LOS ANGELES: Hollywood film and television writers will go on strike starting Tuesday, throwing Hollywood into turmoil as the entertainment business grapples with seismic changes triggered by the global streaming TV boom.
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) called its first work stoppage in 15 years after failing to reach an agreement for higher pay from studios such as Walt Disney Co and Netflix Inc.
“The companies’ behavior has created a gig economy inside a union workforce, and their immovable stance in this negotiation has betrayed a commitment to further devaluing the profession of writing,” the WGA said in a statement on its website.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents Walt Disney Co, Netflix Inc and others, said late on Monday it had offered “generous increases in compensation” in negotiations with the Writers Guild of America (WGA).
The 11,500 members of the WGA had given union leaders the power to call a strike as early as Tuesday, after their current contract expires, as the entertainment industry faces a tough economic backdrop.
Conglomerates are under pressure from Wall Street to make their streaming services profitable after investing billions of dollars on content to attract subscribers.
The action cost the California economy an estimated $2.1 billion as productions shut down and out-of-work writers, actors and producers cut back spending.
Producers had indicated they were prepared to increase their offers of higher pay and residuals from a day earlier, the AMPTP statement said, but were “unwilling to do so because of the magnitude of other proposals still on the table that the Guild continues to insist upon.”
