Performers working in UK film and TV have voted to refuse to be digitally scanned on set in order to secure artificial intelligence protections in a move which could lead to a ballot for industrial action.
An indicative ballot by Equity showed that 99% of those who voted said they would refuse to be digitally scanned.
Another ballot would have to be held before any industrial action is taken, but Equity said the result, on a turnout of 75%, showed the strength of feeling among performers who want to protect their artificial intelligence (AI) rights.
More than 7,700 actors, stunt performers and dancers who have worked on a Pact-Equity agreement since they were last negotiated in 2021 were balloted.
Equity is currently negotiating the agreements it holds with Pact, the trade body representing the majority of film and TV production companies in the UK, to set minimum standards for pay, terms and conditions for performers working in the sector.
Equity said it will now write to Pact demanding they come back to the negotiating table with a better deal on AI.
If Pact refuses to enshrine the AI protections the union is seeking in the agreements, Equity said it will hold a statutory ballot for industrial action.
Equity’s general secretary, Paul W Fleming, said: “Artificial Intelligence is a generation-defining challenge, and for the first time in a generation, Equity’s film and TV members have shown that they are willing to take industrial action.
“Ninety per cent of TV and film is made on these agreements. Over three quarters of artists working on them are union members. This shows that the workforce is willing to significantly disrupt production unless they are respected, and decades of erosion in terms and conditions begins to be reversed.
“The US streamers and Pact need to step away from the brink, and respect this show of strength. We need adequate AI protections which build on, not merely replicate, those agreed after the Sag-Aftra strike in the USA over two years ago.
“The union believes this can be resolved through negotiation, but 18 months of talks have led us to this stalemate.
“With fresh AI proposals, significant movement on royalties, and a package of modern terms and conditions, Pact and allied producers can turn this around. The ball is in their court when we return to the table in January.”
Source: Press Association