Hollywood video game actors vote to strike if talks fail

‘It’s time for the video game companies to stop playing games and get serious’

Video game voice actors and motion capture performers have voted overwhelmingly to authorise a strike if negotiations on a new labour contract fall through.

At least 98.32 per cent voted in favour of having a strike, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) union said, setting the stage for another possible work stoppage in Hollywood. The union is scheduled to begin contract talks with video game companies on Tuesday.

“It’s time for the video game companies to stop playing games and get serious about reaching an agreement on this contract,” said SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher.

“The result of this vote shows our membership understands the existential nature of these negotiations, and that the time is now for these companies – which are making billions of dollars and paying their CEOs lavishly – to give our performers an agreement that keeps performing in video games as a viable career.”

SAG-AFTRA is the same union representing film and television actors who went on strike in July after a separate one by the Writers Guild of America (WGA), putting Hollywood in the midst of two simultaneous work stoppages for the first time in 63 years.

In May, roughly 11,500 WGA members walked off the job. The writers’ union reached a preliminary labour agreement with major studios on Sunday.

The SAG-AFTRA agreement covering video game performers expired last November and has been extended on a monthly basis as the union negotiated with major video game companies.

The most pressing issues for SAG-AFTRA are higher pay, medical treatment, breaks for motion capture performers and protection against artificial intelligence (AI).

These worries echo those brought by Hollywood writers and SAG-AFTRA members under a different contract.

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“After five rounds of bargaining, it has become abundantly clear that the video game companies aren’t willing to meaningfully engage on the critical issues: compensation undercut by inflation, unregulated use of AI and safety,” said SAG-AFTRA national executive director and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland in a statement.

“I remain hopeful that we will be able to reach an agreement that meets members’ needs, but our members are done being exploited, and if these corporations aren’t willing to offer a fair deal, our next stop will be the picket lines.”

“Between the exploitative uses of AI and lagging wages, those who work in video games are facing many of the same issues as those who work in film and television,” said chief contracts officer Ray Rodriguez.

“This strike authorization makes an emphatic statement that we must reach an agreement that will fairly compensate these talented performers, provide common-sense safety measures, and allow them to work with dignity. Our members’ livelihoods depend on it.”

Negotiations have been ongoing for nearly a year with several groups, including Disney Character Voices Inc, Electronic Arts Productions Inc and WB Games Inc.

“We will continue to negotiate in good faith to reach an agreement that reflects the important contributions of SAG-AFTRA-represented performers in video games,” a spokesperson for Interactive Media Agreement (IMA) told the Hollywood Reporter in response to the strike authorisation vote.

All performers engaged in an interactive programme or video game are covered by the IMA agreement.

“We have reached tentative agreements on over half of the proposals and are optimistic we can find a resolution at the bargaining table.”

Additional reporting by agencies