SAG-AFTRA Release Statement Expressing Support for WGA in Their Upcoming Negotiations
Image Source: Shelly Palmer
As the Writers Guild of America prepares to vote on a strike, they have received support from other unions like the Writers Guild of Britain. On April 22, the actor’s union SAG-AFTRA released a statement of support for the WGA.
The WGA took a strike authorization vote from April 11-17. As streaming takes over as the most popular form of viewing films and television, writers have faced several obstacles, chief among them truncated writers’ rooms, known as mini-rooms, that reduce pay for writers across the board. If the writers union doesn't receive an acceptable contract, they will strike on May 1.
RELATED:
This will have the effect of delaying or possibly canceling projects in television and film, but in a more connected society, much of the news coverage has focused on the writer’s struggle rather than the inconvenience to consumers.
The WGA made their position clear,
“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. On TV staffs, more writers are working at minimum regardless of experience, often for fewer weeks, or in mini-rooms, while showrunners are left without a writing staff to complete the season. And while series budgets have soared over the past decade, median writer-producer pay has fallen.”
There is still time to avoid a strike. If the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers furnishes a contract all sides can agree with, the WGA will continue working but with improved conditions.
READ NEXT:
Latest News
Featured
