SAG-AFTRA And SAG-AFTRA Foundation Join Forces, Bring Sexual Harassment Counseling Services

SAG-AFTRA and the SAG-AFTRA Foundation announced today they are jointly working together to bring workplace sexual harassment counseling services for members of the union. Now available, the services are administered by trained counselors at The Actors Fund, a national human services organization for entertainment, media and performing arts professionals.

The confidential, supportive services for SAG-AFTRA members impacted by workplace sexual harassment include assessment, crisis and short-term supportive counseling, education on individual rights and legal avenues, referrals to related resources and when needed, referrals for other clinical services. This service is open to all SAG-AFTRA members and is available nationally by phone, as well as in person at The Actors Fund's offices in Los Angeles, New York City and Chicago.

"SAG-AFTRA is proud to introduce this important service to our members. While our existing Safer Set hotline assures workplace safety issues are addressed, it has become imperative that we make available counseling to our members who have or are experiencing workplace harassment," said SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris. "We are grateful to partner with the SAG-AFTRA Foundation as well as The Actors Fund and their team of professional counselors to meet this need. In addition to enhancing the union's capacity to process workplace harassment reports in recent months, being able to offer counseling to our members is one more step in our ongoing efforts to address the sexual harassment epidemic in our industry."

"For more than 30 years, the SAG-AFTRA Foundation has been providing a vital safety net to SAG-AFTRA professionals who have fallen on hard times, been impacted by natural disasters, or been hit with unexpected illness or injury. This past year has been a reckoning for sexual harassment abuses in our industry. Our three organizations have come together to ensure that workplaces and working environments in this industry will be safe and secure. No SAG-AFTRA performer should ever feel alone or without recourse when it comes to sexual harassment or assault. We want all SAG-AFTRA professionals to know that they are not alone in this business," said SAG-AFTRA Foundation President JoBeth Williams.

Added The Actors Fund Chief Operating Officer Barbara Davis, "Throughout our history, The Actors Fund has always responded quickly to the needs of our community. In the past year, the #MeToo and Time's Up movements have brought issues of sexual harassment and assault to the forefront of the performing arts and entertainment industry. We're proud to partner with SAG-AFTRA and the SAG-AFTRA Foundation to provide counseling services to people who have been subjected to sexual harassment or assault, and we will continue our outreach so that everyone in our industry knows that these services are available to them."

To access services over the phone or in person, SAG-AFTRA members can contact The Actors Fund regional office nearest them in Los Angeles, (323) 933-9244, ext. 455; New York City (212) 221-7300, ext. 119; or Chicago (312) 372-0989.

About SAG-AFTRA
SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 actors, announcers, broadcast journalists, dancers, DJs, news writers, news editors, program hosts, puppeteers, recording artists, singers, stunt performers, voiceover artists and other entertainment and media professionals. SAG-AFTRA members are the faces and voices that entertain and inform America and the world. A proud affiliate of the AFL-CIO, SAG-AFTRA has national offices in Los Angeles and New York and local offices nationwide representing members working together to secure the strongest protections for entertainment and media artists into the 21st century and beyond. Visit SAG-AFTRA online at sagaftra.org.

About the SAG-AFTRA Foundation
The SAG-AFTRA Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides vital assistance and free educational programming to the professionals of SAG-AFTRA while serving the public at large through its signature children's literacy program Storyline Online. The Foundation relies solely on support from gifts, grants and sponsorships to maintain its free programs. Visit sagaftra.foundation.

About The Actors Fund
The Actors Fund is a national human services organization that fosters stability and resiliency, and provides a safety net for performing arts and entertainment professionals over their lifespan. Through offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Fund serves everyone in film, theater, television, music, opera, radio and dance with programs including social services and emergency financial assistance, health care and insurance counseling, housing, and secondary employment and training services. Visit actorsfund.org.36-3600 United States