WGA Refuses Early Negotiations

Posted on November 28, 2006

The WGA has got studios worried over a possible writers' strike next year. The WGA's leaders have refused to meet with industry leaders in January to jump start talks over the upcoming contract renewal. The current contract expires on October 31, 2007, and the WGA says it won't be ready to talk until September. It's a tactical move that has made the producers very unhappy.

Variety reports that WGA West exec director David Young issued the following statement: "The WGA will be prepared to commence negotiations in the summer of 2007, well in advance of the November contract expiration. We are currently meeting with our members on contract issues, as well as continuing our dialogue with sister guilds in Hollywood. The WGA has always worked with the companies to make sure that all writers are covered by a guild agreement with proper compensation and residuals for their work. We fully expect that a fair agreement will be reached in our upcoming negotiation."

"Law & Order" producer Dick Wolf told Variety, "The guild seems determined to ratchet up the likelihood of a strike. It's a Neolithic tactic, but it's a clear message that they want to have a work stoppage. I don't have to be the Delphic oracle to have seen this coming."

Wolf also says, "I'm telling everyone who will listen, this isn't the 1950s when TV was growing. A strike is like shooting arrows into a stumbling animal."

Ah, the Hollywood negotiating season is upon us. When writers and producers alike work diligently to see who can use the more dramatic language to describe their opponents' nefarious bargaining tactics. So, let's see. We have Dick Wolf fearlessly calling the WGA's tactics "Neolithic" and telling everyone that although he's no "Delphic oracle" he saw this strike coming. He also gets points for the "shooting arrows into a stumbling animal" metaphor in which he neatly called all striking writers a bunch of animal torturers.

On the other hand we have a "top agent" who used a tired baseball metaphor. And the WGA which used plain, sensible language to describe its position in a straight-forward, businesslike manner. Clearly, Dick Wolfe won this round. Nicely played, Dick.