* * The beginning of the end of the Screen Actors Guild.

--
Mark this date down on your calendar for it will mark the beginning of the end for our beloved union the great Screen Actors guild. The union formed by those brave members, who stood up to powerful studios in the 1930’s will be no more.

Friday, February 8th under a recommendation of SAG NED Doug Allen, it appears that the Hollywood board is going to back down to AFTRA’s Kim Hedgpeth, the USAN New York and branch board members, and revert to business as usual allowing AFTRA to have a 50/50 say in SAG’s contracts, even though they only have 3 Primetime Network shows, and no feature films.

It seems that NED Allen and President Rosenberg and many on the Hollywood board are convinced that should SAG institute total global rule one, the3 feeling of some was that young SAG members would be willing to give up their SAG membership in order to work under inferior AFTRA contracts with their residual giveaways.

The Ol’ Dog says, “Bullsh*it! This is the same lack of confidence in our members that we heard from Melissa Gilbert and her gang when they professed that members would chose agents over the guild.

Look, when our leaders work out of fear, instead of confidence in SAG’s membership, we are done. The next thing they will be telling us is that we can’t go on strike because our membership will go fi-core, and cross picket lines.

The only thing the Ol’ Dog is asking is that during the plenary tomorrow that when the vote is taken that it is on the record. Personally, I think the membership has a right to know who let them down, by backing down, to those who are out to destroy our great guild..

Now, Membership First has always professed that they champion transparency. At the plenary, they can prove that by having the vote on the record so that members can decide who stood up for them and who caved in to AFTRA.

Know, this. If SAG backs down to AFTRA, those who are trying to bring down our great guild will smell blood, and the feeding frenzy will begin.

Does anyone think that the AMPTP, AFTRA, or the ATA will take SAG seriously after they find out that AFTRA has forced us to back down.

A note to SAG NED Doug Allen, President Rosenberg, and SAG’s Hollywood membership, don’t bluff unless you are willing to back up that bluff with definitive action.

This story from Varieties Dave McNary, with a couple of comments from the Ol’ Dog.

AFTRA'S top exec has told SAG that she's still hoping that the performers' unions don't have to get a divorce.

Just a note. There has never been a marriage, so there cannot be a divorce. Phase One has been a twenty-seven year engagement. Phase two, which never happened would have been a marriage.

AFTRA national exec director Kim Roberts Hedgpeth, in a letter sent Friday to SAG counterpart Doug Allen, said discussions earlier in the week between union officials led her to assert that AFTRA would still be willing to negotiate with SAG rather going it alone.

Yes but she made it perfectly clear that it would only be under AFTRA’s terms. i.e. The original agreement.

Hedgpeth had declared on Feb. 3 that AFTRA was planning to start a separate negotiation on primetime TV with the AMPTP in early March -- asserting that SAG had already ended the "Phase One" agreement on joint negotiations that's been in effect since 1981. She had said that SAG's efforts to seek a member referendum to end Phase One were irrelevant since SAG had already abrogated the 27-year-old pact by instituting block voting for its negotiating committee members.

The Ol’ Dog has read the letter and, in my humble opinion there was nothing conciliatory in the letter. In fact, in a pseudo polite way, she rubbed NED Doug Allen’s nose in it.

And she makes it clear that, “Additionally, should SAG return to Phase One Agreement, AFTRA understands that each of the aforementioned areas would be included with the terms of Phase One and we would operate on that basis.”

You get the idea who’s calling the shots. It’s not Doug Allen or SAG’s board, its AFTRA’s Kim Hedgpeth. What a humiliating day for the Great Screen Actors Guild.

"AFTRA is committed to Phase One as it was originally conceived and practiced since 1981," she wrote to Allen. "AFTRA wants to support SAG in its potential return to Phase One."

Translation: AFTRA, who only has three Primetime shows at stake, will with its USAN New York and branch AFTRA operatives, who have demonstrated there willingness to offer inferior contracts with residual giveaways to producers, decide what contracts SAG members get.

She also said that it's her understanding that both unions would be ready to launch talks with the AMPTP on the primetime part of the contract by March 31. The contract expires June 30; AFTRA doesn't have coverage in the film part of the contract.

Hedgpeth also said in the letter that SAG would have to agree to continue to operate as it has previously in joint negotiations, with the unions splitting the representation on bargaining committees.

So, SAG would have to agree…you get the feeling that hence forth SAG will be under the thumb of AFTRA.

In response, SAG said, ""We communicated with AFTRA today, but have no comment on the substance of our correspondence."

Can you blame them for having no commetn. Let’s face it, folks, the real force in our union is no longer Doug Allen, but Kim Hedgpeth. It is apparent Doug isn’t telling AFTRA's Hedgpeth what to do, but compliantly accepting her dictates.

SAG's scheduled an emergency national board meeting for Saturday to deal with its relationship with AFTRA.

