Reps for about 500 casting directors and casting associates have reached a tentative deal on a three-year successor agreement to its master contract with studios and network.
Teamsters Local 399 in Hollywood and Local 817 in New York set a tentative agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Local 399 secretary-treasurer Steve Dayan announced the news on the local’s website, but did not disclose details.
“We will be holding a Ratification Meeting on the same day that Teamsters Local 817 will be holding a Contract Ratification Meeting in New York,” he added.
The casting directors did not begin negotiations with the AMPTP until November, well after the Sept. 30 contract expiration, due to the extended negotiations this summer for a successor deal for the West Coast master contract for about 40,000 members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. The casting directors agreed to extend their current contract from Sept. 30 until Jan. 11.
SAG-AFTRA and the Writers Guild of America obtained three-year successor deals in 2017, and the Directors Guild of America reached its deal in late 2016. The casting directors were able to obtain their first union contract in 2005 following an organizing campaign that lasted three years.