The South African Guild of Actors is a representative body in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

that advocates for the interests of South African

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

s in the performing arts industry. SAGA has a labour partner UASA, through whom it is represented within the Federation of Trade Unions FEDUSA. It is a member of the South African Screen Federation SASFED and is affiliated with the

International Federation of Actors The International Federation of Actors (french: Federation Internationale des Acteurs, FIA) is a global union federation bringing together trade unions representing actors. History The federation was established in 1952, on the initiative of Brit ...

(FIA). On 13 September 2018, made a presentation to the Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry in the

Parliament of South Africa The Parliament of the Republic of South Africa is South Africa's legislature; under the present Constitution of South Africa, the bicameral Parliament comprises a National Assembly and a National Council of Provinces. The current twenty-seve ...

in support of the Performers Protection Amendment Bill (2016). The previous year, on 4 August 2017, SAGA appealed to the Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry against aspects of the proposed legislative review of the Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2014. Various other organisations, including The South African Freelancer's Organisation also stood in solidarity with this appeal. In October 2013 the cast of South Africa’s longest-running soap Generations entered a protracted contractual dispute with the public broadcaster, the

SABC The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is the public broadcaster in South Africa, and provides 19 radio stations ( AM/ FM) as well as six television broadcasts to the general public. It is one of the largest of South Africa's state ...

. When 16 cast members embarked on a so-called 'strike' barely a year later, the producer and broadcaster announced an indefinite hiatus in production. The cast were being advised by the defunct trade union CWUSA, while SAGA warned that the actors could be held in breach of contract as they were not protected by the

Labour Laws Labour laws (also known as labor laws or employment laws) are those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing entities, trade unions, and the government. Collective labour law relates to the tripartite relationship between employee, ...

. Ultimately the group of actors had their contracts terminated and the show was cancelled. When South African television drama High Rollers was abruptly cancelled in 2016, SAGA voiced concern over South African producers' willingness to cancel production contracts before expiration. When an actor fell to his death on 12 May 2018 while on a film set in the

Drakensberg The Drakensberg (Afrikaans: Drakensberge, Zulu: uKhahlambha, Sotho: Maluti) is the eastern portion of the Great Escarpment, which encloses the central Southern African plateau. The Great Escarpment reaches its greatest elevation – within th ...

mountains in South Africa's

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

province, SAGA initiated an investigation in collaboration with City Press. SAGA has been vocal about the international issue around Sexual Harassment in the Entertainment Industry. The SWIFT (Sisters Working in Film and Television) campaign #ThatsNotOK highlighting the plight of harassment has been endorsed and supported by SAGA. The collaboration of both organisations has brought about a Code of Conduct to be adopted by all industry professionals as well as addendum suggested for all actors and industry practitioners to sign in their contracts.

References

{{reflist Trade unions in South Africa