Archive for October 5, 2008

Commercials, Part I: Where We Stand Today

October 5, 2008 by Voiceguy.

This is the first of several posts designed to familiarize all of us with what we’re going to have to understand as we move to negotiations of the Commercials contracts with SAG and AFTRA.  Nothing stated in these posts is official, nor is it endorsed by any organization.  It represents my own analysis of information that is currently available to anyone willing to dig for it, with no “inside information” of any kind.  I am not infallible and would be grateful to have any errors brought to my attention.

The one final caveat that I will give is this:  This whole area is easily subject to the “MEGO” factor:  My Eyes Glaze Over. I hope people will bear with me.  I’ll try to keep this as non-technical as possible.

Current Contractual Status

SAG and AFTRA’s present contractual status is based on three documents: The 2003 Commercials Contract; the 2006 Extension Agreement; and the 2008 Extension Agreement.

2003 Commercials Contract:  This 3-year agreement contains the familiar terms for television commercial session and use fees. There is also rudimentary language covering Internet use, both move-over from over-the-air or cable television, and original made-for-internet use.  There is no mention of “New Media” in this document.  It was set to expire in October, 2006.

2006 Extension Agreement:  This 2-year agreement extends the 2003 contracts for two additional years (to October, 2008).  It includes an across-the-board 6% increase in compensation effective October 30, 2006.  There is additional language relating to editing of commercials for Internet use, both move-over and made-for-internet.  This extension agreement for the first time acknowledges union jurisdiction over “new media,” applying to both move-over and made-for-new-media, and contains rudimentary terms covering such production and use.

2008 Extension Agreement:  This six-month agreement extends the above agreements with no other changes in terms from October, 2008 through March, 2009.

The Advertisers’ Position

The Association of National Advertisers sent this message to its members earlier this year:

 ”The current SAG/AFTRA contracts are based on an antiquated talent payment system that has been in place for more than 50 years and do not reflect the tremendous changes that have taken place in the marketing/media landscape.  In 2006, the JPC and the unions agreed to conduct a joint study to determine how to revamp the compensation models to bring them up to date and to provide a more-measurable return on investment critical in today’s business environment.

“Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH) has developed two compensation models, and the JPC recently conducted two seminars/Webinars to evaluate those models.  Those seminars were open to both industry and union participation and were very well attended.  . . .

“We anticipate that negotiations for new contracts with SAG and AFTRA will begin in the next several months.  The two compensation models developed by BAH may be the centerpiece of those negotiations.  It is critical that we hear from as many marketers as possible so that the JPC can fully judge the models and make an informed decision on which approach works best for the industry.  . . .  Please take a close look at those models and give us your input on how they work for your company’s media plans.”

My analysis is based on the slides and other printed materials made available at the above seminars, and on the actual models (Excel spreadsheets) developed by Booz-Allen, as those models have been made available for advertisers to test and evaluate.

It is this Booz-Allen study that will be one of the major topics of the announced joint SAG/AFTRA member informational meetings to be held in several cities during the month of October.  Anyone who wants to stay on top of these negotiations should attend, because if the Booz-Allen study is any guide, all of us — advertisers and union members — are about to step off familiar ground into some very unknown territory.  Put one of these meetings on your calendar now.

Next:  How the Study Worked; What Was and Was Not Covered; Introduction to the Two Recommended Compensation Models

Posted in Commercials Contract, SAG-AFTRA | Print | 5 Comments »

You’ve Seen His Comments…Now Meet Our New Contributor

October 5, 2008 by Editor.

Voiceguy is a name you’ve seen often, with cogent comments on a variety of topics. We’ve gratefully accepted his offer to do some preview/analysis of the Booz Allen Commercials Contract study - and he’ll be posting his material soon, ahead of the membership meetings that have been scheduled to examine the study.No matter how the inter-union stuff gets resolved, this negotiation will be a game changer for all of us who do commercial work. We look forward to his posts, and hope lots of you will take part in the meetings and the W&WC work  that follows.

Posted in Commercials Contract | Print | No Comments »

Negotiations Watch: Commercials: Just Like We Told You!

October 5, 2008 by Editor.

AFTRA has just put out the official statement that its National Board has agreed to the tentative deal we told you about yesterday, worked out between the Allens and AFTRA’s top brass, which could lead to a return to joint bargaining, at least for the Commercials contract. 

Blogstage has a bit of the backstory.Below you’ll find the AFTRA statement. 

An interesting question: what will Membership First do now? The Allens pushed hard for this deal, and got AFTRA to agree.But we’re hearing that even after they spoke in favor of it, and even after months of complaining that AFTRA had left Phase One, some of the Membership First supporters on the AFTRA board actually voted against their own deal, under which SAG would get back the Phase One process for the Commercial contract at least. While most we’ve heard from expect the tentative deal to pass even if Membershp First’s support isn’t forthcoming, this one will be interesting to watch. 

