The strike by the Writers’ Guild of America (WGA) that has been on for over 100 days and had brought all production activity in Hollywood to a halt, is about to end. Discussions and bargaining sessions have taken place several times since the strike began on 2 May 2023. The disgruntled writers are of the opinion that they are not adequately compensated considering that the studios — including Warner Bros Discovery, Disney, Netflix and NBC Universal —have been raking in earnings from streaming platforms.
An agreement is hoped to be reached today, that is, 22 September 2023. However, if negotiations fail to bear fruit or give satisfactory results, the strike may well go on till the end of 2023.
The writers are seeking new policies to ensure that a specific number of writers are hired for a specific duration for television shows. They also seek payment for writers throughout the production process, including the pre- and post-production phase. Presently, many writers are expected to revise the script or even product new content without being paid for the same.
Many actors expressed their support for and solidarity with the writers. About 1.6 lakh people from the industry stopped work in July to lend their voice to the over 11,000 members of WGA, who walked out in early May, 2023.
