Walt Disney Pictures VFX Workers Have Also Voted Unanimously To Unionize With IATSE

This follows Marvel Studios's unionization and is said to be forebearer for the entire industry

Go get your better work standards! Following Marvel Studios’s team’s trailblazing vote last month, it’s now Walt Disney Pictures’s VFX workers that have voted unanimously in favor of unionizing with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, or IATSE. Once again it was an election held by the NLRB, the National Labor Relations Board.

The 13-0 voting tally came after the filing amidst the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes, seeking fair contracts with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The Writers Guild got their contract last week in what’s been called quite the victory while SAG-AFTRA heads back for a second negotiation day Wednesday. Production workers who voted to unionize with The Animation Guild have struggled to have the union voluntarily recognized by Disney higher-ups since the vote in March. The NLRB last week issued a direction of election that would allow them to vote on whether to unionize under IATSE as well.

VFX senior coordinator Mack Robinson remarked, “For so long we’ve wanted the same protections as everyone else, but there was no hope in sight. Winning this election was a long fight, but I’m proud to say it’s been won by each and every VFX worker wanting a brighter, sustainable future.” The Marvel Studios unionization was the first ever in the film. VFX artist Mark Patch was key to the organizing effort and has been loud and vocal in regards to the conditions his industry peers have been working under. “We’re organizing more studios which we hope to announce in the coming weeks/months, but the hope is to try and set an industry standard contract for all work. This is not about Marvel or Disney, this is about VFX workers throughout Hollywood and demanding respect for the work that we do.” He continued, “It really does make clear to you that we need the ability to have a seat at the table and push back. We can leave it up to the studios or the companies, but it has to be the voice of the workers who are driving that conversation.”

The 18 in-house crew members at Walt Disney Studios that were eligible voters are in pursuit of fair compensation for all hours worked, adequate health care and retirement benefits. A survey of the field found only 12% of workers have a health insurance plan that they can take from job to job. The entire crew of workers including them are responsible for creating the special effects across the studio’s catalog, which this year added the The Little Mermaid and Haunted Mansion remakes. They are also seeking the same rights and protections afforded to their unionized coworkers who are already represented by IATSE. Now it’s their turn to get that contract.

Sources: Variety (1, 2), The Hollywood Reporter