With the Hollywood's lengthy WGA and SAG-AFTRA work stoppages finally in the rear-view, film and TV production is set to hit full stride again by mid-January. 

But as the Penske showbiz trades first reported this week, labor peace could be short-lived. The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), which represents more than 170,000 behind-the-scenes entertainment workers, will soon seek to negotiate its own contract with studios that expires July 31. 

IATSE is expected to began its negotiations with producers in March, seeking a new deal for editors, lighting technicians and other behind-the-scenes workers.

Also up for renegotiation is the Basic Crafts contract, which protects Teamsters — drivers, animal wranglers and other below-the-line crew members.

During a time of rising worker solidarity — IATSE members, for example, picketed alongside writers and actors over the summer during their strikes — it’s unclear whether Hollywood studios have achieved lasting labor peace.

“We believe in an industry where every worker is valued and their contributions recognized, whether their labor takes place on or off screen,” IATSE said in a statement on its website. “As all eyes shift to our union’s own upcoming negotiations with the AMPTP in 2024 … we are primed to roll out an unprecedented campaign of member engagement, communication and transparency to secure the best possible contracts in the eyes of our membership as well.”

Both studios and the below-the-line workforce have struggled financially through the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. And while IATSE may be inspired by the negotiations of other unions, entering a new work stoppage likely won’t be a decision made lightly.

“The prolonged negotiations and resulting shutdown caused intense hardship for workers in our industry throughout the world,” added IATSE’s statement. “With so many facing urgent difficulty making ends meet, it is now imperative the studios work with the entertainment guilds and unions to focus on a swift and safe resumption of production to mitigate further financial strain and prevent unnecessary harm on our community.”

Some workers saw the strike on the horizon and had money saved up, but for many, the six-month stoppage was far longer than anticipated.

IATSE members have suffered arguably as much as their striking WGA and SAG-AFTRA peers, and they will likely seek compensation to make up for lost wages in the form of an improved labor contract.

In fact, two years ago, IATSE members came within a few votes of rejecting their last contract. That would have resulted in the union’s first industrywide strike in its history.

In an October communication to members, the Motion Picture Editors Guild (an IATSE subsidiary) revealed the implementation of a new contract action team, which bears similarity to the WGA’s contract captain model.

“We don’t expect the next round of negotiations to be easy,” the Editors Guild said in its statement. “We know that we need to be prepared to fight for the contract we deserve. In any fight, a union is only as strong as its membership is united, informed and engaged.”

ABC News’s bargaining unit has "overwhelmingly” agreed to a new three-year contract with the network news outlet that includes pay and pension boosts, according to the Writers Guild of America East (WGAE), as well as reviews of any decisions not to allow work from home.

The guild represents news editors, writers, researchers, desk Assistants, production assistants, and graphic artists in New York and Washington working for affiliate news service ABC NewsOne, network desks, Good Morning America, local station WABC New York and ABC News Radio.

The pay and pension increases will be at least 9% bumps over the length of the contract and includes increases in minimums for desk assistants in D.C. and for some show producers, assignment editors and writers at WABC (those working under personal services contracts).

According to WGAE, there are also increases in paid time off and a labor-management committee to review any denial of work-from-home requests. ABC also said it would provide diversity, equity and inclusion training for all its bargaining unit employees annually. ■

WASHINGTON — The Communications Workers of America has tentatively struck a new contract with AT&T covering 500 DirecTV service center employees.

The contract, which still needs to be ratified by members, covers workers in Alabama, California, Colorado, Iowa, Minnesota and Tennessee.

The CWA represents a total of 150,000 AT&T workers. With the new contract, that includes 2,000 DirecTV workers.

“Our objective in bargaining is to reach fair agreements that will allow us to provide solid union-represented careers with excellent wages and benefits, and we believe this agreement does that,” AT&T said in a statement.

“In 2015 and 2016, we successfully reached, and our union-represented employees ratified, 25 different labor agreements covering over 102,000 employees across the country. That includes 15 different labor agreements in 2016 collectively covering nearly 61,000 employees. The 2016 agreements include nine agreements covering nearly 7,300 former DirecTV employees.”