Voice Actors in Rerun Pay Deal

Actors who voice such animated cable shows as “SpongeBob SquarePants” and “The Boondocks” will receive a 20% pay raise when episodes rerun, according to a new union contract disclosed Tuesday.

The proposed deal between the Screen Actors Guild and producers would give actors the first improvement in 16 years on a formula for residuals, the system in which they are paid for subsequent airings of their work.

“The performers who work under this contract have waited a long time for these well-deserved gains,” SAG President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement. “The Guild achieved this important victory by standing together as a united group of actors.”

J. Nicholas Counter, president of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, declined to comment.

The contract is the first concluded under Rosenberg, who was elected last year on a promise of being tougher in negotiations with producers and studios.

SAG officials and producers are still bargaining over pay for actors in live-action cable shows, including “Nip/Tuck,” “The Closer” and “The Shield.” SAG members have authorized their leaders to call a strike if negotiations stall.

Under the proposed cable animation deal, residuals for the first rerun would increase to 17% from 12% of the voice performer’s minimum pay (currently $716 for a four-hour session), down to 1.5% of the minimum for the 13th showing and each subsequent run.

Based on a typical run pattern of 25 repeats for a basic cable episode, that amounts to a 20% jump in residuals, the guild said.

If approved by the union’s national board, the contract would be retroactive to Jan. 1, and would run through June 30, 2008.