1/14 Daily Variety
January 14, 2005
Casting crew strike brews
Teamsters warn studios, networks
By DAVE MCNARY
The odds of a strike by casting directors and associates has risen several notches with a strong pledge of support from a top official of the Teamsters union.
James P. Hoffa, general president of the Intl. Brotherhood of Teamsters, has warned studios and networks that his union will provide backing for a possible work stoppage by about 500 casting directors and associates in Hollywood and New York if they are not allowed to unionize. And he offered to intervene in the negotiations.
“The purpose of this letter is to advise you that the Intl. Union is in full support of this effort and will provide whatever assistance is necessary to accomplish the goal of achieving a fair and equitable bargaining agreement for these deserving employees,” Hoffa wrote in a letter sent Tuesday to Nick Counter, president of the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers.
Hoffa’s letter amps up the pressure on studios and nets, which are also facing the prospect of a work stoppage by actors this summer. SAG and AFTRA walked away from the bargaining table without a deal on Sunday and, although the actors’ union film-TV contract doesn’t expire until June 30, no new talks have been set.
Should a SAG-AFTRA deal not emerge in the next few weeks, the uncertainty of an unresolved contract will trigger more production in the coming weeks to withstand a work stoppage this summer.
The Teamsters have been attempting to unionize the casting directors and associates — one of the most significant non-union groups of employees in Hollywood — for two years. Teamsters Local 399 has indicated in recent months that a work stoppage will follow if the AMPTP doesn’t grant recognition to the Teamsters as a bargaining unit for the casting directors and associates.
Counter warned the Teamsters last month of upcoming legal challenges if it persists in planning for a strike, asserting that most casting directors are independent contractors rather than employees. He said that any attempt to combine in an effort to affect the prices paid for their services is unlawful under federal antitrust laws and a wide variety of state laws.
Hoffa disputed Counter’s contentions in his letter.
“The Intl. Union respectfully disagrees with your assessment and will support these employees in their attempt to gain recognition and a contract,” Hoffa said.
Hoffa also said he was puzzled by Counter’s stance.
“Apparently the producers fail to understand that the cost of potential litigation or even a job action would far exceed what it would take to secure an agreement,” he said.
Reps for the AMPTP were not available for comment Tuesday.
The Teamsters have secured support for the organizing initiative from other Hollywood unions, including SAG, WGA, DGA and AFTRA. Local 399 also represents 4,100 studio drivers, location managers and location scouts.
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Jan. 12, 2005
Teamsters ready to back casters
By Roger Armbrust and Jesse Hiestand
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters said Tuesday that it is considering Jan. 19 or Jan. 20 to formally declare support for casting directors, who might strike film and television productions in the United States if they are not allowed to organize as a union.
Steve Dayan, a business agent with the Teamsters’ Local 399 in Los Angeles, said he was attempting to set a date when the Teamsters leadership, primarily general president James P. Hoffa, would be available to take part in the press confab. At press time Tuesday, Hoffa hadn’t yet confirmed whether he could attend.
The backing by the top Teamsters brass would assure that Teamster truck drivers would honor a casters’ strike, virtually shutting down productions.
The Teamsters’ resolve recently was conveyed in a letter from Hoffa to Nick Counter, president of the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers. AMPTP has refused to recognize the casters as a potential union, setting the stage for the possible strike.
“I recognize that the AMPTP takes the position that these employees are independent contractors and entrepreneurs who are ineligible to organize,” Hoffa said in his Jan. 5 letter to Counter. “The International Union respectfully disagrees with your assessment and will support these employees in their attempt to gain recognition and a contract.
“I am somewhat puzzled at the producers’ position that no recognition will be forthcoming,” the letter continued. “Apparently the producers fail to understand that the cost of potential litigation or even a job action would far exceed what it would take to secure an agreement.”
The Teamsters’ planned news conference will most likely take place on the West Coast, Dayan said, with East Coast casters and other union leaders also in attendance. The nation’s major actors unions - SAG, AFTRA and Actors’ Equity Assn. - all have endorsed the casting directors’ efforts to organize and affiliate with the 1.4 million-member Teamsters union. Dayan said he would be contacting the leadership - particularly of SAG and AFTRA, who are strongly represented by West Coast memberships - to invite them to attend the press gathering.
Casting directors spent most of last year consulting with the Teamsters on the possibility of affiliation. In mid-December, more than 400 casters met in both New York and Los Angeles, “overwhelmingly” voting to align with the Teamsters, Dayan said.
Earlier in 2004, the casting directors, communicating through the Teamsters, had asked the AMPTP to recognize them as a union. The AMPTP refused, arguing that the casters were independent contractors. By late December, the AMPTP had told the Teamsters to be prepared to go to court should the casters move to strike. The producers opined that planning a strike violates both federal antitrust and state unfair-competition laws.
The threats obviously haven’t deterred the Teamsters and casters. Leo Reed, secretary-treasurer of the Teamster’s L.A. local, responded to the threats by writing the AMPTP, stressing the casters’ need for “reasonable wages, benefits, hours and working conditions.” During the past year, the casters have emphasized the need for health-care benefits, which they don’t have.
Posted by Clint at January 27, 2005 11:58 PM