards an 18 percent wage increase over five years and requires all new professional and administrative workers to join the union or pay union dues. The strike effort was aided by a letter in which 150 prominent artists, including Robert Rauschenberg and Steven Spielberg, voiced support for the strikers. McDonalds Accused of Child Labor Violations If recent picketing by striking actors wasn’t embarrassing enough, McDonalds Corp. has been accused of using underage workers to manufacture its "Happy Meal" toys. The 'South China Morning Post' reported that workers as young as fourteen worked 16-hour days in Spartan conditions that included crowded dorm rooms where they slept in wooden beds without mattresses. A fifth of the 2,000 workers at the Hong Kong factory are younger than the minimum employment age in China, which is 16. The factory, owned by City Toys Ltd., makes the "Snoopy," "Winnie the Pooh," and "Hello Kitty" toys sold with McDonalds meals, the newspaper said. McDonalds issued a statement saying that the company will take "whatever action is necessary to correct any issues that fail to adhere to the standards outlined in our code of conduct." Mexican Auto Workers Strike In another story related to job flight, Mexican autoworkers at Volkswagen’s only North American assembly plant struck for better wages. The company’s strong financial performance was a major consideration, as the union demanded a 35% pay increase. The company’s final offer of 12% was rejected as inadequate. Volkswagen of America, Inc. posted a 19.4% increase in U.S. sales in the first half of 2000, selling 179,651 vehicles. Despite government interference, talks were continuing at press time. Some 12,600 members of the independent National Workers’ Union struck the plant, 77 miles southwest of Mexico City. The factory assembles Jetta and Golf models and is the sole source of the popular New Beetle. The union was formed in 1997. A critical realignment among independent labor leaders has been unfolding since the landmark Mexican presidential election of Vicente Fox last July. The labor leaders met with Fox and called for greater trade union autonomy in the new Mexican economy. In the past, "institutional" unions allied with the PRI party accepted minimal wage increases in return for job security and modest social benefits. Fox’s inauguration will take place in December. UFW Wins Contract from Archrival Gallo After a struggle lasting more than a quarter-century, the United Farm Workers of America has wrested a contract from E. & J. Gallo Winery, the world’s largest wine producer. The three-year pact effects 450 employees at Gallo’s vineyards in Sonoma County, California, allowing skilled workers to earn as much as $9.40 an hour. They were promised greater job security and would also be guaranteed holiday, vacation and medical benefits. Union President Arturo Rodriguez was proud of the breakthrough. "It speaks to the stability of the organization and the fact that the leadership is continuing to carry on the legacy of Cesar Chavez to improve the quality of life for farm workers in this country." For more, see www.ufw.org   Jeff Burman is a Guild Board member representing assistant editors. He can be reached via email   Reprinted from The Motion Picture Editors Guild Magazine Vol. 21, No. 5 - September/October 2000   Guild Home | Magazine Home | Top of Page   Copyright © 2000, All Rights Reserved by The Motion Picture Editors Guild, IATSE Local 700