Netflix said Friday it is establishing a $100 million relief fund for workers in the worldwide creative community affected by the coronavirus-caused halt of most film and television production.
"This community has supported Netflix through the good times, and we want to help them through these hard times, especially while governments are still figuring out what economic support they will provide," Ted Sarandos, Netflix's chief creative officer, said in a statement.
The majority of the fund will support hard-hit crews on Netflix's own productions around the world, Sarandos said, and will supplement the two weeks of pay the company already agreed to pay the cast and crew on suspended productions.
Electricians, carpenters and drivers, who largely are paid hourly wages and work on a project-to-project basis, are among the hundreds of thousands in the entertainment industry without jobs, he said.
More than 120,000 jobs have been lost by members of IATSE, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees that represents cinematographers, editors, production designers and others, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The publication cited correspondence to members from the International Cinematographers Guild and Motion Picture Editors Guild.
When the performers union SAG-AFTRA announced earlier this week that its foundation was creating the virus fund, actor and guild President Courtney B. Vance said there had already been a "major spike" in applications and requests for help from its members. =Progress
