Production on over a dozen locally produced TV and film projects could come to a screeching halt as the national film crew union and the big studios appear to be at loggerheads over a new contract.
IATSE Local 478 represents the New Orleans and central Gulf South region production crew workers. 478 Union President Phil LoCicero told WWL the hours the film and TV industry is now demanding are unreasonable, and unsafe.
“It’s just pretty rough getting people to work 14, 15, 16 hours a day six and seven days a week, it’s not safe, it’s not healthy, and you don’t get to see your family,” said LoCicero.
98 percent of the 90 percent of workers who voted in a recent IATSE poll said they were willing to go on strike if their demands were not met by studios. Smaller independent projects and shoots like commercials would not be impacted by a work stoppage.
IATSE 478 business agent Cory Parker said another aspect of the dispute is over pay for different types of productions. He said workers are being paid less money, generally, for streaming service shows than network TV or theatrical release film productions under the argument that streaming is an “experimental” or “new media” medium.
“Streaming is their top revenue resource, and for them to believe that they should get a discount for doing the same work as a work on a traditional television series?” said Parker. “It’s the same work.”
The union is also demanding pay increases that keep up with the inflation rate.
Parker said 16 local productions would be impacted by a potential work stoppage, which he contended is a “last resort”. Tens of thousands of workers nationwide would be set to strike if a deal isn’t reached, Parker said several thousand of them are in the film hotbed of New Orleans.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers released a statement saying it is committed to finding a solution but argues their offers of better pay and hours were rejected by the union. The group said the goal is to ensure productions continue while workers’ quality of life and compensation issues are addressed.
Negotiations are set to resume Tuesday. Should a deal not be reached soon hundreds of film sets across the country would likely fall quiet.
