Film Academy Workers Agree to First-Ever Union Contract with AMPAS

Brian Welk
·2 min read

Film archivists, foundation workers, and more employed by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) as part of the Academy Foundation have agreed to terms on their first-ever union contract, the Academy behind the Oscars announced Friday, May 24.

The Academy Foundation Workers Union (AFWU), in conjunction with AFSCME Local 126, have unanimously agreed to a three-year contract with the Academy Foundation that will win employees a minimum of 3 percent annual wage increases and regular step increases over the next three years.

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The contract passed with 64 “yes” votes on May 22.

Employees will also have the contractual right to four additional weeks of paid parental leave, an extended medical leave option, job security benefits protecting against subcontracting, and more professional-development opportunities. Wage increases for workers will rise between 11-27 percent over the next three years as a result of the new contract.

The union contract is the first such deal ratified in Academy history after the AFWU was formally recognized by AMPAS back in 2022. The news also follows workers at the Academy Museum who successfully unionized and won their own union contract in September last year. Academy Museum workers are also organized with AFSCME Local 126.

According to AFWU’s mission statement, workers organized their union to ensure their voice on the job, and that the Foundation’s goal of preserving motion picture history for all communities is carried out with equity, sustainability, and transparency.

“Our first contract signals to our bargaining unit and management that a new era at the Academy Foundation has arrived – an era of a more fair and equitable partnership with management and workers,” said Jessi Jones, a film archivist and member of AFWU’s bargaining team. “As we move forward, the bargaining unit will benefit from wage increases, health care and benefits stability and a system of checks and balances. I’m proud to be a member of AFWU, and proud of our accomplishments.”

Brendan Connell, Jr., the chief operating officer of the academy and general counsel for the Academy Foundation, said, “On behalf of Academy leadership, I am delighted that the contract that we negotiated with the Academy Foundation union was approved by its members, many of whom are long-serving employees. With this contract, joining the contracts that the Academy successfully reached in recent months with the Academy Museum union and IATSE, we are proud of the great work that happened at the bargaining table and the focus on our remarkable employees.”

More than 80 workers are represented by AFWU, and the larger AFSCME represents cultural workers across 100 different museums and 275 public and private libraries across the country, representing more than 35,000 workers nationwide.

The 2025 Oscars will be held on March 2.

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