TORONTO (Hollywood Reporter) - A strike threat looms over U.S. film and TV shoots in Canada after local actors said Thursday they could form picket lines to fend off North American producers' demands for steep pay cuts.þþNegotiations on a new Independent Production Agreement between ACTRA, representing 21,000 domestic performers, and Canadian and U.S. producers broke off Wednesday, with workers urging that a mediator help end an apparent impasse.þþStephen Waddell, ACTRA's national executive director, said the call for formal conciliation was a necessary step before he could legally poll his membership on a possible strike.þþ``It starts the clock,'' Waddell said. ``Our contract expires on December 31, and you need conciliation to terminate the contract.''þþACTRA (the Alliance of Canadian Cinema Television and Radio Artists) also has promised labor peace for producers shooting north of the border if they sign a ``continuation letter'' and agree to pay unionized actors higher minimum daily rates in line with current demands at the bargaining table.þþProducers who sign the safe harbor document will be able to continue shooting in Canada after December 31 in the event of a strike or lockout.þþA possible strike would not affect British Columbia, where producers have a separate collective agreement with the Union of British Columbia Performers.þþTalks on a new production pact got off to a rocky start Monday when actors were asked to take pay cuts of 10%-25% for minimum daily rates paid on film and TV productions shot here.þþThe North American producers' opening gambit also included proposed reductions in overtime rates, turnaround times and producer contributions to insurance and retirement accounts, according to ACTRA.þþWaddell, whose members sought a 15% raise in minimum rates over three years for homegrown shoots and a 40% jump over five years for U.S. productions in Canada, said they will never accept a rollback agreement. He urged the North American producers to take their ``wretched'' demands for workplace pay and conditions off the table before negotiations could resume.þþBut negotiators for the producers urged ACTRA to regroup and resume negotiations, rather than lay the ground for a possible strike by formally calling for labor mediation.þþ``I don't see how a mediator here will solve the problem,'' said lead negotiator John Barrack, national vp of industrial relations at the Canadian Film and Television Production Assn.ACTRA's Waddell said U.S. producers, including studio representatives from Universal, Sony, Warner Bros. and Disney, have threatened to move planned movie shoots to Vancouver or elsewhere internationally, if necessary, to back their wage and workplace demands.þþTypically, studios avoid shooting where a strike or lockout is possible to avoid having to duplicate locations elsewhere in the event of disruption.þþ
Source: NY Times
