SAG, AFTRA Vote to Merge

Members of the two largest unions representing movie and television actors, broadcasters and an array of performers voted overwhelmingly to join forces, officials from the Screen Actors Guild andAmerican Federation of Television and Radio Artists announced Friday.

A total of 86 percent of the 37,500 AFTRA members who cast ballots approved the merger with SAG, while 82 percent of the 55,000 SAG members whovoted were behind the deal.

The merger, which will take effect immediately, needed 60 percent of the vote to pass. The combined union will be known simply as SAG-AFTRA.
 
``The merger of SAG and AFTRA is approved,'' SAG President Ken Howard
bellowed at a news conference that was streamed live on the Internet, drawing
cheers from the union members and officials in attendance.

Some in the audience jokingly began singing, ``We have overcome.''

"This is the day we have decisively chosen a path of unity and strength,'' Howard said. "This is the culmination of years of work.''

Roberta Reardon, president of AFTRA, hailed the work of negotiators from both unions leading to the joining of forces.

"It is the culmination of two years of dedication, perseverance and lots of just plain hard work,'' she said. "... Our collective memberships joined in this historic effort and today we finally stand together, united as one.''

She said the combined union will be better equipped to handle the
evolving nature of the entertainment industry.

``This new union will give us the voice and the presence we will need to
protect and strengthen our existing contracts in current media and to
establish and grow our presence in emerging areas of work so we can bring all
of this under SAG-AFTRA contracts not just here in Los Angeles, not just in New
York, but in every area of this country,'' she said.

``... Finally, finally we are able to speak with one truly unified voice, and I know that many of our friends in the labor movement across the country are watching us today and joining us in celebrating this moment,'' she said.

Discussions about a possible merger of the unions began in April 2010, although formal negotiations did not start until until last summer.

The negotiating teams announced in January that they had reached a proposed merger agreement, which was later approved by the boards of both unions. The issue was then put before the unions' membership.

SAG was the nation's largest labor union representing actors, with more than 125,000 members working in films, television programs, commercials, videogames and in online and new-media programming. AFTRA has 70,000 members,including actors, broadcasters, singers, dancers, announcers, comedians, discjockeys and other performers.

Both unions are headquartered in Los Angeles.

Some members of SAG -- including Martin Sheen, Ed Asner and Valerie
Harper -- filed a lawsuit in federal court trying to block the proposed merger,
claiming the union failed to conduct an in-depth study of the effects a merger
would have on SAG members' pension and health benefits.

On Wednesday, however, U.S. District Judge James Otero rejected the
challenge, declining to issue an injunction halting the union balloting.

``Voting in favor of merger may or may not be in the best interest of
the majority of union members,'' Otero wrote. ``But the decision, for better or
worse, belongs to the members, not to plaintiffs and certainly not to the
court.''

Howard said the combined union will give actors and other performers an
unprecedented voice -- and bargaining power.

``With this overwhelming vote, you have sent a message not only to all
your fellow members, but most important you have sent a message to our
employers,'' he said. ``You have said loud and clear, this is not a fractured
group. No, this is a united group.

 ``This is the largest, most powerful union in the entertainment and
media industries and we are now united in our commitment to improve the wagesand working conditions, residuals and benefits that our members depend on. Weare also committed to helping shape the future of these industries, and withtheir remarkable vote today, our members have established a foundation for usto do just that. In a single day, our future has become bright.''

Taylor Hackford, president of the Directors Guild of America, issued a
statement congratulating SAG and AFTRA for joining forces.

"Both guilds labored for many years to achieve this merger, believing
that a single combined union would be stronger, more unified and more capable
of representing the needs of its members in a changing entertainment
landscape,'' Hackford said. ``The memberships of both guilds have made clear
through their vote today that they agree.''