Hollywood unions urge members to vote no on Proposition 32

Hollywood’s largest guilds and unions are calling on their members to vote against Proposition 32, a ballot measure they maintain will sharply limit their political freedoms.

The Directors Guild of America, SAG-AFTRA, IATSE, Professional Musicians Local 47, Teamsters Local 399 and IBEW Local 40 said they are actively working to defeat the proposition, which would eliminate deductions from members’ paychecks for political fundraising.

Republican donors, anti-tax activists and business executives have invested tens of millions of dollars in television and radio ads to boost support for the measure, but unions in Hollywood and elsewhere have mounted a campaign to fight the proposition.

“The DGA joins our fellow guilds and unions in vigorously opposing Proposition 32 and urging our members to vote ‘no’ on this misleading and disingenuous effort to inhibit union members from participating in political activity in California,” the Directors Guild of America said in a statement.

SAG-AFTRA Los Angeles Local Co-President and actor Gabrielle Carteris said Proposition 32 “silences the voices of working Californians and infringes on their rights to fight for fair and evenhanded policies in Sacramento.”

IATSE Local 600 member and Academy Award-winning cinematographer Wally Pfister added: “Proposition 32 is not a Democratic or Republican issue. It is an issue for every person in California who has a job and works to support themselves and their families. I believe we are all entitled to a say in our government.”

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