SAG-AFTRA Strike Averted For Now

SAG-AFTRA, Hollywood’s biggest union, has agreed to extend negotiations with the studios to allow more time for the two sides to hash out an agreement that could avert a second industry strike, reports The L-A Times.

Hollywood writers have been on strike since May 2, and many have predicted actors would join them on the picket lines.

SAG-AFTRA members had already voted overwhelmingly in favor of allowing their leaders to call a walkout as early as Saturday if no deal was reached. The current three-year film and TV contract expires at 11:59 p.m. on June 30.

But in a statement Friday, the 160,000-member union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of the studios, agreed to continue talks past the contract deadline to allow more time for the two sides to reach a deal. The current contract will be extended to July 12.

The union has extended negotiations in previous bargaining rounds in 2014 and 2017 before eventually reaching deals.

But the situation is more contentious this time around.

Despite progress in talks, significant differences remain between the parties, which have sparred over how to measure streaming residuals and secure protections against the abuse of artificial intelligence, among other issues, sources told The Times