Los Angeles  - Leaders of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) postponed a strike authorization vote after dozens of leading actors came out against the potentially devastating work stoppage.

The postponement was announced late Monday in an email to SAG board members, in which SAG Executive Director Doug Allen said he and SAG President Alan Rosenberg had decided to push back the strike referendum to "address the unfortunate division and restore consensus," the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.

The strike ballots were to be mailed on January 2, but will now be delayed until after the SAG board meets on January 12, the email said.

SAG leaders contend that a 75 per cent vote for strike authorization will give them added leverage in negotiations.

But last week more than 130 high-profile actors, including Tom Hanks, Robert Redford and George Clooney, urged the union to reconsider its decision.

Other celebrities, including Mel Gibson and former SAG president Ed Asner, have declared their support, arguing that the studios' contract offer is unacceptable and threatens the future of actors in the digital era.

The union, which represents more than 120,000 actors, is locked in a negotiation battle with film and TV producers over a new contract. The main sticking points are union demands for higher residual payments for work that is distributed over the internet and for members to keep receiving benefits when strike action by other unions halts production.

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers insists that SAG accept the same terms as those reached with the Screenwriters Guild after a damaging strike earlier this year, and with the Directors Guild and other actors' unions. (dpa)