Hollywood Writers Strike – What It Means For You

Why is the union on strike?

For six weeks, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) union negotiated better working conditions with American streaming providers such as Netflix and Disney. Failed. Late Monday night (local time), the New York and Los Angeles-based East and West Coast departments announced their decision: “We are on strike.” The decision was taken unanimously, the union writes in its statement.

The negotiating committee started the process with the intention of reaching a fair agreement, according to a message on Twitter. However, the studios’ response was “completely inadequate given the existential crisis facing our writers”. For that reason, they let the three-year contract, which expired on Tuesday evening, expire without an extension.

What is she asking for?

The authors’ union has been negotiating a new contract with the film and television producers (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) since mid-March. The writers demand, among other things, salary increases, better working conditions and higher subsidies for care and pensions. In a vote in mid-April, members overwhelmingly voted 98 percent to strike if negotiations fail by May 1.

The film and television producers had made an offer that included “generous wage increases for the authors”. said it in a statement available to US media. The organization is willing to increase its offer, the Los Angeles Times quoted, but other WGA demands stand in the way of that.

Streaming movies and series has upended screenwriters’ pay, wrote the Los Angeles Times. Writers would now have to work more for less pay and could no longer count on a fixed income, as in the days of television, when successful shows were repeated for years.

“The companies have ruined this company”said a statement on the WGA website. The union hoped to “save the job we love” through talks. Now there is nothing for it but to go on strike.

Which shows are concerned?

For American viewers, the strike will be felt first in the talk and comedy shows, according to the New York Times. Late night shows like “Saturday Night Life,” “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” or “The Late Show With With Stephen Colbert” would likely be canceled immediately. Other formats, on the other hand, would be produced with more lead time – to delay them would require a long strike. For example, Netflix announced that they may release new TV shows and movies for a while.

The strike could last weeks or even months, the Los Angeles Times wrote. It could “bring down much of the television and film production across the country” and affect neighboring industries as well – for example about caterers, florists and props working on the sets. The strike comes at a difficult time for the Los Angeles area as many businesses are still trying to recover from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

What were the consequences of the last strike?

The authors’ association last threatened to strike in 2017. After weeks of negotiations between the two parties, a new contract was agreed at the last minute. In 2007/2008 the writers even went on strike for 100 days. The strike almost paralyzed Hollywood: filming on several TV shows was halted, film projects were postponed, and gala shows were cancelled.

Shows like Dexter, Monk, and The Wire took off slightly because they had already completed production before the strike. Others were less fortunate: More than 60 TV shows had to stop filming and end seasons early. While some shows continued to film at least a few episodes after the strike, others refrained from doing so.

An overview of some of the affected TV shows:

The financial loss to the entertainment industry was then estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars.

Even if the ongoing strike isn’t immediately noticeable to serial junkies, a longer strike could mean a shortage of supplies within a few months. (saw/sda/dpa)