SAG-AFTRA and the major record labels reached a tentative three-year agreement on a successor contract to the SAG-AFTRA National Code of Fair Practice for Sound Recordings.
The deal was reached late Thursday after two days of bargaining in New Orleans. Negotiations began in April — three months after expiration of the current deal — in Los Angeles and continued for two additional sessions over the summer in New York City.
“This contract achieves important gains for our members in key areas, especially and including our health and retirement plans. I’m proud of our dedicated negotiating committee, and especially its chair, National VP Recording Artists/Singers Dan Navarro, for their excellent work,” said president Gabrielle Carteris.
The tentative agreement will be presented to SAG-AFTRA’s National Board at its meeting this weekend, and if approved will be sent to members for ratification.
SAG-AFTRA said the successor deal includes annual minimum wage increases; increased contributions to the health and retirement plans, including significantly increased contributions on payments related to online streaming of music; and other improvements in economic terms. The union did not provide details.
The new agreement is retroactive to Jan. 1, 2018, and expires Dec. 31, 2020. The major record labels covered by the agreement include Warner Bros. Records, Atlantic Recording Corporation, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group Recordings, Capitol Records, and Hollywood Records (Disney). The pact covers session singers, royalty artists, announcers, actors, comedians, narrators, and sound effects artists for recordings in all new and traditional media and all music formats, along with audiobooks, comedy albums, and cast albums.