Written by Kianna Best on May 2, 2023. Posted in General Interest

The Writer’s Guild of America strikes

After negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) failed, the Writer’s Guild of America (WGA) has gone on strike. The conflict pits its 11,500 members against major studios, like Universal and Paramount, as well as streamers such as Amazon, Apple and Netflix.  Immediate effects will be seen in late night talk shows and sketch shows, with programmes like Saturday Night Live and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert going dark immediately. Picketing will begin tomorrow outside Amazon, Disney, Warner Bros., Paramount, Netflix, Sony, Universal and Fox.

“The companies' behaviour has created a gig economy inside a union workforce, and their immovable stance in this negotiation has betrayed a commitment to further devaluing the profession of writing,” stated the WGA in a press release announcing their strike. “From their refusal to guarantee any level of weekly employment in episodic television, to the creation of a "day rate" in comedy variety, to their stonewalling on free work for screenwriters and on AI for all writers, they have closed the door on their labour force and opened the door to writing as an entirely freelance profession. No such deal could ever be contemplated by this membership.

Image courtesy of Masaaki Komori by Unsplash

After 15 years of peace between writing talent and their studio counterparts, the entertainment industry has been thrust yet again into disarray as the WGA announced their strike at 12:01 PST on 2 May. In a dispute over fair pay in this era of streaming and the uncertainties that have arisen the face of AI developments, the writers are seeking a just playing ground that respects the efforts of those who make television possible. Whilst there has been an influx in new shows hitting the air and streaming waves, writers’ pay has been at a low, with job insecurity a threatening presence in the background.

“Driven in large part by the shift to streaming, writers are finding their work devalued in every part of the business. While company profits have remained high and spending on content has grown, writers are falling behind,” the WGA said in a previous statement during the negotiation period. “The companies have used the transition to streaming to cut writer pay and separate writing from production, worsening working conditions for series writers at all levels. ”

In March, the pattern of demands that were approved by the eastern and western branches of the WGA were broken down into three categories: compensation and residuals, pension plan and health fund, and professional standards and protection in the employment of writers. Penning a letter to their members in advance of their contract ending with AMPTP, the WGA were less than impressed with the "wholly insufficient" response to the proposals made.

Last night amongst the star studded spectacle of the MET Gala, attendees and WGA members as Quinta Brunson and Jimmy Fallon were also asked about their take on what is currently happening in the industry, both expressing support. Fallon stated that if the strikes were to go ahead, as news had not broken during the carpet, then his show would go dark until a resolution was found.

Seth Meyers, whose late night show will be going dark as a result of the strike, made a comment on the affect that will occur on peripheral job roles such as catering, costuming and drivers as production comes to a halt. Remarking on how the strike would be a truly "miserable thing" especially coming so soon after the pandemic.

WGA West board member Adam Conover, creator and star of Netflix’s The G Word with Adam Conover, took to Twitter, stating: “This is why we’re striking. The studios are trying to turn writing into a gig job. Eliminating the writers room, forcing screenwriters to work for free, paying late night writers a ‘day rate’. If we don’t fight back, writing will cease to exist as a liveable career.”

The last writers’ strike that occurred in 2007 lasted for 100 days, resulting in the Los Angeles economy losing an estimated USD 2.1 billion according to local economist Jack Kyser.