The membership has spoken

Melissa Gilbert, SAG Presiden

But members apparently feared a conflict of interest if their movie producer employers were also their agents.

They voted the move down by 54% against 46% in a postal ballot.

SAG president Melissa Gilbert said: "The membership has spoken.

"SAG's mandate remains unchanged."

The SAG board had voted in favour of the move in March, advocating a deal with the Association of Talent Agents (ATA) and National Association of Talent Representatives.

Fair proposal

ATA executive director Karen Stuart expressed her anger at the decision.

"Agents now twice have been left without an agreement after negotiation and approval by the SAG National Board," she said.

The current deal: Made in the same year as Wizard of Oz

Ms Stuart said that negotiators had worked hard for more than three years to come up with a fair proposal.

Ms Stuart also raised the possibility of legal action against the Guild, saying the ATA would "seek redress for the considerable damage that SAG has caused."

SAG was recently embroiled in controversy over the election of its president.

An e-mail gaffe forced the union to re-stage an election which had put former Little House on the Prairie star Melissa Gilbert in office, after it emerged voters in New York were given an extra two days to return their votes.

Ms Gilbert was successfully elected, for the second time, in March.