With four days left on their contracts, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers has made a “last, best, final” offer to the union representing 6,500 drivers, location managers and animal handlers.
The American Teamsters and Hollywood’s core craft unions have been in talks for six weeks. The unions are seeking a significant wage increase, restrictions on subcontracting, and protections from self-driving trucks.
The Truck Drivers Union Local 399 informed members in a 1:30 a.m. Saturday update that the final offer made by the Truck Drivers Union “did not meet the approval of the negotiating committee.” The union said it submitted a counteroffer late in the day and is awaiting a response.
“We believe our response to the producers’ package is reasonable and will be a deal that brings closure,” Lindsay Dougherty, secretary-treasurer of the 399th Truckers Union, said in a statement.
The “last, best, final” offer is meant to signal to the union that management has gone as far as it can and that it’s time to end things. The SAG and broadcasters continued to bargain for a few days after receiving the “last, best, final” offer during their strike last November, and managed to win some changes to the AI language.
The Truck Drivers Association is holding a membership meeting on Sunday and is expected to issue an update at that time. The union is negotiating alongside unions for electricians, plasterers, plumbers and laborers. Together, they represent 8,000 workers.
The tensions come a week after the International Alliance of Stage Employees overwhelmingly ratified its contract. The IATSE contract provides for wage increases of 7%, 4% and 3.5% — the same terms that the Screen Actors Guild and the Theater Workers Association won after striking last fall. The Teamsters union has tried to improve on the 7% increase in the first year, while the theater workers union has sought to hold the line.
The union has been saying for weeks that the two sides are “far apart.” In a July 20 update, the union said the fifth week of talks was the first “we’ve seen employers take this process seriously and engage in meaningful discussions.”
Other Hollywood unions expressed solidarity with the truckers in a joint statement released Monday.
“With the July 31 deadline for their contracts fast approaching, time is running out for the AMPTP to address the unique needs of the different classifications within these unions,” said the unions, including the Directors Guild of America, Screen Actors Guild, Transport Workers Guild of America, Writers Guild of America, and American Federation of Musicians. “Our unions and associations stand strongly and unitedly behind truck drivers and Hollywood Basic Crafts until they receive the compensation and working conditions they deserve.”
The truckers' union members had not gone on strike since a three-week lockout in October 1988. Negotiations continued until August 2007, when the two sides reached an agreement 90 minutes after the contract expired.
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) announced a strike on Thursday against major video game publishers, citing a dispute over artificial intelligence.
