Some San Jose State film production community members say they’re eager to see improved working wages and conditions in the industry, which was settled in an agreement Saturday between an international film production union and the U.S. top entertainment trade association.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, a 128-year-old union, and the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers reached a three-year tentative agreement that includes: weekend rest periods of 54 hours, 10-hour daily rest periods, meal breaks, living wages for all workers and significant compensation increases.
The Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers, a trade association that represents major employers and producers including Warner Bros, Netflix, Apple, Paramount Pictures, Walt Disney Studios and Amazon, negotiated with the film production union for months after their contract ended on July 31.
Saturday’s agreement came after the union initiated a nationwide strike with about 99% of its members ready to participate, which would have led to more than 60,000 crew members going on strike Monday, according to a Saturday news release by International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. The strike was averted after the agreement was made Saturday.
The union represents 150,000 members, with only about 60,000 authorized to vote, working in the film production industry including script supervisors, technicians and makeup artists, according to its website.
The 60,000 union members, who’re film or TV production workers, are the only members authorized to vote because they fall under the agreement, according to the Saturday news release.
Matthew Loeb, the union’s international president, said the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees members were prepared to withhold their labor and go on strike until the problems regarding their quality of lives were addressed in the new agreement.
“We went toe to toe with some of the richest and most powerful entertainment and tech companies in the world, and we have now reached an agreement with the [Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers] that meets our members’ needs,” Loeb stated in the Saturday news release.
SJSU assistant theater professor Kirsten Brandt said the workers’ demands were simple: fair pay and working conditions.
“I just hope to see people being able to live full lives. There are working standards, that’s why we have unions to fight for what’s right and what’s fair,” Brandt said.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees voted in majority to strike after a discussion fell apart between the union and the trade association on Sept. 20 because workplace issues weren’t being addressed in the new agreement terms, according to an Oct. 7 AP News article.
Shannon Bringham, a 2015 SJSU alumna who works as a Second Camera Assistant in California, said the working conditions in the film production industry are difficult.
“You work probably 70 hours a week. You work right into your Saturday to sometimes 4 a.m. in the morning and then you’re expected to come right back to work at 5 a.m. on Monday,” Bringham said “I don’t really have much freedom outside of [work].”
Many students say they’re nervous about entering an industry with such extreme working conditions.
Matt Hewitt, radio, TV and film senior, said there’s general anxiety about entering the workforce but it can be especially difficult for those entering the film industry.
“Everyone feels some anxiety entering film/video production just like any workforce and it can be especially daunting with the working conditions that are considered normal,” Hewitt said. “The union strikes personally make me excited because I think worker solidarity makes for a better, more open workforce that will make people feel less isolated.”
Normal working conditions in the industry include 12-14 hour working days, no lunch breaks and working on weekends, according to an Oct. 8 New York Times article.
Bringham said many crew members work excessive hours, even causing them to fall asleep at the wheel driving home from set.
“The demands and how hard people are working behind the scenes to the hours that people are working [to] driving home at night unsafely, I think [people] definitely need to be more aware,” Bringham said.
She said the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers wants film crew members to experience these extreme working demands.
“They also want to create walking meals which means that we don’t get to stop at six hours for a lunch break. And that would also take away a meal penalty so like on a job if they don’t break [us] at six hours, then you start accruing meal penalties,” Bringham said.
Producers pay meal penalties when they fail to give employees lunch breaks after six hours of work but the penalties are cheaper than giving workers lunch breaks, according to the New York Times article.
Hewitt said many film crew members aren’t even paid living wages.
“Many sets pay a day rate for the entire day, which means you can get paid for a full day even [if] you wrap early but it also runs the risk of getting underpaid when you work excessive hours, to the point many film workers can end up making below minimum wage,” Hewitt said.
Film production crew members usually make around $39,400 a year, according to a data report by ZipRecruiter, an online employment platform.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees members will be briefed by their local leaders about full details and language of the tentative agreement within the week, according to the Saturday union news release.
Afterward, the members will vote by casting ballots, according to the news release.
Kirsten Brandt said she wishes audiences were more aware of the workload that happens behind the scenes when they watch shows and movies on streaming services.
“I don’t know if you sit and watch credits but all those credits are human beings that have jobs and each one of those jobs is instrumental to the success of that show. It’s not just the featured actor or the director. It’s the unseen folk,” Brandt said.
