IATSE President Urges Studios to Extend Healthcare Amid Strikes
IATSE President Matt Loeb has made a strong call to studios, asking them to extend healthcare benefits to below-the-line workers. With SAG-AFTRA beginning their strike today and the Writers Guild strike already in its 74th day, a substantial number of crewmembers face the high possibility of losing their health coverage.
During the early period of the Covid pandemic, the MPIPHP, extending its hand to below-the-line workers out of employment, guaranteed up to 300 of the required 400 hours for health coverage eligibility.
In a huge gesture of goodwill at the time, MPIPHP amended its qualifying rules - those who had clocked at least 100 hours, whether worked or banked, were given a credit of up to 300 hours to ensure their eligibility continued for the July-Dec 2020 period. Half the trustees of these benefits come from labor, with the other half from management, making this a sincere encouragement for the workforce and their families to keep their health coverage during the worldwide health crisis.
Today, Loeb stated, “If the studios truly cared about their below-the-line crew members, they could continue to pay them and fund their healthcare fully, similar to what was done in 2020 at the start of the Covid pandemic.” Instead, grassroots groups, such as The Union Solidarity Coalition, of writers, actors, and directors are stepping in to fund aid that benefits these members, praised Loeb.
The MPIPHP trustees, according to The Editors Guild, could extend health benefits to the members who are at risk of losing them, as was done during the pandemic. However, this is doubted due to half of the trustees being represented by companies that are currently being struck.
In a passionate statement, Loeb professed his steadfast support for the striking actors and writers, and emphasized the importance of their struggle. The WGA has also disclosed to its members that there is no requirement from the Health Fund that they extend health insurance coverage during the strike considering the trustees are evenly split between management and the guild.
Now, on to my thoughts:
Remember the song 'We're All in This Together'? Well, it seems the entertainment industry might need to take a note from the High School Musical hit, because from the looks of things, solidarity, or a lack of it, is proving to be a major player in these turbulent times. Is there anything more emblematic of the current Hollywood landscape than Unions having to step up and save the day while studios take a backseat? It's like a strange role-reversal, and one that certainly sparks some thinking.
Drawing parallels to the COVID-19 pandemic is apt; both are crises that have thrown the industry into turmoil. However, while the pandemic was largely out of human control, this situation is entirely man-made. It truly is a clash of the titans; workers striving for basic needs against a backdrop of trillion-dollar corporate behemoths.
While Loeb's call for the studios "to acknowledge our collective worth" may sound like a plea ripped from a classic underdog movie script, it's also a sobering reminder that the glitz and glamour of Hollywood often overshadows the real struggles of those in the industry. This is a moment that puts the spotlight (quite rightly) back onto those who are truly indispensable to our movie experience yet often forgotten - the 'below-the-line' crew members.
The question, then, looms: Will this be a climactic scene where Hollywood acknowledges the worth of its tirelessly working crews, or will it follow a more predictable narrative where corporate interests trump workers' rights? Only time will tell.
But, as Loeb points out, "the world and history are watching." And so, we eagerly wait for the final act in this significant chapter of Hollywood labor relations.
