Hollywood writers strike to end on Wednesday as WGA, AMPTP finalize labor contract

Hollywood
writers
and
studios
have
finalized
the
language
of
a
tentative
contract
that
will
lead
to
the
end
to
a
nearly
150-day
labor
strike.

Union
leaders
“voted
unanimously
to
lift
the
restraining
order
and
end
the
strike
as
of
12:01
am
PT/3:01
am
ET
on
Wednesday,
September
27th,”
the
WGA
said
in
a
statement.

Talks
between
the
Writers
Guild
of
America
and
the
Alliance
of
Motion
Picture
and
Television
Producers,
which
includes
top
studios
like

Disney, Paramount, Universal and Warner
Bros.
Discovery,
resumed
after
months
of
starts
and
stops,
ultimately
leading
to
a
preliminary
deal.

The
deal
will
last
until
May
2026
and
includes
a
5%
minimum
pay
increase
upon
the
ratification
of
the
contract.
Another
4%
bump
will
occur
on
May
2,
2024,
and
another
3.5%
increase
will
be
instituted
on
May
5,
2025.

Writers
were
able
to
gain
significant
protections
against
the
use
of
artificial
intelligence.
Namely,
AI
cannot
write
or
rewrite
literary
material
and
AI-generated
material
will
not
be
considered
source
material.

When
it
comes
to
streaming,
the
guild
negotiated
a
new
residual
based
on
viewership.
High
budget
subscription
video
on
demand
series
and
films that
are
viewed
by
20%
or
more
of
the
services
domestic
subscribers
in
the
first
90
days
of
release get
a
bonus
equal
to
50%
of
the
fixed
domestic
and
foreign
residual.
Views
are
calculated
by
hours
streamed
domestically
of
the
season
or
film
divided
by
the
runtime.

This
new
structure
will
go
into
effect
on
Jan.
1
and
means
writers
would
receive
a
bonus
of
$9,031
for
a
half-hour
episode,
$16,415
for
a
one-hour
episode,
or
$40,500
for
a
streaming
feature
with
a
budget
of
over
$30
million
budget.

Streamers
will
also
provide
the
guild
the
total
number
of
hours
streamed
both
domestically
and
internationally
for
self-produced
high
budget
streaming
programs
like
Netflix’s
original
series.

Across
the
board,
scribes
will
see
an
increased
contribution
rate
to
their
health
and
pensions
as
well
as
increased
contributions
for
writing
teams.

The
agreement
also
improved
screenwriter
compensation,
writers’
room
minimums
and
renewed
a
$250,000
showrunner
training
program,

among
other
items.

The
negotiating
committee
recommended
the
agreement
and
sent
it
to
the
Writers
Guild
of
America
West
Board
and
the
Writers
Guild
of
America
East
Council
for
approval.
Both
the
board
and
council
voted
to
authorize
a
contract
ratification
vote
by
membership.

WGA
members
will
have
until
Oct.
9
to
cast
their
votes
on
the
contract,
the
union
said.

Once
negotiations
are
wrapped
up
with
writers,
the
AMPTP
will
need
to
pivot
to
negotiations
with
the
Screen
Actors
Guild-American
Federation
of
Television
and
Radio
Artists.
The
acting
guild’s
members
have
been
on
strike
since
mid-July
and
are
seeking
contract
updates
similar
to
those
requested
by
the
writers.

The
WGA
contract
could
act
as
a
template
for
SAG-AFTRA
to
draft
its
own
deal
with
Hollywood
studios.

Similar
to
writers,
actors
are
looking
to
improve
wages,
working
conditions,
and
health
and
pension
benefits,
as
well
as
establish
guardrails
for
the
use
of
AI
in
future
television
and
film
productions.
Additionally,
the
union
is
seeking
more
transparency
from
streaming
services
about
viewership
so
that
residual
payments
can
be
made
equitable
to
linear
TV.

SAG-AFTRA
has
also
looked
to
standardize
the
self-tape
process,
which
became
popular
during
the
pandemic.
Previously,
actors
would
have
an
even
playing
field
with
in-person
camera
tests,
but
in
recent
years,
actors
have
seen
inequity
in
auditioning
between
those
who
can
afford
quality
camera
and
lighting
equipment
and
those
who
can’t.

Disclosure:
Comcast
is
the
parent
company
of
NBCUniversal
and
CNBC.
NBCUniversal
is
a
member
of
the
Alliance
of
Motion
Picture
and
Television
Producers.