SAG-AFTRA has begun negotiations with the networks on a successor deal to its master contract covering non-primetime TV work.
The current three-year pact, known as the network code contract, runs out on June 30. The union said Friday that talks have launched in New York City under a news blackout.
The contract is officially called the National Code of Fair Practice for Network Television Broadcasting (Network Television Code) and covers work on ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC.
The deal covers about $200 million in annual earnings for members. The current agreement included increases in contract minimums over a three-year period, including an 8.7% overall wage increase to most program fees, implemented through increases of 2.5% the first year, 3% the second year, and 3% the third year. It also includes a 7.2% overall wage increase for serial (soap opera) performers and a 6.1% hike for work in network news.
Current programs covered by this contract include “Good Morning America,” “The View,” “The Price Is Right,” “The Young and the Restless,” “Saturday Night Live,” and “Dancing With the Stars.”
Negotiators for the union, which reps about 160,000 performers, went four days past the expiration last summer for a new three-year master contract for primetime TV and feature films. The contract, ratified by 76% of those voting, included “significant” improvements in the residuals rate paid to performers for exhibition of their performances on streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon.