AFTRA NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS APPROVES CONDITIONS THAT WOULD PERMIT JOINT BARGAINING WITH SAG ON COMMERCIALS CONTRACTS

LOS ANGELES AND NEW YORK (October 4, 2008)—Meeting by videoconference between New York and Los Angeles, the National Board of Directors of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists—a national union of more than more 70,000 performers, journalists, broadcasters, recording artists, and other talent working in the entertainment and news media—approved a proposed agreement outlining conditions to permit joint bargaining with SAG on the Commercials Contracts under the terms of the Phase One agreement. The specifics of the proposed agreement, which was facilitated by representatives of the AFL-CIO, will remain confidential until acted upon by the SAG National Board in a few weeks.

In her address to the AFTRA National Board, President Roberta Reardon observed, “Our entire world of work is in evolution as digital technology becomes the norm in production. This has an ever-widening impact on all AFTRA workers from sound recordings artists who led the way in the digital revolution, to radio and TV broadcasters who are watching the face of the industry morph on a daily basis, to freelance actors who are watching new platforms develop in webisodes and the spectrum of new media. Each of the five national contracts negotiated this year included new language dealing with the digitization of our industry. These are not the final terms for these new areas of work but they are a secure place from which to grow. And grow we shall.”

The Board of Directors also received a confidential informational report on the findings of the Booz Allen Hamilton Commercials Study that was jointly commissioned and funded by AFTRA, SAG, and the advertising industry’s ANA/AAAA Joint Policy Committee on Broadcast Talent Union Relations (JPC). The report was informational only and no action was taken by the Board. AFTRA and SAG are jointly conducting educational meetings for union members in various cities during October to outline the study’s findings in preparation for upcoming Wages and Working Conditions meetings. AFTRA’s Television and Radio Commercials Contracts are set to expire on March 31, 2009

AFTRA National Executive Director Kim Roberts Hedgpeth reported that AFTRA has collected over $17.3 million in claims for AFTRA members during the fiscal year ending April 30, 2008, up from $14 million in fiscal year 2007. “AFTRA members are faced with the increasing challenges of a technologically changing world and an economy in crisis,” said AFTRA National Executive Director Kim Roberts Hedgpeth. “Given this environment, AFTRA members must develop new strategies to move forward with one voice and collectively exercise the necessary leverage to achieve their legitimate bargaining goals.”

Board members unanimously endorsed the I.AM.PWD Tri-Union initiative, which will officially kick off its campaign at simultaneous press conferences scheduled for Monday, October 6, in New York, Los Angeles and Washington, DC. The I.AM.PWD campaign is a global civil rights campaign seeking equal employment opportunities for artists and professionals with disabilities throughout the entertainment and news media. Founded in 2008 by the AFTRA, AEA, and SAG, the Tri-Union Performers with Disabilities Committee I.AM.PWD is dedicated to ending the discrimination and exclusion of performers and broadcasters with disabilities. I.AM.PWD is uniting labor, industry, community and governmental allies in the fight to combat continuing discrimination against people with disabilities. President Reardon will announce the campaign from the First Amendment Room at the National Press Club where AFTRA First National Vice President and Peabody Award-winning journalist Bob Edwards will host. 

The National Board delegated authority to its Administrative Committee to approve an extension to the AFTRA Interactive Media Agreement—first pioneered by AFTRA in the early 1990s—if satisfactory terms for an extension can be agreed upon by AFTRA and videogame employers. The current AFTRA Interactive Media Agreement is set to expire on December 31, 2008. Board members also approved extensions of the AFTRA Electronic Media Agreement and the AFTRA Infomercial, Video New Release, and Local Station Promo Agreements.

Past AFTRA National President Shelby Scott, who currently serves as Union Chair of the AFTRA Health & Retirement Trustees, reported that the AFTRA Health Pension Fund investments are stable despite recent fluctuations in the market due to the volatile economic climate in the US. “People are anxious about the economy, concerned about their jobs, and wondering if their retirement income will provide enough to live on”, said Scott. “The AFTRA Pension plan is a defined benefit plan—meaning your promised benefits which have been earned to date are safe and will be paid to you. The AFTRA Pension plan was 97% funded at the last valuation. This means that even if no more contributions are made, and even with the downturn in the market, the Plan can and will make good on all benefits promised and accrued to date.”

Janette Gautier, President of the AFTRA/Heller Memorial Foundation, reported that the Heller Foundation awarded $25,000 in scholarships to 13 AFTRA family members and their dependents in August 2008. “Our recipients this year are all wonderful and promising students,” observed Gautier. “It’s a thrill to be able to assist AFTRA members and their children with their college expenses—especially in today’s economy. I urge all AFTRA members to please give generously to the Heller Memorial Foundation so that we may continue helping members and their families achieve their dreams.”  The AFTRA/Heller Memorial Foundation was established to honor AFTRA founder, George Heller, provides scholarships to AFTRA members and their dependents for academic study in any field including broadcast, journalism, and labor relations, or for professional training in the arts in memory of Heller and other past union leaders.

Saturday’s National Board meeting was held in the memory of longtime AFTRA members: New York broadcaster Ike Pappas, actor Paul Newman, voiceover legend Don LaFontaine, and AFTRA Washington/Baltimore legal counsel and 2005 AFTRA Heller Gold Card winner, Tom Powers, all of whom passed away since the Board last met on June 6, 2008.

The AFTRA National Board will next meet in February 2009.

Posted in Commercials Contract, SAG Politics, SAG-AFTRA | Print | No Comments »

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