Darth Vader’s voice draws attention to AI’s impact on collective bargaining

Not unexpectedly, artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly affecting the collective bargaining relationship between labor and management, and the following case discussion addresses both legal and practical aspects of AI’s impact on bargaining.

‘More machine now than man’

In May, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) filed an unfair labor practice (ULP) charge against Llama Productions for its use of AI to recreate the iconic voice of Darth Vader in the video game Fortnite. The union alleged that by unilaterally replacing bargaining unit work with AI-generated voices, the company “failed and refused to bargain in good faith with the union.”

Further, the union claimed that unilateral changes were made to its members’ terms and conditions of employment without giving proper notice or the opportunity for good-faith collective bargaining. The union was concerned that using AI in this way replaced the work of voice actors “who previously did the work of matching Darth Vader’s iconic rhythm and tone in video games.”

Lessons to learn