Walt Disney Animation Studios Has Ratified their First Union Contract for Production Workers
The new contract significantly increases starting wages for production workers, and offers pension and health benefits.
Walt Disney Animation Studios has made history with production workers ratifying their first union contract.
What’s Happening:
- The Hollywood Reporter shares that production workers at Walt Disney Animation Studios have officially ratified their first union contract.
- The deal, which was reached on February 13th, is in addition to The Animation Guild’s pre-existing benefits, adding health and pension benefits with a higher minimum wage rate.
- In a vote held on March 5th, 93 percent of participating members voted in favor of the deal.
- Within the agreement, production coordinators, production supervisors and production managers are now eligible for pensions and health benefits, with starting pay going up 24% for production managers, 29% for production supervisors and 35% for production coordinators.
- Production workers at Disney’s iconic animation studio began organizing in 2022.
- The following year, around 93% of the participating union members voted to join The Animation Guild with first contract negotiations beginning a year later on April 11th, 2024.
- Union organizer Allison Smartt shared in a statement that the contract will have “positive impacts long into the future and throughout the animation industry."
- DreamWorks Animation is currently in their first-contract negotiations for production workers.
What They’re Saying:
- Nicholas Ellingsworth, Production Supervisor, Walt Disney Animation Studios: “In Hollywood, we love an underdog story. Our ratification was just that — the underrepresented and underpaid coming together and demanding better pay and equity with our artistic counterparts. In the end, we were heard and seen, and we have a pathway to further improving the conditions in which production management works."
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