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We recently reported that The Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (Sag-Aftra), the union that represents video game voice-over actors, was preparing to hold a vote on whether or not to go on strike over working conditions. The vote has now taken place and an overwhelming majority voted to go ahead with the strike– 96.52 percent, in fact.
In order for the vote to proceed, it needed to secure a 75 percent approval, so this result has gone far beyond what was needed. This doesn’t mean yet, however, that a strike will necessarily be taking place. The Sag-Aftra is trying to secure more favorable terms for actors after the expiration of the previous “Interactive Media Agreement” in December of last year and, having managed to secure approval from its members to strike, the union is now in a stronger position to negotiate terms.
Sag-Aftra hopes to secure royalties for actors where games sell upwards of 2 million copies and wants stunt coordinators to be involved where there are risky motion-capture involved. In addition, it wants to be able to secure a higher “stunt pay” for “vocally stressful” recording sessions and a greater level of transparency about the actual content of the game, ahead of actors committing to the role.
A number of famous video game voice actors have previously given their support to the motion, including Will Wheaton, Jennifer Hale (from the Mass Effect series), David Hayter (Metal Gear Solid), and Tara Strong (Batman: Arkham City) and more. The union itself, meanwhile, has said that,
“With this result in hand, the Negotiating Committee will seek to return to the bargaining table and continue to press for a fair resolution on behalf of performers working in video games.”
Source: Nintendo Life
