SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher’s Statement on LAW Act Clearing California Senate Judiciary Committee
The working environment in California continues to evolve, especially in the entertainment industry, dominated by self-employed persons, contractors and consultants.
As described by CalMatters, which referred to the entire topic as the entertainment industry snakepit: “In February, Assemblyman Ash Kalra, a San Jose Democrat, introduced Assembly Bill 2926, which in essence would give musicians and actors a way to escape from their seven-year contracts and/or work for others while under contract. The legislation was backed by entertainment industry unions and some well-established entertainers and mirrored similar legislation that had failed in the past. The bill faced tough opposition from recording and movie industry executives, who said it would destroy a system that has been mutually beneficial, and stalled out. Kalra then split it into two gut-and-amend bills, one for the movie industry (Assembly Bill 437) and one for the recording industry (AB 983), both now awaiting action in the Senate’s labor committee.”
Following the LAW Act Clearing California Senate Judiciary Committee, SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher released the following statement in relation to the impact on working entertainers in the California:
“The California Senate Judiciary Committee has passed the Let Artists Work (LAW) Act, AB 437, a vital piece of legislation that has been long overdue. This bill will allow actors to work as much as they need without unreasonable restrictions.
“A huge thank you to Assemblymember Ash Kalra for introducing this progressive legislation, to the California Senate Judiciary Committee members for recognizing that actors should be able to enjoy the same freedoms as all other Californians, and to all of the union members and allies who showed their support for California’s entertainment workers! Let’s keep the momentum going.”
Businesses large and small in California should keep an eye on this topic
About SAG-AFTRA
SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 actors, recording artists, singers, announcers, broadcast journalists, dancers, DJs, news writers, news editors, program hosts, puppeteers, stunt performers, voiceover artists and other entertainment and media professionals. SAG-AFTRA members are the faces and voices that entertain and inform America and the world. A proud affiliate of the AFL-CIO, SAG-AFTRA has national offices in Los Angeles and New York and local offices nationwide representing members working together to secure the strongest protections for entertainment and media artists into the 21st century and beyond. Visit sagaftra.org and follow @sagaftranews for breaking news from SAG-AFTRA.
