Los Angeles - The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), the other large Hollywood performers' union aside from the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), announced on Wednesday that its members have ratified its previously announced labor agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) by a 62.4% margin. The new three-year deal includes a 10% increase in minimum payments, and creates new residuals for paid Internet downloads, ad-supported streaming and other new media usage.

The Screen Actors Guild, which lobbied heavily asking its members who also belong to AFTRA to vote down the contract proposal, is set to deliver its response to what the AMPTP called its last contract offer to its Guild on Thursday.

More than 4,500 of the estimated 40,000 SAG members who also belong to AFTRA signed a "solidarity statement," saying they would vote against the AFTRA contract.

"Clearly many Screen Actors Guild members responded to our education and outreach campaign and voted against the inadequate AFTRA agreement," said SAG national president Alan Rosenberg.

"We will continue to address the issues of importance to actors that AFTRA left on the table and we remain committed to achieving a fair contract for SAG actors."

It's not clear what influence the outcome of the AFTRA vote will have on the AMPTP in its negotiations with SAG, or whether SAG will have the necessary support of 75% of its members to lodge an actors' strike, should the union decide to go that route.

Related Links:
http://www.aftra.com/aftra/aftra.htm

http://www.sag.org/press-releases-63

http://www.variety.com/VR1117988635.html

http://snipurl.com/2vpdh (Hollywood Reporter)