Writers Guild Of America Set To Strike

Trouble has been brewing for days now, but it appears that the Writers Guild of America will in fact go on strike beginning Monday. At the recent WGA meeting, the union’s negotiating committee recommended that they go on strike. Negotiations have been going on for about three months.

The issues for the writers are varied, but they include the fact that the writers are only receiving 4 cents on DVDs for new media. In 2001, when the issue previously came up, the WGA was ultimately forced to take improvd health and pension plans instead of higher DVD residuals.

It is not clear what the full impact of such a strike would be, and any impact will surely depend on the length of any writers’ walk-out. For his part, CBS’s Les Moonves tried to downplay the seriousness of the situation.

“We are prepared with a full slate of firstrun programming now and at midseason. The bottom line is this: In the event of a strike, we anticipate no material impact on the company for the remainder of the season.”

Even the Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has offered his services to try to help bring about an agreement between the writers and the studios. WGA representatives met with Villaraigosa Tuesday, who subsequently met with studio reps.

This could certainly ruin an enjoyable fall run I’ve been having with network television shows. We’ll see how it plays out.

Source: “The WGA Calls For A Strike; Writers To Spend Weekend Pitching Picket Sign Slogans” [Defamer], “Writers Guild negotiators eye Monday strike” [The Hollywood Reporter]; Photo: SBIFF

Writers Guild Of America Set To Strike

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