Home » US Employment News » Disney Animation Studios workers vote to unionize
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Production staff at Walt Disney Animation Studios have voted to unionize under the Animation Guild.
IATSE Local 839 represents production coordinators, managers, and supervisors at Disney Animation.
The organization is a branch of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.
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According to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), of the 68 workers who participated in the election, 63 voted in favor of union representation.
The Animation Guild posted on X: "Congratulations to the production workers at Disney Feature Animation! With 96% voter turnout, 93% voted yes!!! Let’s celebrate!"
As of the vote, both parties have five business days to file objections to the election.
If no objections are submitted, the results will be certified by the NLRB.
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The Animation Guild has represented animation artists, writers, and technicians since 1952.
However, production coordinators, supervisors, and managers at Disney Animation Studios were not eligible to unionize through the formal NLRB election process until this year.
In September, the NLRB recognized the three employee classifications as an appropriate unit.
The agency ruled that they shared a community of interest conducive to unionization despite Disney's earlier attempt to argue otherwise.
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Liz Davalos, a production coordinator, said: "This historic win during Disney's 100th-year celebration means that production folks can turn their wish into a reality."
Another Disney production coordinator, Hannah Bialosky, said their successful bid to unionize "sets a strong precedent for all other production management workers in the animation industry hoping to organize with their studios."
The current unionization move comes less than a year after 177 production workers at Nickelodeon voted to unionize under the Animation Guild.
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They sought higher wages and more affordable healthcare.
The Nickelodeon election marked the largest single group of animation production workers to vote to join the guild, which has more than 6,000 members.
Their organizing efforts proved successful after Nickelodeon voluntarily recognized them as a union, according to IATSE.
Visual effects workers at Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Pictures have recently voted to unionize with IATSE.
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