An East Coast faction of the Screen Actors Guild on Friday called for the union to suspend an upcoming vote to authorize a strike amid stalled negotiations with Hollywood producers.

The announcement represents a major split between the union’s Hollywood leadership and a more moderate group based in New York. The group hopes its opposition will force the union to rethink the timing of its vote scheduled for January.

“Our members and our industry are struggling through the worst economic crisis in memory,” the New York board said in a statement. “While issuing a strike authorization may have been a sensible strategy in October, we believe it is irresponsible to do so now.”

& #8226;

Read the full

Associated Press

story.