Latest news with #internationalworkers
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
International Animation Unions Plan Protest Against AI at Annecy Festival: ‘Generative Al Do Not Support Artists, It Destroys Them'
A group of international workers' unions is planning a protest to raise the alarm over the dangers of AI in the field of animation at the Annecy Animation Festival this afternoon. With a record 18,000 accredited guests scheduled to attend this year's Annecy, the festival will feature numerous panels and roundtables discussing the role of AI in animation, one of the most talked about topics at every edition of the French event for the past several years. As has been the case in previous years, there are also several titles screening that made varying degrees of use of AI during their production. More from Variety Global Constellation Unveils Ambitious Animation Slate at Annecy (EXCLUSIVE) Tencent Video Strikes European Deal for 'Blades of the Guardian' With ADN (EXCLUSIVE) Annecy Player 'The Mourning Children' Seeks to Give Life to Recorded History Last week, labor groups from the U.S., France, Spain, Ireland, Belgium and elsewhere released a lengthy joint statement (available below) demanding action regarding the rise in use of AI in the field of animation. According to the coalition, artificial intelligence poses a threat to the craft and credibility of their industry. The group of organizations has invited workers, students, and anyone who shares its concerns about the use of artificial intelligence in animation to meet for a public town hall this afternoon near the festival's Bonlieu central hub. Below, the group's full statement, released before the festival: ANIMATION INDUSTRY IN DANGER WORLD UNIONS DECLARE EMERGENCY IN THE FACE OF GENERATIVE Al USEThe animation industry is suffering, after the explosion of the streaming bubble and the pandemic. The workers are feeling the repercussions : mass layoffs, increased use of outsourcing, closure of studios, decreasing budgets etc. Generative Al is seen by some as an answer to this crisis : a near magical tool that can produce words, images and sounds from a simple and vague description. But GenAl is neither a tool, nor effective, nor cheap. It is a copying machine that is flawed, destructive and expensive to run, threatening creative innovation and jobs in multiple industries. GenAl do NOT support artists, it destroys them. The absence of humans is a feature, not a bug, of GenAl. It promises only the loss of employment and livelihood for millions of people worldwide. This same technology is being used to foster dissent, confusion and distrust among the public. This unchecked growth and unjustified techno-optimism comes with incredible environmental consequences, including expanding demand for computing power, larger carbon footprints, shifts in patterns of electricity and water demands and an accelerated depletion of natural resources. As such, there is a need for protection frameworks around GenAl, centered around transparency, compensation, control on the use of the work of the creator, and informed consent. We call upon the regulators, lawmakers and governments to fight for culture and art and the value it provides, to draft and implement legislation that protects those workers and those rights. We call upon producers, showrunners, studioheads, broadcasters and production staff to protect our creative culture and to prioritize both the workers and our work. We call upon all creative workers worldwide to unite, speak up against the implementation of Al and unionise. We invite all workers, students and allies to join us in Annecy festival, to discuss concerns and defense against GenAl, and to hear unions representatives read the statement on Thursday, June 12th, at 2 PM, on the Paquier. Unions, Organisations and Federations behind this intiative: SNTPCT, SPIAC-CGT, CNT, Animation Workers of Ireland, l'ABRACA (Association Belge Regroupant les Auteur·ice·s Créateur·ice·s de l'Animation), Kunstenbond, Unie Van Regisseurs, Les Intervalles, Guilde Française des Scénaristes,Syndicat des Scénaristes, SFA, SNAM, STJV, GWU Ireland, CSVI-CGT, UNI, FIA, FIM Best of Variety 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? 25 Hollywood Legends Who Deserve an Honorary Oscar New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week
BBC News
30-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Overseas carers in South West afraid over immigration overhaul
Overseas people working in adult social care have said they are "afraid" about proposed changes aimed at making it harder for international workers to remain in the carers gain the right to live and work here indefinitely if they have been working in the country on a sponsored visa for five years.A new UK government white paper proposes increasing that to 10 years to reduce reliance on international workers and boost the recruitment and retention of homegrown Aryaratne, a migrant worker from Sri Lanka who moved to Dawlish in Devon with his family to work in domiciliary care in March 2023 said: "I'm stressed. I'm thinking about it all the time." Mr Aryaratne, 42, is on a care sponsorship visa - a type of skilled worker visa that allows overseas nationals to work in UK adult social care roles under a licensed said: "We have fully integrated into society, my wife works, I work, we pay taxes, my kids have made new friends. It's an anxious time for us."We are the front line of domiciliary care. This will affect everyone across the board." There were 27,174 health and care worker visas granted in the UK to main applicants in 2024, an 81% decrease compared to the previous year according to Home Office Jose, 37, moved to Torquay from India almost three years ago and said she is also worried. She said: "This country is giving us the opportunity to bring our families and we can get a good education for our kids. This news is very sad. "If we are not allowed to stay, we will have no option than to go back. We hope they will change the rules." Her colleague Soumya Sebastian, 42, is also originally from India, and worked in Israel for nine years before deciding to come to the UK because she was able to bring her family here."We are very afraid of our future. We left our job there to come here, for our family and our future", she pair work at Sefton Hall care home in home's manager, Gabriela Ogreanu, said: "They have such high respect for the elderly. They are family oriented, they are part of the community, their contribution is massive. "We try to recruit locally from Dawlish but we barely have one or two applicants to do the job. The government says we have to recruit locally, but who wants to do the job?"Ms Orgreanu added she has a high number of staff who are anxious because of the said: "You open the borders, you allow these people to come in. You allow them to bring their families, to rent, to integrate into the community. "But then you suddenly decide that actually its too many of them and can we send some home. It's wrong." Naeem Ahmad runs Eschol House Nursing home in Portscatho, Cornwall and employs seven international said he feels the signalling that's coming from central government around migration is "wholly negative" and is "not good for morale" in his team. A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said:"We recognise the scale of reform needed to make adult social care attractive as a career: we want it to be regarded as a profession, and for the people who work in care to be respected as professionals."That is why we are introducing a new Fair Pay Agreement and implementing the first universal career structure, giving care workers better pay, conditions, and new opportunities to progress in their career." 'Revolving door' Katrina Hall founded the Bay Care Group in said: " We have 156 international workers. If we lose that workforce, it will cut 40 percent of our provision."We cannot get a British workforce here. We spent around £100,000 a year in advertising for British workers. "All we got were people on benefits who came to have an interview in order to continue to receive benefits. We've literally become a revolving door for people looking to continue claiming their benefits." Irena Cox is one of Bay Care's clients is Irena Cox who has carers visit her home in Torbay five times a said: "They've been good enough to come over and work here. It means a lot, especially when you are vulnerable. I can't walk very far, I can't stand up very long. "They are brilliant."The Home Office estimated the new policies could lead to a 100,000 drop in immigration per year by Secretary Yvette Cooper said it is "time to end that care worker recruitment from abroad" and rules will change this year - instead requiring firms to hire British nationals or extend visas of overseas workers already in the governments have tried unsuccessfully to reduce net migration, which is the number of people coming to the UK minus the number migration climbed to a record 906,000 in June 2023, and last year it stood at 728, Minister Keir Starmer argued the proposals bring the immigration system "back into control", and said the new plans, which tackle legal migration to the UK, would ensure a "selective" and "fair" system, where "we decide who comes to this country".
