The soaring cost of living under Joe Biden is taking a toll on blue collar Hollywood, driving the labor unions that represent production crews to push for higher wage increase guarantees from the major studios.
IATSE and the Teamsters — which both endorsed Biden in 2020 — are currently in the thick of contract negotiations with Hollywood studios as the industry continues to reel from dramatic budget reductions that have resulted in far fewer movie and TV shoots.
Add to that the skyrocketing costs of consumer goods and services and you have a recipe for widespread financial misery in what was a thriving sector just a short while ago during the Trump administration.
“We’re in a period of time now where our members still endured inflation, more than just one year, and then endured a dual strike, where they did not have any income during that time,” Teamsters chief negotiator Lindsay Dougherty told Deadline this week.
The Teamsters said its members are expecting at least a 7 percent wage increases in their contracts, based on recent Hollywood negotiations with other unions, like SAG-AFTRA.
IATSE is expected to ask for similar wage increase guarantees in its ongoing negotiations.
In the past, the unions negotiated for a minimum of a 3 percent wage increase for its members.But Bidenflation has made that figure unrealistic as Hollywood union workers struggle to find work in a time of studio belt-tightening.
As Breitbart News reported, the Walt Disney Company laid of 7,000 people last year amid a $7.5 billion reduction in spending, with another $2 billion in cuts in the works. Other studios swinging the axe include Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount Global, and Amazon / MGM Studios.
The budget cuts have impacted the number of TV shows receiving the greenlight. As a result, blue collar crew members who were once awash in job opportunities during the so-called “peak TV” era are now scrounging for work.
While thousands of its members are suffering financially, IATSE recently announced it will endorse Biden again for re-election.
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