On the eighth floor of the Screen Actors Guild headquarters on Wilshire Boulevard, interim Executive Director David White is pacing his new office, marshaling arguments in support of the union's recently negotiated film and TV contract.
"It's a good contract with solid gains," said White, who was installed in late January after moderates on the union's board orchestrated a revolt against the former leadership. "We protected against the more extreme measures that the studios wanted to implement, and it lays the foundation for us to fight for more in the upcoming round of negotiations."
But a few doors down the hall, SAG President Alan Rosenberg is still fuming about the deal, which he vows to oppose during an upcoming ratification vote.
"This is a bad contract," Rosenberg said. "Some of the things that we agreed to are just going to kill actors."
In most other unions, the president and executive director would be on the same page when it comes to ratifying a contract. Not in the topsy-turvy world of the Screen Actors Guild, where White finds himself in the unusual position of having to fight for a contract recommended by a board majority -- but opposed by the union's top elected officer.
Although member approval of the new contract is expected, the situation underscores how divided Hollywood's largest labor union remains on the eve of ratification, which follows a nine-month stalemate with the studios.
White stands apart from his predecessor, the hard-charging Doug Allen, who was dismissed this year after a moderate faction gained control of SAG's 71-member board.
The 40-year-old attorney, who was given a one-year $400,000 contract, says he's been too busy to think about his future and whether he wants the post full time. But White, who grew up in Kansas City, Mo., has been navigating conflicting agendas since early in his career when he worked as the executive director of a nonprofit group in his hometown that supported programs for troubled youth. He learned that success frequently depended on getting competing agencies to work together.
"I embrace the challenge of helping people focus on areas of common ground," White said. "That comes naturally to me."
White's conflict-resolution skills will be tested in the coming weeks when he and Rosenberg will carry different messages at meetings with guild members in Hollywood, New York and by video conference to discuss the contract. This week the union's 120,000 members will begin receiving their ballots in the mail along with "pro" and "con" statements.
