SAG-AFTRA announced on Monday evening that its members have overwhelmingly approved its strike authorization vote, giving the actors guild greater leverage as it begins labor contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers on June 7.
Approximately 47% of SAG-AFTRA’s membership participated, with over 63,000 members voting in favor of strike authorization. The results mirror those of the strike authorization vote held by the Writers Guild of America in April, where over 9,200 members voted in favor of the strike authorization for a vote percentage of 97.9%.
This result now means that SAG-AFTRA’s leadership, helmed by President Fran Drescher and National Executive Director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, have approval from its members to order a strike after the current labor contract with the AMPTP expires on June 30 if the leaders decide that they are not close to reaching a deal.