Local 700

Local 700
Name	Local 700
Founded	1930s
Location	United States
Affiliation	International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees
Membership	1,000–5,000 (est.)
Industry	Motion picture, Television, Live events

Local 700 Local 700 is a labor union local of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees active in the motion picture, television, and live events sectors. It represents a defined craft within audiovisual production, negotiating collective bargaining agreements, administering health and pension plans, and enforcing work rules on studios, networks, and independent producers. Its members work across sound, postproduction, and on-set departments for major companies, independent productions, and live venues.

History

Local 700 traces roots to early 20th-century craft organization movements alongside locals such as Local 600 and Local 44 during a period of consolidation that included the formation of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and contemporaneous growth of the Screen Actors Guild and the Directors Guild of America. During the studio era, Local 700 negotiated with conglomerates including Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, and 20th Century Fox, and adapted through landmark events like the rise of television in the 1950s and the expansion of cable networks such as HBO and Showtime. The local weathered the disruptions of the Taft–Hartley Act era, the strike activity of the 1970s, the shift to location shooting in the 1980s influenced by companies like Columbia Pictures Television, and the digital transition accelerated by firms such as Sony Pictures and Disney.

Organization and Membership

The local is organized into committees and elected officers modeled after other IATSE locals and comparable bodies like the Teamsters and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Leadership includes a business agent, president, secretary-treasurer, and executive board members who liaise with pension trustees and health fund administrators similar to structures at the United Auto Workers and the Service Employees International Union. Membership categories encompass journeymen and apprentices and parallel classifications used by unions such as the Motion Picture Editors Guild and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Affiliations and member benefits intersect with multi-union coalitions including the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and the DGA through reciprocal hiring halls and jurisdictional agreements.

Jurisdiction and Activities

Jurisdiction covers sound, postproduction, and on-set technical crafts analogous to scopes held by locals like Local 776 and Local 695, interfacing frequently with studios including Universal Pictures, Paramount, and streaming platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Studios, and Apple TV+. Activities include collective bargaining, grievance arbitration before panels modeled on procedures used by the National Labor Relations Board adjudicated cases, apprenticeship training mirroring programs at the American Federation of Musicians, and safety compliance with standards adopted by entities like Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The local administers benefit plans similar to the multiemployer trusts run by the National Electrical Contractors Association.

Labor Actions and Negotiations

The local has engaged in negotiations and job actions during pivotal industry disputes comparable to strikes by the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild‑American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. It has participated in coordinated bargaining campaigns against producer coalitions like the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and joined solidarity actions with locals such as Local 802 and Local 1. Grievances have proceeded to arbitration panels involving mediators with histories at the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service and to strike votes influenced by precedents set during the 1980 Hollywood strike and later labor waves in the 2000s and 2010s. Negotiated outcomes have sometimes been shaped by litigation in federal courts and decisions by agencies like the National Labor Relations Board.

Notable Contracts and Agreements

The local secured multi-year collective bargaining agreements with major employers including WarnerMedia, ViacomCBS, and independent production entities producing series for Hulu and Prime Video. Important provisions have addressed jurisdictional clarity with other craft unions such as the Teamsters and the IATSE, pension and health trust funding patterned after settlements in the auto and construction industries, and protections for freelance members modeled on agreements negotiated by the Writers Guild of America. Contracts have included language on residuals and streaming—echoing terms contested during negotiations involving Netflix and Amazon Studios—and safety protocols influenced by incidents spotlighted at productions like those connected to Rust (film) controversies.

Relations with Other Unions and Industry Groups

Relations with other unions have ranged from cooperative to adversarial, with jurisdictional bargaining conducted alongside the Directors Guild of America, the Writers Guild of America, and locals within the IATSE family. The local has participated in cross-union coalitions addressing streaming-era issues alongside the SAG-AFTRA leadership and sought coordination with industry groups such as the Motion Picture Association and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers during sectorwide negotiations. Partnerships with training institutions and guilds like the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have underpinned apprenticeship and continuing education efforts.

Legacy and Impact on the Industry

The local influenced labor standards in audiovisual production through bargaining that contributed to national norms adopted by major studios and streamers including Disney+, HBO Max, and legacy companies such as NBCUniversal. Its role in refining jurisdictional rules, health and pension architecture, and safety practices affected working conditions across sets for productions by entities like Sony Pictures Entertainment and Lionsgate. By shaping agreements that addressed the digital shift and streaming residuals, the local helped set precedents that informed later negotiations by the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA, leaving a lasting institutional imprint on labor relations in the motion picture and television industries.

Category:Trade unions in the United States