The Producers Guild of America has issued a statement standing in support of the “difficult decision” for the WGA strike.
“The Producers Guild of America stands with the Writers Guild as its members seek fair and equitable compensation for their work, making the difficult decision to strike in order to create meaningful change within our industry,” the Guild, which is composed of independent producers, wrote in their statement posted to Twitter Tuesday. “We believe that everyone working in the film and television industry deserves to be fairly compensated for their work and receive essential benefits.”
The statement comes hours after the WGA officially commenced the entertainment industry’s first strike in 15 years after the union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers failed to reach a deal by Monday at midnight, when the most recent contract expired.
“The decision was made following six weeks of negotiations with Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Discovery-Warner, NBC Universal, Paramount and Sony under the umbrella of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP),” the WGA said in a statement Monday evening. “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 WGA also confirmed picketing will begin Tuesday after the Guild informed its members that picket lines will begin on Tuesday afternoon had a deal not reached by the midnight deadline.
Taking place from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday in both New York City and Los Angeles, picketing lines will go up at 10 major studios in Hollywood, including Amazon, CBS Radford, CBS TV City, Disney, Fox Entertainment, Netflix, Paramount, Sony, Universal and Warner Bros. WGA members and supporters will also march at the Peacock NewFront presentation in New York City.
