A major strike is going on in Hollywood right now. In 15 years, for the first time, thousands of Writers Guild of America (WGA) writers have gone on strike over demand for wage increase. They are being treated like gig workers. By such an action many TV shows and movies have been affected. Gig workers are employees who are hired on a pay-for-work basis. The strike has been going on for the last several days, the effect of which is now being seen in India also.
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It may be noted that thousands of film and television writers in the United States are on a strike after negotiations for better working conditions with main studios and streamers failed to find an agreement. The Writers Guild of America (WGA) union said the strike, which began after the writers’ contract expired at midnight on last Tuesday, came after six weeks of failed negotiations with Netflix, Amazon, Apple and Disney, among others.
The union, which represents 11,500 screenwriters, said in a statement, “The WGA Negotiating Committee began this process intent on making a fair deal, but the studios’ responses have been wholly insufficient given the existential crisis writers are facing,” “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.”
Late-night shows are expected to grind to a halt immediately, while television series and movies scheduled for release later this year and beyond could face major delays. The strike came after the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), representing studios including Disney and Netflix, said negotiations had “concluded without an agreement”.
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