The SAG-AFTRA national board has ratified the union’s recently negotiated industrial films contract covering work in corporate and educational films and non-broadcast recorded material.
The agreement combines the legacy SAG and AFTRA contracts as a result of the merger in March 2012 that created a union of about 160,000 members. The legacy contracts were jointly negotiated in 2011 and are set to expire April 30.
The deal covers public relations, sales promotion and training films made for initial use to the general public, schools, conventions, seminars, museums, in retail stores and for Internet use. It also covers audio-only content, such as telephone messages and audio used in consumer products.
The 80-member board voted 94.69% percent in favor of ratification on Sunday, 11 days after it reached a tentative agreement with producers.
The new agreement includes a 3% increase immediately in minimum compensation and a 3% increase on Nov. 1, 2016. The agreement also includes a 0.5% increase to the employer contribution rate to the Health & Retirement Funds on the first day of the new contract, along with a 3% hike in the first year.
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SAG-AFTRA also achieved gains for background actors in salary and wardrobe fees.
During the meeting, secretary-treasurer Amy Aquino and chief financial officer Arianna Ozzanto reported that expected revenue and expenses are tracking closely to budget.
The board approved the budget for the fiscal year ending April 30,2016 without objection. The union said that the anticipated operating result for 2016 is also expected to yield a budget surplus.
The national board also unanimously voted to increase the threshold for the Ultra Low Budget Agreement by 25% from $200,000 to $250,000 and increase the threshold of the Modified Low Budget Agreement by 12% from $625,000 to $700,000.
