SAG-AFTRA votes for strike against video game makers on September 26, 2023 at 5:07 pm Business News | The Hill

SAG-AFTRA, a union representing many Hollywood actors, says its members have voted in favor of launching a strike against video game companies, a move that comes amid the group’s broader strike against film and TV studios.

In a statement on Tuesday, the union said that about 98 percent of its members voted in favor of authorizing a strike against major video game firms, including Activision, Take 2 Productions Inc., Electronic Arts Productions Inc. and Epic Game. 

The union said that the companies refused to meet on its members’ grievances, which includes an increase on salary wages, protections around exploitative uses of artificial intelligence and basic safety precautions.  

“It’s time for the video game companies to stop playing games and get serious about reaching an agreement on this contract,” SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher, the star of 1990s hit sitcom “The Nanny,” said in a statement. 

“The result of this vote shows our membership understands the existential nature of these negotiations, and that the time is now for these companies — which are making billions of dollars and paying their CEOs lavishly — to give our performers an agreement that keeps performing in video games as a viable career.”

SAG-AFTRA is also two months into a strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.

​In The Know, Business SAG-AFTRA, a union representing many Hollywood actors, says its members have voted in favor of launching a strike against video game companies, a move that comes amid the group’s broader strike against film and TV studios. In a statement on Tuesday, the union said that about 98 percent of its members voted in favor of…