Days after announcing a “tentative agreement” had been reached with key video game companies, US actors union SAG-AFTRA has suspended its nearly year-long strike, instructing members to return to work on productions that fall under its Interactive Media Agreement.
The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, which represents around 160,000 members, announced a strike affecting all work under its Interactive Media Agreement – which includes video game voice acting and other roles – last July. The move came after the union failed to reach an agreement with major video game companies as it renegotiated the terms of the contract, despite more than 18 months of discussions.
While SAG-AFTRA had successfully managed to negotiate on a variety of critical issues – including wages in-line with inflation, and job safety – sufficient protections against the exploitative use of AI remained a key sticking point. Back in March, eight months after the strike began, SAG-AFTRA said proposals from video game companies were still filled with “alarming loopholes that will leave our members vulnerable to AI abuse”.
Earlier this week, however, SAG-AFTRA announced it had finally reached a “tentative agreement” with companies including Activision, Electronic Arts, Epic Games, Insomniac Games, and Warner Bros. that included the “necessary AI guardrails” it had been pushing for. And now, following that news, SAG-AFTRA national executive director & chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland has officially suspended the strike against the companies signatory to the Interactive Media Agreement, as of noon PT today.