Talks on horizon for actors

With the writers strike ended and Hollywood finally returning to work, pressure is mounting on the Screen Actors Guild from prominent members, and indirectly from the studios, to begin early negotiations for a new contract to avert another costly walkout.

At the same time, a group of actors has been lobbying the union to adopt eligibility requirements that would disqualify the majority of SAG members from voting on major contracts -- a long-shot move aimed at preventing the union from being pushed into a strike by largely nonworking actors who have the least at stake.

The moves follow swiftly after directors and writers successively reached new contracts with the studios. That turns up the heat on actors to craft their own deal even though their contract does not expire until June 30. SAG leaders have yet to react publicly to the writers accord, but they criticized several aspects of the new directors contract.

The studios also have incentive to quickly secure a new agreement with SAG, which as Hollywood’s most powerful union could shut down all movie and TV production immediately if it were to strike. Keenly aware of the looming contract deadline, studios have rushed a number of movies into production to ensure that they were completed in time.

But before the studios make any overtures to SAG to open early talks, they want the guild to resolve its feud with its sister union the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, whose 70,000 members also include broadcasters and recording artists. More than half belong to both unions.

SAG and AFTRA are embroiled in a heated dispute over a long-standing pact under which they have jointly negotiated their contracts. SAG is unhappy that it must split the votes with AFTRA when its members account for the lion’s share of earnings. This last weekend SAG’s board dropped a referendum to members asking them to reject the voting parity. SAG feared the studios would negotiate separately with AFTRA, thereby undermining SAG’s leverage.

The issue is far from resolved. The two unions are currently meeting to discuss potential proposals they want to present to the studios for a new contract. Those talks are expected to continue until next month.

“We want to finish hearing from our members as to what proposals are important to them,” said Alan Rosenberg, president of SAG. “Then we rely on our chief negotiator and expert to advise us what we should do with regards to starting negotiations.”

Rosenberg and chief negotiator Doug Allen have vowed to take a hard line against the studios, hoping to win the union’s members not only improved residuals in new media but also a larger cut of DVD sales.

SAG leaders, however, are receiving a clear message from some of the union’s top stars that they’d best not tarry when it comes to bargaining with the studios. Last week, at a luncheon at the Beverly Hilton for Oscar nominees, George Clooney took a shot at SAG’s leaders for recently suggesting that the union’s maximum leverage might be to delay.

“They seem to think they can get the best deal by waiting until the last minute to negotiate,” Clooney said. “But that’s a mistake because people are strike-weary right now.”

Some prominent SAG members -- Clooney, Tom Hanks, Robert De Niro and Meryl Streep -- took out a full-page advertisement in the Hollywood trades today urging guild leaders to begin negotiations immediately.

“As proud members of SAG, we have seen the effect of a long-running strike on our community. Now that the writers have agreed to a deal, our hope is to get people back to work,” the ad says. The stars acknowledge that the “issues are important. . . . Nothing can be solved until both parties agree to sit down together. . . . There is too much at stake to wait.”

The three-month-long writers strike, which virtually shut down all production of scripted television shows and put thousands of writers and production personnel out of work, came to a finale Tuesday. Actors strongly supported writers, walking the picket lines and boycotting the Golden Globes.

Solidarity with the writers notwithstanding, SAG leadership is now facing heat from hundreds of its own members who contend that the union can strengthen its bargaining position by imposing an earnings requirement that would limit voting on major contracts to actors who work regularly. Most SAG members do not earn a living by acting.

Over the last two weeks, SAG member Ned Vaughn, who has had roles on the TV series “Cane” and “24,” circulated a letter signed by some 900 actors, including Ben Affleck, Sally Field and Diane Lane, asking SAG to consider qualified voting for members.

“The challenging reality is that two-thirds of SAG’s 120,000 members consistently earn less than $1,000 per year. . . . But, anyone holding a SAG card can vote on our major contracts,” the letter stated. SAG has agreed to meet with Vaughn and others who signed the letter next week.

SAG leaders criticized the new directors contract but have yet to give an official reaction to the writers accord. “We are still analyzing the deal,” Rosenberg said.

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claudia.eller@latimes.com