It's a Strike!

💥🪧✊

Jul 20, 2023

This issue is brought to you by The Nanny - strike queen and SAG-AFTRA Prez

1. Watching 👀

All eyes are on the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes! 🪧

The strikes going on right now are a big fuckin deal. The WGA has already been on strike since May 2 and last week SAG-AFTRA joined in to form a 💥Double Strike💥. The last time a Double Strike happened was 63 years ago and at that time the unions were primarily fighting for pensions, healthcare, and residuals. So now little me is going to attempt to explain what’s currently happening between the WGA (writers)/SAG-AFTRA (actors) and the AMPTP (they represent the studios).

This time around, a major bargaining point is residuals. Basically, writers and actors will get paid up front for whatever movie/tv show they’re working on and then they’ll get diminishing payouts every year thereafter that the title replays until a fixed amount is reached that pays out in perpetuity. So for as long as you’re sitting on your couch and rewatching episodes of The X-Files (I’m actually watching for the first time), those artists are getting a little paycheck to compensate them for the work they did 30 years ago that you’re still enjoying today. This is an incredibly cool thing that the unions fought for in the 60s. I work a silly little office job and I don’t get paid for stuff I created that continues to provide value to past employers.

A lot has changed since those contracts that were written in the 60s though, and that includes how streaming affects residuals. Streaming residuals are largely based on subscriber count, which can fluctuate often. Titles are also moved around and pulled from streamers constantly, so this isn’t as consistent as the Friends or Seinfeld reruns that are literally always on TV. Streaming residuals are paid out infrequently too, which means folks are waiting a long time in between checks that often aren’t worth that much anyways. And maybe you’ve noticed that tv seasons are half of what they used to be, sometimes 8-12 episodes instead of 24. Shorter seasons mean shorter employment contracts which means less stable work. Simply put, the technology has changed and the contracts need to catch up.

You’ve probably seen actors posting on social media about how small their residual checks are - Dante Basco (Rufiooooooo) has been posting his “residual check lottery” for years & rates them on how lush of a dinner they’ll buy him; sometimes he’s eating good and sometimes he’s eating Taco Bell (which I would argue is also good tbh). Folks couldn’t believe it when Sydney Sweeney said she couldn’t afford to take a 6 month break & takes brand deals because she “has to”. Have you noticed that literally every celebrity is selling tequila or fragrances or acting in random cell phone commercials?

Now of course not all actors/writers are receiving lil 20 cent residual checks, but the vast majority of union members (~85-90%) are making less than the $26,000ish income required to qualify for health insurance. So when you see big name celebrities on the picket line remember that they’re not necessarily there because they’re not making any money - they’re showing up in solidarity to support the rest of their union members. And that’s the whole point of a union strike - everyone must show solidarity and work together to achieve the common goal for it to work. And nothing brings visibility to a cause like Jane fuckin Fonda on a picket line.

Another issue being discussed is the use of AI. The WGA is demanding that “AI can’t write or rewrite literary material; can’t be used as source material; and [works covered by union contracts] can’t be used to train AI.” ChatGPT has already replaced some human workers in copywriting and social media jobs. And though a human touch is still ultimately needed for editing, it’s needed more on a part time basis. If studios employ AI to write scripts, that drastically cuts the amount of writing jobs available & essentially turns writers into gig workers.

In the actors’ case, CGI is already widely used to create likenesses of actors or environments that aren’t actually there. But now, the studios are proposing that “background performers should be able to be scanned, get paid for one day’s pay, and their company should own that scan, their image, their likeness, and should be able to use it for the rest of eternity in any project they want, with no consent and no compensation,” according to Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA’s chief negotiator. Now it should be noted that the AMPTP disputes this and says they will only use an actor’s likeness in the project for which it was scanned, but the cold remarks from studio execs that are coming out really doesn’t give me much faith in them keeping their word.

SAG is also looking for an actor-specific demand to be met - the regulation of self-tapes. At first, self-taping sounds great; it’s basically working from home! But here’s the thing - not everyone has equal access to quality equipment or even basic filming knowhow. If you’re a casting director and you receive a dark iPhone video from one person and a beautifully lit video with great sound quality from another person, that’s going to color your decision. So naturally, self-tape studios have popped up to help people record nice videos and instead of a casting agency paying to rent a space to hold neutral auditions where everyone is on equal ground, this passes the costs along to the performer to make sure they’re creating quality videos to stand out. This tiktok by a former Power Ranger does a great job of breaking things down.

