By Aliyah Siddiqui
Nation and World Editor
The second-longest writers strike is finally over after 148 days of negotiations. While the new contract will need to be ratified by members in early October, the end of the strike will allow writers to return to work and bring back some much-missed shows.
The Writers Guild of America announced their strike on May 2 after six months of failed negotiation with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The union, which represents 11,500 screenwriters, argued that writers were receiving unfair compensation due to the prevalence of streaming, mini rooms and use of artificial intelligence, which could replace writers.
According to Vox, wages for writers have declined 23%–when adjusted for inflation–even though the cost of living has increased. This is partly due to the way contracts with streaming services are set up, where the median salary for writers is 46% of the median salaries for writers whose series are on TV broadcasts. Writers are also not compensated for the profit streaming shows bring in.
Additionally, due to the nature of streaming services, many studios have mini rooms, in which only a few writers write episodes for a show before it is picked up for production. These writers are underpaid and separated from the production aspect of the show business, preventing the writers from gaining more experience.
The new, three-year contract will increase pay and future residual earnings by 3.5% to 5% and will also give writers bonuses based on the popularity of the streaming shows they contributed to. Relating to that, streaming services must provide WGA members with data on the performance of their shows.
In regards to their concerns on AI, writers will no longer have to compete with AI-generated storylines. Specifically, AI will not be able to write material or be used to undermine a writer’s work. Studios also cannot require writers to use AI or use writers’ work to train AI, allowing writers to get compensation for their creativity.
The contract also included other benefits for members, including staffing minimums, increased health and pension contributions, and other protections.
In their announcement of the final contract, WGA commended its members for their dedication and solidarity to the cause which ultimately allowed the new contract.
“It is the leverage generated by your strike, in concert with the extraordinary support of our union siblings, that finally brought the companies back to the table to make a deal,” the WGA negotiating committee said. “We can say, with great pride, that this deal is exceptional—with meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership.”
Despite the victory for the WGA, actors under the Screen Actors Guild are continuing to negotiate with studios and streaming services, according to ABC. The concerns are similar, with negotiations being stalled over the use of AI, member earnings and streaming residuals.
Due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, scripted shows, including “Saturday Night Live,” will not be set to return until an agreement is reached. However, the ending of the writers strike marks the return of talk shows and late-night talk shows. In fact, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers all announced that their shows would return on Oct. 2, while John Oliver announced his show would return Oct. 1.
