After nearly week of discussion, members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) have voted to authorize a strike if and when one is needed. A report from The Hollywood Reporter reveals that about 79% of eligible members partook in the vote and that 97.85% voted for strike approval.
While the approval has gone through, there isn’t a guarantee that the strike will force all work to stop yet. According to a statement from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), the Guild has seemingly already agreed to authorize the strike before the votes were officially tallied. “A strike authorization vote has always been part of the WGA’s plan, announced before the parties even exchanged proposals,” the Alliance claims. “Its inevitable ratification should come as no surprise to anyone.”
The WGA has appealed to the AMPTP to listen to their concerns and complaints born from the issues rampant in streaming services. Not only do they express their need for increased wages, but they also are hoping to increase royalty and residual payments to similar rates as network television. They also hope to regulate the size of writers’ rooms to help more writers to stay employed. Currently, both the WGA and AMPTP are negotiating to settle the WGA’s grievances before their contract expires on May 1st. If these negotiations fail, the strike is more likely to occur. With the work stoppage in place, there could be a halt in the production of both films and TV series.
Leave a Comment