Video game voice actors consider strike

The voice actors of the American actors’ and voice actors’ union, SAG-Aftra, are considering going on strike if a number of requirements are not met. Among other things, the voice actors demand performance bonuses based on the sales figures of the video games they work on.

The American SAG-Aftra and its video game voice actors still work with video game publishers under what is called the Interactive Media Agreement, an agreement between employers and employees that dates back to the 1990s. The union wants to supplement the agreement mainly with performance bonuses based on the number of copies of a game, extra compensation and limited hours for jobs that are hard on the vocal cords, and the mandatory presence of a stunt coordinator at motion capture. Finally, the union wants more transparency about the jobs for which its members audition. At the moment, according to the union, they are not told in advance how many hours, sessions, workload and wages await them.

The union was in February and June of this year with a number of major publishers such as EA Games, Activision, Disney and Warner Bros. went to the table. An agreement was not reached at any of the two meetings.

The publishers have made counter-proposals and, according to SAG-Aftra, want to be able to fine voice actors of USD 2500 if they ‘failure’ to do their work. According to the union, reading a text message while working can already count as absenteeism. In addition, the publishers want to be able to fine the voice actors’ impresarios $50,000 to $100,000 if they don’t send their voice actors to certain smaller auditions. For this they also want to be able to have the union license of an impressario revoked. The publishers also want to be able to hire actors from outside the union for voice and motion capture work. The union in turn did not agree to this.

Because the two parties can’t seem to agree, a trade union strike is voted on. For this 75% of the voting members of SAG-Aftra must vote in favor of the strike. All members of the union are then prohibited from doing work in their profession and actors who are not members of the union are also asked to stop working. The result of the voting round is not yet known. Voice actors Steve Blum, Jennifer Hale and Phil Lamarr, for example, voted in favour.

Both parties state to Game Informer that they are now observing a media blackout. The media will probably not hear anything further, apart from an announcement of a possible strike by the voice actors and a future outcome.