June 6, 2023
LOS ANGELES — Directors Guild of America (DGA) President Lesli Linka Glatter announced tonight that the DGA National Board, in a special meeting, voted unanimously to approve and recommend for ratification a new three-year collective bargaining agreement.
“We set out to negotiate a contract that would build for the future. This is a significant deal with gains for every Director, Assistant Director, Unit Production Manager, Associate Director and Stage Manager,” said President Glatter. “Our industry is rapidly changing and expanding, and this agreement is what we need to adapt to those changes, break new ground and protect the DGA’s 19,000 directors and directorial team members today, and in the years to come. Along with the rest of the DGA National Board, I am proud to enthusiastically recommend this tentative agreement to our members for ratification. Together, we will secure the future we deserve.”
The tentative agreement reached with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) provides significant improvements for DGA members in all categories, with extensive advances on wages, global streaming residuals, safety, diversity and creative rights. The deal also establishes minimum terms and conditions in two new areas — non-dramatic programs made for SVOD and high-budget AVOD programs — and new provisions confirming that generative AI cannot replace the duties performed by members.
“Across the country, Directors and their teams, writers, actors, crews and drivers have shown unwavering resolve in demanding to share in the success of the films and television shows we create together,” added President Glatter. “We are all union members and deserve to be compensated fairly for our contributions. We don’t bargain in a vacuum and the gains we have achieved in our tentative agreement would not have been possible without the strong support and unity of our members, and the solidarity of our sister Guilds and Unions. We continue to support the actors who are entering negotiations tomorrow and the writers who remain on strike. We stand firmly with SAG-AFTRA and the WGA in our shared fight for a vibrant, sustainable industry that fairly values us all.”
A ballot and ratifications materials will be sent to the DGA membership this week. The DGA’s current contracts expire on June 30, 2023.
Formal negotiations between the DGA’s 80-member Negotiations Committee and the AMPTP began Wednesday, May 10, and were concluded on Saturday, June 3. Talks were led by DGA Negotiations Committee Chair Jon Avnet, Co-chairs Karen Gaviola and Todd Holland and DGA National Executive Director Russell Hollander. Television Creative Rights Negotiations were led by Thomas Schlamme and Nicole Kassell.