Los Angeles, (Sept. 30, 2008)  --  The Screen Actors Guild released the following statement from SAG National executive director and chief negotiator Doug Allen in response to the AMPTP’s Sept. 29, 2008 statement: “We are disappointed to hear that the employers and their AMPTP representatives are refusing to engage in the process necessary to complete a deal. We do not believe that their rejection of our reasonable request  is in the best interests of our members or the industry.  Our National Negotiating Committee will be meeting later this week to consider management’s response.”

The AMPTP tonight issued its response to today's letter from SAG's Alan Rosenberg & Doug Allen asking Peter Chernin, Bob Iger, and Nick Counter to restart formal negotiations. Disappointing, but not surprising. Obviously, no one has bothered to tell Counter that his Big Media bosses keep telling Wall Street their business isn't being hurt by the economic downturn, and, if anything, New Media revenues are through the roof. Yet Counter still tries to plead poverty to SAG. Hey Nick, you want cheese with that whine?

September 29, 2008

Dear Alan and Doug:

This is in response to your letter dated September 29, 2008 to Peter Chernin, Robert Iger and me.  Your letter indicates that the Screen Actors Guild is not prepared to change its position on any of the threshold issues in our negotiations.  The Guild's position remains unchanged since we last met on July 16, 2008.  Further, in addition to new media, there are a number of significant issues which, in and of themselves, prevent the parties from reaching agreement.

Our Final Offer to the Screen Actors Guild is comparable to our agreements with the Directors Guild of America, the Writers Guild of America and AFTRA.  Our Final Offer memorializes a set of compromises, including in the area of new media, worked out with other Guilds and Unions and particularly addresses actor specific issues raised during the Screen Actors Guild negotiations.

We do not believe that it would be productive to resume negotiations at this time given SAG's continued insistence on terms which the Companies have repeatedly rejected.

In light of the unprecedented economic difficulties facing our industry and the nation, the Companies continue to hope that the Guild's leadership will recognize the five major labor agreements that have already been concluded this year and will accept our Final Offer while it remains on the table.

We want to reemphasize that we value greatly our industry's talent - the directors, writers, actors, and below-the-line people who create entertainment products for audiences around the world - and hope that our Final Offer can serve as the basis of an agreement.

Sincerely,
J. Nicholas Counter III

UPDATE: AMPTP Rejects Today's SAG Overture

It was released to the SAG board today and sent to News Corp (Fox) No. 2 Peter Chernin, Walt Disney Co CEO Bob Iger and the Big Media cartel's negotiating clique AMPTP president Nick Counter. Both Chernin and Iger took personal roles in settling the writers strike. Here's the letter:

Dear Gentlemen:

We believe it is clear that our members would fail to ratify your proposal of June 30, 2008.  It would serve no productive purpose, therefore, to send our membership a proposal that SAG’s National Negotiating Committee and National Board have rejected and that our membership would not ratify.

It is our fervent hope that this news will encourage you and your colleagues to reengage in formal bargaining, with the exchange of proposals and compromise by both sides necessary to reach an agreement.

Our discussions with you and many of your colleagues since formal talks ended have educated both of our teams about our respective priorities and flexibilities.  As we have said to SAG members members, if we can reach agreement on three threshold issues, we believe we can finish these negotiations.  One issue you brought to the table: force majeure protection for actors held by contract to a suspended production.  Two issues we have identified as core principles: coverage for all new media productions (including those below $15,000/minute) and residuals for made-for new media productions re-used on new media.  Other issues divide us, certainly, but we believe those other issues can be successfully addressed once we have resolved these three threshold issues.  We have approached these contract negotiations reasonably and with a realistic and informed view of the state of the industry.

We are prepared to meet formally and continuously until we reach agreement.  We owe it to our constituencies and the thousands of others in this industry that depend on a productive, stable and uninterrupted relationship between Screen Actors Guild and the networks and studios.

The alternative to reaching an agreement as soon as possible is unnecessary and destructive uncertainty.  If your intransigence continues, however, our choices become harder and fewer.  We would prefer the more complicated and productive choices that compromise will make necessary.  But we can’t make those choices that lead to agreement working alone.

What do you say; when can our committees meet face-to-face?"

Sincerely,
Alan Rosenberg Doug Allen
National

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