IATSE Strike-Authorization Vote Will Begin Next Week

David Robb and Dominic Patten
·2 min read

IATSE’s strike-authorization vote will be getting underway soon. Grips Local 80 said that it will hold its vote from October 1-3, and Prop Local 44 told its members at a virtual town hall Wednesday night that they’d be be voting on the same dates. IATSE has said that all 13 West Coast studio locals will hold their secret ballot votes “simultaneously.”

“The purpose of this vote is to give the IA president and negotiating committee the authority to call a strike if they determine that is the only way to get the producers back to the negotiating table,” Local 80 told its members. “You will be receiving a personal communication from the Local in the next few days on the voting procedures and with detailed instructions how to cast your ballot. Remember, by saying yes to authorizing a strike, that does not mean that a strike will be called. That depends on how the producers respond to our continued desire to negotiate.”

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Under IATSE’s electoral college-style authorization process, for any local to pass a strike authorization, at least 75% of those voting must vote “yes” in support of it. As with the Basic Agreement contract ratification process, a local’s delegate votes will reflect the members’ votes. A local with 1,000 votes returned, for instance, would need 750 “yes” votes in order to support the strike authorization. If the local does not reach that threshold, all of that local’s delegate votes would be counted as “no.” A simple majority of the delegate votes in the 13-local bargaining unit determines the outcome.

Negotiations with the AMPTP for a new film and TV contract broke off on Monday. IATSE president Matthew Loeb has said that “we are united in demanding more humane working conditions across the industry, including reasonable rest during and between workdays and on the weekend, equitable pay on streaming productions, and a livable wage floor.”

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers said that it “put forth a deal-closing comprehensive proposal that meaningfully addresses the IATSE’s key bargaining issues,” and that “in choosing to leave the bargaining table to seek a strike authorization vote, the IATSE leadership walked away from a generous comprehensive package.”

This morning, IATSE stickers began showing up on members’ desks and work stations at productions all over L.A. and New York City, and many people on sets are wearing them.

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