Actual footage of Mike O'Laskey’s self-tape for Power Rangers - he went all out

I’m obviously not super familiar with this process since I’m not an actor and have never auditioned for anything in my life (other than the 6th grade school play - I was a fish). However, I do feel that the access issue could go either way. I agree that if a casting agency wants to find talent, they should be the ones covering any costs associated with procuring that talent. And holding in person interviews ensures that everyone auditions on neutral ground, which is also good. However, not everyone lives in (often expensive) city hubs where auditions take place, has solid access to a car or public transportation, and is able to take time out of their day to attend auditions when they’re likely working another job. So while self-taping may create some inequities, I do think that requiring in person auditions does the same.

So what does it mean for both of these groups to be on strike? Members of these two unions will not perform or promote work for companies that are part of the AMPTP (Netflix, Disney, SONY, etc). This does not include truly independent works (they can get an interim agreement from SAG to keep working). Influencers and industry-adjacent folks are also being told that accepting any new paid work will count as crossing the picket line and bar them from admittance to either union in the future. Basically, no one should be doing any work that supports the studios represented by the AMPTP. As I said earlier, a strike only works if everyone comes together and agrees to withhold work until an agreement is reached, so it is imperative that the strike rules are followed by anyone who may be involved. We’re already seeing a ripple effect as Comic Con lineups dwindle and release dates for films get pushed back. And while yeah, this sucks, it’s for a good freakin cause and does anybody even want another Avatar movie? Who watches these movies???

So why does any of this matter? Why do unions matter? We, the people of planet Earth, have created all of these silly little systems for ourselves and somehow all we managed to do was allow a few individuals to get filthy stinkin rich while the rest of us are being chastised for not being wealthy and told if we only work harder or stop eating avocado toast we could afford to buy a home. These strikes are recognition that a way of life is not working and must be changed and the fact that an entire group is able to organize and withhold the resources that are making others wealthy is astounding. Imagine if we had unions protecting workers in all industries? I would have been allowed to have lunch and bathroom breaks when working in retail.

I obviously took breaks anyways, suck it 🐊

Obviously these strikes affecting the entertainment industry get a lot of press because we love our celebs, but UPS could also potentially go on strike. Amazon workers went on strike during Prime Week. Teachers are routinely underappreciated and have gone on strike. And the Starbucks Union is always in the news for the appalling treatment they’ve been receiving. I do feel like we’ve been seeing an uptick in strikes and protests asking for basic ass human rights and I hope this trend continues. If anything, I hope that seeing groups stand up for their rights and succeed gives others the courage to do the same for themselves because we all deserve money and homes and little treats at the end of a long day.

This article and this tiktok lists lots of ways to support both unions while they’re on strike & you can also join a SAG or WGA picket! And if you enjoy reading this sort of stuff, I recommend checking out the BOSS BARISTA newsletter because she writes about unions & the service industry (often through the lens of coffee).

2. What’s Good 😎

This isn’t good, but it’s good to know - the MTA approved increasing the subway/bus price from $2.75 to $2.90 starting Aug 20. I’ll pad this with some good news though - around September the MTA is rolling out a fare-free pilot on five bus routes (Bx18A/B, B60, M116, Q4 (Local & Limited), and S46/S96). I guess no one told them we sneak in the back doors for free already…
I’m happy to report that egg cream favorite S&P Lunch is offering a 20% discount to all SAG-AFTRA, WGA, IATSE, and affected Teamster Members.
Calling all Bushwick girlies - the Friends of Irving Square Park are hosting a cleanup on July 29. Foxtails have especially taken over the park and are affecting all of our furry friends in the area.
- Cool tip - If you search for “Friends of + Park Name” you’ll likely find a community group with a relationship with the NYC Parks department that you can volunteer with
The Street Vendor Project is hiring! I’ve worked with this amazingly small and mighty group before and the work they’re doing to support NY’s street vendors is truly sensational.
In fact, I first met the SVP when I attended a Righteous Eats event and Jaeki is hosting another one this Saturday July 22. Head to Purple Dough to try some delicious Oishii berries and some sweets made with them. This place has been on my to try list for a while now!
Chinatown Night Market will be this Sunday July 23. There will be food vendors, performers, and lots of fun activities at Forsyth Plaza.
Another newsletter I love, Coolstuff NYC, is hosting a popup market with UrFancyShop in Bushwick. There will be drinks, treats, illustrations, ceramics, and more!
If air conditioning wasn’t a good enough reason to go to the library, you can now see the Book of Hov exhibit that explores Jay-Z’s impact on hip-hop at the Brooklyn Central Library near Grand Army Plaza.
And finally, if you love grabbing whatever fruits or veggies are on sale at the grocery, but don’t know what to do with them, I’ve got a solution! From now until Aug. 15, you can text any fruit or vegetable emoji to 361-COOK-NYT (361-266-5698) to receive a free recipe that features that ingredient. They sent me a recipe for a strawberry spoon cake that looks delicious 🍓
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