Hollywood Writers Expected to Settle In for Long Strike
2023-05-06
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1Hollywood writers went on strike this week to demand higher pay and job security.
2The labor action forced an immediate suspension of late-night television shows and other programs and projects.
3The writers' labor action is the first Hollywood strike in 15 years.
4The union Writers Guild of America (WGA) is seeking higher minimum pay, more writers per show and less exclusivity on single projects, among other demands.
5The 11,500-member Guild argues that all the demands concern conditions that have worsened since the huge growth in streaming media.
6"Everything's changed, but the money has changed in the wrong direction," said Kelly Galuska.
7The 39-year-old is a writer for The Bear, an FX show and Big Mouth, a program on Netflix.
8She was among striking workers who demonstrated at Fox Studios in Los Angeles.
9"It's a turning point in the industry right now. And if we don't get back to even, we never will," she said.
10The last Hollywood strike, from the same union in 2007 and 2008, took three months to settle.
11There are no talks planned between the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, or AMPTP.
12It represents studios and production companies that employ the writers.
13"We'll stay out as long as it takes," said Josh Gad.
14He is a writer for shows including Central Park and an actor in films including Frozen. Gad spoke from the Fox picket line.
15An AMPTP statement said the organization presented an offer with "generous increases in compensation for writers."
16It said leaders were also prepared to improve the offer but were put off, it said, "because of the magnitude of other proposals" the WGA was presenting.
17The writers expected to go on strike.
18Negotiations over a new contract ended suddenly hours before the time limit passed for an agreement to be reached.
19The reality of a strike left some people surprised, some worried, and some determined.
20"When I saw the refusals to counter and the refusing to even negotiate by the AMPTP, I was like on fire to get out here and stand up for what we deserve," said Jonterri Gadson.
21She is a writer whose credits include A Black Lady Sketch Show. On a picket line at Amazon Studios, she held a sign that said, "I hate it here."
22New productions of top late-night shows were cancelled.
23That is because the striking writers are the ones who write jokes for the shows' hosts.
24Instead, television chiefs made plans for reruns for the rest of the week.
25NBC's comedy show, Saturday Night Live, which had been set to broadcast a new program Saturday, will air a rerun instead.
26The two remaining programs in the season might be cancelled.
27The strike's effect on weekly series and films will likely take longer to see.
28If the strike continues through the summer, plans for autumn television programming could be affected.
29Right now, shows for which the writing has been completed are permitted to continue with production.
30Streaming has led to an explosion in the number of series and film productions made each year.
31That has meant more jobs for writers.
32But writers say they make less money under insecure conditions.
33The WGA described the new environment as "a gig economy inside a union workforce."
34Economic activity involving temporary or freelance work is often called a gig economy.
35The AMPTP said terms necessary to reach a deal involve so-called mini rooms.
36Industry publications say mini rooms are similar to temporary writing jobs that can prevent writers from taking other jobs.
37Writers want a minimum number of them.
38How long employment contracts last is another issue being negotiated.
39Writers are also seeking more rules about the use of artificial intelligence.
40I'm Caty Weaver.
1Hollywood writers went on strike this week to demand higher pay and job security. The labor action forced an immediate suspension of late-night television shows and other programs and projects. 2The writers' labor action is the first Hollywood strike in 15 years. 3The union Writers Guild of America (WGA) is seeking higher minimum pay, more writers per show and less exclusivity on single projects, among other demands. The 11,500-member Guild argues that all the demands concern conditions that have worsened since the huge growth in streaming media. 4"Everything's changed, but the money has changed in the wrong direction," said Kelly Galuska. The 39-year-old is a writer for The Bear, an FX show and Big Mouth, a program on Netflix. She was among striking workers who demonstrated at Fox Studios in Los Angeles. "It's a turning point in the industry right now. And if we don't get back to even, we never will," she said. 5The last Hollywood strike, from the same union in 2007 and 2008, took three months to settle. There are no talks planned between the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, or AMPTP. It represents studios and production companies that employ the writers. 6"We'll stay out as long as it takes," said Josh Gad. He is a writer for shows including Central Park and an actor in films including Frozen. Gad spoke from the Fox picket line. 7An AMPTP statement said the organization presented an offer with "generous increases in compensation for writers." It said leaders were also prepared to improve the offer but were put off, it said, "because of the magnitude of other proposals" the WGA was presenting. 8The writers expected to go on strike. Negotiations over a new contract ended suddenly hours before the time limit passed for an agreement to be reached. The reality of a strike left some people surprised, some worried, and some determined. 9"When I saw the refusals to counter and the refusing to even negotiate by the AMPTP, I was like on fire to get out here and stand up for what we deserve," said Jonterri Gadson. She is a writer whose credits include A Black Lady Sketch Show. On a picket line at Amazon Studios, she held a sign that said, "I hate it here." 10New productions of top late-night shows were cancelled. That is because the striking writers are the ones who write jokes for the shows' hosts. Instead, television chiefs made plans for reruns for the rest of the week. 11NBC's comedy show, Saturday Night Live, which had been set to broadcast a new program Saturday, will air a rerun instead. The two remaining programs in the season might be cancelled. 12The strike's effect on weekly series and films will likely take longer to see. 13If the strike continues through the summer, plans for autumn television programming could be affected. Right now, shows for which the writing has been completed are permitted to continue with production. 14Streaming has led to an explosion in the number of series and film productions made each year. That has meant more jobs for writers. But writers say they make less money under insecure conditions. The WGA described the new environment as "a gig economy inside a union workforce." 15Economic activity involving temporary or freelance work is often called a gig economy. 16The AMPTP said terms necessary to reach a deal involve so-called mini rooms. Industry publications say mini rooms are similar to temporary writing jobs that can prevent writers from taking other jobs. Writers want a minimum number of them. How long employment contracts last is another issue being negotiated. 17Writers are also seeking more rules about the use of artificial intelligence. 18I'm Caty Weaver. 19The Associated Press reported this story. Caty Weaver adapted the report for VOA Learning English. 20____________________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22minimum - adj. to lowest possible number or amount 23exclusivity - n. the state of being limited in number, amount or use 24streaming - n. a service for television shows and movies that is available continuously over the internet 25studio -n. a company that makes movies and television shows 26picket line -n. a group of people who are on strike and who form a barrier in front of their place of work to bring attention to their cause 27generous -adj. providing more than the amount that is needed 28compensation -n. pay and other benefits for working 29magnitude -n. the size or seriousness of something 30determined -adj. willing to work hard to get what you want 31comedy -n. a kind of show that is meant to make people laugh 32_______________________________________________________________ 33What do you think of this story? 34We want to hear from you. We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 35Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.