SAG-AFTRA Foundation

Overview

The SAG-AFTRA Foundation is the nonprofit charitable organization affiliated with SAG-AFTRA, providing emergency financial assistance, scholarships, and career development programs for union members and their families. Founded in 1985, the Foundation operates independently from the SAG-AFTRA union to serve the human welfare needs of the performing arts community -- addressing the economic precarity that affects many working actors whose income fluctuates substantially between employment periods.

The Foundation's programs recognize the economic reality of a professional acting career: most SAG-AFTRA members earn substantially less than the public perception of Hollywood performer salaries suggests, with the majority of union members supplementing their performance income with other work. The Foundation provides resources that help these working performers navigate financial hardship, develop their skills, and access educational opportunities that support long-term career viability.

Emergency Financial Assistance

The Foundation's emergency financial assistance program provides direct grants to SAG-AFTRA members facing acute financial hardship due to illness, injury, natural disaster, or other emergency circumstances. These grants -- which do not need to be repaid -- address the immediate financial crises that can derail careers when performers have no income buffer during employment gaps.

For working performers who rely on periodic employment without the continuous income stream of salaried employment, the emergency assistance program represents meaningful financial security that the union's labor agreements alone cannot provide. The Foundation's assistance is available to members who meet eligibility criteria based on their level of union participation and financial need.

Scholarships and Education

The Foundation provides scholarships for the children of SAG-AFTRA members pursuing post-secondary education. These scholarships recognize that supporting performers' families is part of supporting the performing arts community as a whole, and that educational opportunity for performers' children reduces the intergenerational economic precarity that can follow families across generations.

The Foundation's career development programs include acting workshops, panel discussions, and educational resources that support SAG-AFTRA members in developing their craft and navigating the business aspects of a performing career. Performers at all career stages access Foundation programs for professional development that complements the labor protections provided by the union.

BookPALS and Children's Literacy

The Foundation's BookPALS (Performing Artists for Literacy in Schools) program sends SAG-AFTRA members into elementary schools to read aloud to children, promoting early literacy through the engagement of professional performers. This community program connects the performing arts community to public education and provides SAG-AFTRA members with volunteer opportunities that strengthen their connection to their communities.

What Filmmakers Should Know

For directors and producers who care about the welfare of the performer community they work with, understanding the SAG-AFTRA Foundation's programs provides context for the economic realities that many working performers face. Supporting the Foundation -- which accepts charitable donations -- is one concrete way that industry professionals can contribute to the welfare of the performer community beyond compliance with union agreements.

For performers facing financial hardship, the Foundation's emergency assistance program provides a resource that many SAG-AFTRA members are unaware of until they need it.

See Also

For the SAG-AFTRA union that the Foundation supports, see SAG-AFTRA in this directory. For the broader performing arts nonprofit context, see Film Independent in this directory.