Editors Guild Chief Cathy Repola Says “Progress Is Being Made” In Labor-Management Talks To Restart Film & TV Production

Labor and management continue to make progress in their ongoing negotiations to restart film and TV production, said Editors Guild national executive director Cathy Repola in her latest message to her members.

“Progress is being made, but there are detailed issues still to address,” she said, noting that “negotiations between the AMPTP, and jointly the IATSE, DGA, SAG-AFTRA, Teamsters, and Basic Crafts over safety protocols and issues related to COVID-19, are ongoing.”

Detailed protocols for safely restarting production were issued last month – in the “White Paper” developed by the Industry-Wide Labor-Management Safety Committee – and separately in a multi-union report called “The Safe Way Forward.” But there are union contracts to consider, and work remains to be done to fully implement those plans.

“Until such time as the above-mentioned negotiations are concluded,” Repola wrote, “we are dealing with any resumption of work on a case-by-case basis. There have been some post-production activities taking place here and there, and we have been reviewing safety protocols and stage diagrams (when applicable) and reaching out to the members who will be working at facilities on these projects to ensure their level of comfort and satisfaction with the safety details specific to their individual situation.

“We have also been involved along these same lines with the IATSE and other Locals for phasing in of pre-production and ultimately production and post on unscripted projects. We have all been working cooperatively together to assure the employers provide the safest working environments possible.”

“Once the negotiations conclude,” she told her members, “you will, of course, be advised. Meanwhile, if you are contacted to return to a work environment, please reach out to us so we can assist you in navigating through everything. While the pandemic is ongoing, many of you may be asked to resume or to continue working remotely. We are certainly aware this is not necessarily convenient for many of you for several potential reasons. At the same time, we understand why many of you would prefer to do so. Again, we will need to deal with any problems associated with this on a case-by-case basis. Please reach out to the staff if you have any concerns.”