Hollywood’s Return-To-Work Covid Protocols Extended Again; “Fully Vaccinated” Redefined To Include Booster Shots

deadline.com:

Hollywood’s Covid safety protocols have been extended to April 30 and updated to redefine “fully vaccinated” to include booster shots, effective March 15.The updated rules also upgrade mask requirements to include KN95, KF94 or N95 masks that are to be provided by the employer; add a number of additional antigen tests that are authorized for use in testing for Covid-19; and refreshes funding for the Covid-19 sick leave bank for all cast and crew to 10 days.The updated protocols were reached by an agreement between the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers and Hollywood’s unions, including SAG-AFTRA, the DGA, IATSE, the Teamsters and the Basic Crafts.In a message to his members, SAG-AFTRA national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland said that the unions and the companies “have agreed to extend the Return-to-Work Agreement until April 30, 2022, with a few changes that reflect the evolving circumstances of the pandemic.”“Member safety is SAG-AFTRA’s highest priority,” he wrote. “Working with our sister unions, the protocols were crafted based on scientific consensus and the best data available.

Since the protocols were implemented on Sept. 21, 2020, they have proven extremely effective in protecting cast and crew from undue Covid risk in the workplace.

To remain successful, the system requires everyone’s cooperation.”The film and TV industry’s protocols were established in September 2020 by an agreement between the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers and Hollywood’s unions: the DGA, SAG-AFTRA, IATSE, the Teamsters and the Basic Crafts.The return-to-work protocols, which have enabled jobs and productions to rebound during the pandemic, originally were set to expire on April 30, 2021, but were