Unless, something changes between now and then, it’s a done deal. Hopefully, there will be an ample amount of humble pie served for attendees of the plenary. And, put plenty of it on ice, because, SAG will be eating plenty more in the months to come when they deal with the AMPTP and the ATA. Oh, yeah, and don't be surprised if qualifed voting raises it ugly head soon, as NED Allen stated that he will meet with the group that wants to take away your vote.

Should AFTRA succeed at signing a primetime deal before SAG does, it would diminish SAG's leverage from going on strike after its current contract expires on June 30 -- since producers could simply sign an AFTRA deal if SAG did go on strike.

Only, if SAG let them! SAG could enforce Total Global Rule One to stop them dead in their tracks. Oh, no wait we couldn’t do that because our members would scurry over to AFTRA to work for cut-rate minimums and residual giveaways.

SAG has also scheduled a referendum asking members to approve ending Phase One, with ballots to be sent out Feb. 22 and returned by March 14.

Forget it! That ain’t gonna happen. God forbid, that members actually had their voices heard. Look, as long as we are now being dictated too by Kim and her voiceover/broadcaster leadership, we might as well, do things the AFTRA way, and ignore the members. Hey, we don’t need no stinkin’ referendums!

SAG's beef with AFTRA stems from the latter's refusal to reduce its 50-50 participation on the negotiating committees for film-TV and on commercials -- despite accounting for less than 10% of the earnings. SAG's complained that AFTRA has been offering producers cheaper contracts in basic cable while AFTRA has accused SAG leaders of being radical and inflexible, asserting that its "one size fits all" approach to contracts results in fewer union jobs.

SAG has about 120,000 members while AFTRA has 70,000; about 40,000 thesps are dual cardholders.

Yeah, they have been offering cheaper contracts, but we’ve shown them they can’t get away with screwing our members, right? Ah, ah, actually no…

Like I said, mark the date down, fellow SAG members. Febuary 9th, a Day that will live in SAG infamy, ah, that is, as long as there is a SAG.

Hey, for those Watchdog Haters, there is good news, this will most likely be one of my last posts. Speaking of posts. It's post time.

SAG willing to talk to AFTRA
Guild leaders warn against contract negligence

By DAVE MCNARY

SAG's leaders have told AFTRA that they're still willing to negotiate jointly -- but only if AFTRA promises it won't undercut contracts.

SAG president Alan Rosenberg and national exec director Doug Allen have written to their AFTRA counterparts in response to AFTRA's recent moves to negotiate a primetime TV agreement on its own with the AMPTP and networks. AFTRA's said it would be ready to do so as early as March -- potentially diminishing SAG's leverage at its own subsequent negotiations, which have not yet been set.

In a letter sent Friday to AFTRA prexy Roberta Reardon and national exec director Kim Roberts Hedgpeth, the SAG leaders said dual cardholders have been seeking answers as to whether the unions will be seeking similar terms and whether either union will offer lesser terms once those deals are concluded. Rosenberg and Allen said they're still willing to negotiate jointly with AFTRA.

"We further pledge that SAG will not modify the resulting contract for signatories without AFTRA's approval," they added. "Will AFTRA make the same pledge: to negotiate together with SAG from one package of proposals and together reach agreement with the AMPTP and further, that AFTRA will not modify the resulting contract for signatories at lesser terms without Screen Actors Guild approval?"

AFTRA reps were not immediately available to respond today, while SAG holds an emergency national board meeting to deal with its relationship with AFTRA.

Hedgpeth told SAG on Friday that she's still hoping that the performers' unions don't have to get a divorce. She said discussions earlier in the week between union officials led her to assert that AFTRA would still be willing to negotiate with SAG rather going it alone.

But in her Friday letter, she struck a more conciliatory tone.

"AFTRA is committed to Phase One as it was originally conceived and practiced since 1981," she wrote to Allen. "AFTRA wants to support SAG in its potential return to Phase One."

Hedgpeth also said in the letter that SAG would have to agree to continue to operate as it has previously in joint negotiations, with the unions splitting the representation on bargaining committees.

SAG had no comment about the emergency national board meeting today to deal with its relationship with AFTRA. Speculation's emerged that SAG may opt to join up with AFTRA at the bargaining table and ditch a referendum asking members to approve ending Phase One, with ballots to be sent out Feb. 22 and returned by March 14.

Since AFTRA covers only a handful of primetime shows, it would presumably have more leverage if it negotiates jointly with SAG. It's also possible that the AFL-CIO's recent move to grant AFTRA a direct charter could signal that the AFL-CIO could step in to mediate the long-running jurisdictional dispute.

SAG has about 120,000 members while AFTRA has 70,000; about 40,000 thesps are dual cardholders.

Read the full article at:
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117980593.html

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Update Variety article at bottom of this post.