After almost five months, the Writers Guild’s strike will be officially over at 12:01 a.m. PT Wednesday, according to a report from Deadline.
What’s Happening:
- After reaching a tentative agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the WGAW Board and WGAE Council all voted unanimously to recommend the agreement, also voting unanimously to end the strike as of 12:01 AM PT on Wednesday, September 27th.
- On the off chance that members reject the tentative agreement that was worked out on Sunday, the strike will start back up again. At 148 days, the strike will be just a few days short of being the guild’s longest ever. The Writer’s strike of 1988 lasted 153 days.
- The tentative agreement includes negotiations on many of the WGA’s demands, including streaming residuals, artificial intelligence, staffing levels, wage increases, and more. You can read more about the agreement here.
- A message was sent out to WGA members, saying that the unanimous votes took place, ending the strike in the next few hours and allowing members to go back to work.
Full Message From WGA Negotiating Committee:
“As we reported on Sunday, the WGA reached a tentative agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers on a new three-year Minimum Basic Agreement. Today, your Negotiating Committee, the WGAW Board and WGAE Council all voted unanimously to recommend the agreement. It will now go to both Guilds’ memberships for a ratification vote. Eligible voters will receive ballot and materials for the vote which will take place from October 2nd to October 9th.
The WGAW Board and WGAE Council also 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. This allows writers to return to work during the ratification process, but does not affect the membership’s right to make a final determination on contract approval.
Now that we have finalized the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), we can share details of this exceptional deal, with gains and protections for members in every sector of the business:
MBA 2023 Contract Materials:
- Members can read the complete tentative agreement, which is codified in this Memorandum of Agreement (MOA).
- We are also providing a short Summary of the MOA.
- Here is an update of the 2-pager (now 7-pager) that compares the status of negotiations on May 1st and what we achieved after 148 days on strike.
Contract Informational Member Meetings:
We are convening meetings this week so current members can hear from the Negotiating Committee, Board and Council, and have the opportunity to ask questions about the agreement before the ratification vote.
- NYC: Wed. September 27th, 7:00 pm ET at the Manhattan Center. Doors open with snacks and refreshments 6:00 pm. RSVP
- Los Angeles: Wed. September 27th, 7:00 pm PT at the Hollywood Palladium. Doors open with snacks and refreshments 6:00 pm. RSVP
- Zoom meeting: Thurs. September 28th, 5:00 pm PT/8:00 pm ET RSVP
- Zoom meeting: Fri. September 29th, 11:00 am PT/2:00 pm ET RSVP
Please try to be with us in-person on Wednesday either in NYC or LA. We did this together and it would be good to gather again to honor both our strike and what we’ve accomplished. We look forward to discussing the deal with you.”