The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently estimated that up to 60% of jobs in the U.S. – and 40% globally – primarily involve tasks that can be done by artificial intelligence (AI)-driven automation. Of these “AI-exposed” jobs, the IMF estimates that half could be easily replaced by AI.

What would an extra 8 hours a week mean for our lives as working people? With a 32 hour work week, first and foremost, it would mean 8 fewer hours of exhausting time we give to the boss. With that time and energy back, we could spend it with our families, loved ones, and community. We could take care of our health with rest, exercise, and eating right. We could pursue education and enrich ourselves with arts and culture. Crucially, we could further organize and build the working class politics that our country and our people need.

After months of bargaining, nearly 80,000 film and TV workers of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) have won a tentative agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).

IATSE represents the behind-the-scenes entertainment workers like camera assistants, painters, costumers, hair and makeup stylists, and editors, often referred to as the “film crew.” Despite Hollywood’s image of glitz and glamor, fame and fortune, the reality is that this industry is propped up by an entire class of freelance employees who are exploited and abused by the wealthiest media conglomerates in the world.

From the inside of the first authorized pro-Palestine strike by UAW 4811, we’re On the Line with Rafa Jaime, President of UAW 4811 and Academic Student Employee in the English department at UCLA, Anny Viloria Winnett, Graduate Student Researcher and ASE Unit Chair for UAW 4811 in Los Angeles, and Mohammed Alyaseen, Academic Student Employee at UCSD and UAW 4811 member.