Netflix, SAG-AFTRA Reach Tentative New Deal

Netflix Studios and SAG-AFTRA have reached a preliminary agreement on a new deal. diversity has confirmed.

The deal will be a follow-up to the three-year deal the streamer and union signed in 2019, which was approved by the national board of SAG-AFTRA without ratification by union members. Prior to the deal, Netflix signed agreements with the union on a production basis, using the union’s codified agreement and television agreements as a template.

The 2019 deal was originally scheduled to expire on June 30, but was extended to July 31 when Netflix and SAG-AFTRA agreed to extend negotiations. The Netflix-SAG-AFTRA deal will be reviewed at the next meeting of the SAG-AFTRA national board, scheduled for next Monday. According to SAG-AFTRA, details of what the successor contract will look like will only be published after the board has checked it.

The 2019 agreement differed from the regular agreements SAG-AFTRA signed with major companies in several key aspects, such as membership options and exclusivity. The agreement also contained several anti-sexual harassment provisions enacted by SAG-AFTRA in response to Harvey Weinstein’s sexual harassment scandal, including bans on auditions in private residences and hotel rooms. With the Netflix agreement of 2019, minimum wage and turnaround provisions applied to all Netflix productions.

“We are always striving to adapt and grow in the changing environment of our industry,” said then-SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris in a statement in 2019. “This landmark agreement speaks to that. Netflix recognizes the value of working with SAG-AFTRA members and the contributions we make to this global industry. I am pleased that this agreement has met longstanding membership goals, particularly recognition of work on performance measurement and other key improvements that members want and deserve.”