SAG-AFTRA video game artists vote to authorize strike against publishers and studios

SAG-AFTRA Members have voted to authorize a new strike against the video game industry, with an overwhelming 98.32 percent in favor. The union claims that 34,687 members voted, representing 24.49 percent of eligible voters. Keep in mind that this authority does not guarantee that a strike will occur, but it does guarantee that union members are serious about stopping work if the union fails to reach a fair agreement with the companies. The voting period began on September 5 and ends on Monday, September 25, before new negotiations begin on September 26 (PT). If it passes, it will mark another video game strike Since a similar action took place in 2016 – which lasted for almost a year.

“It’s time for video game companies to stop playing games and get serious about reaching an agreement on this contract,” SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher said in a statement. prepared statement, “The outcome of this vote shows that our membership understands the existential nature of these negotiations, and it is time that these companies – who are making billions of dollars and paying their CEOs handsomely – talk to our artists. a deal that keeps performing in video games as a viable career.” The union is pushing for a new interactive media agreement that ensures video game artists such as voice acting, motion capture, singing, stunt work and others are compensated fairly.

The 2016 video game strike was the longest strike in the union’s history, culminating in a three-year contract in November 2017 that runs through 2020. Then that same agreement was extended to 2022 and 2023, and now SAG-AFTRA is going back to negotiate with at least 10 major companies. These include a mix of publishers and production studios: activism blizzard ,Duty), blindlight, disney, electronic Arts ,Star Wars Jedi: Survivors), Formosa, insomnia game ,marvel’s spider man, epic games ,Fortnite, take two ,red dead redemption 2), Voiceworks Productions, and wb games ,Hogwarts Legacy, However, it appears as if SAG-AFTRA has been trying to negotiate a new agreement through October 2022 to no avail, and so the strike authorization shows how serious the workforce is about the need.

In addition to demanding higher wages to offset rising inflation, SAG-AFTRA is trying to fight against ‘irregular’ use. artificial intelligence, which will change the work of artists and take away work from them. There is also the issue of companies being able to use an actor’s digital likeness for projects without consent and proper payment. this was also one sticking point going to hollywood actor’s strike, Similar to film and TV actors, video game actors work for multiple developers or publishers on a contract basis. As mentioned earlier, if negotiations are completed, a strike may not occur, and development of the games will continue as planned.

Earlier this week, wga (Writers Guild of America) and the AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) reached a ‘tentative agreement’ to end the strike after almost five months – strike action began on 2 May. The deal still needs to be finalized and further details on full terms will be disclosed. Time. For now, the protest outside the studio has been suspended, but the union said no one should return to work until an official announcement is made. hollywood reporter,