Screenwriters Reached a Deal to End the Strike. Here’s What Happens Next
Union leadership representing screenwriters in the Writers Guild of America (WGA) has declared an end to a monthslong strike after voting to lift it on Tuesday evening. The decision went into effect just after midnight on Wednesday, meaning TV and movie writers can return to work. In the meantime, between Oct. 2 and Oct. 9, union members can vote to ratify the new language in the 94-page contract. (If they vote against it, which seems unlikely, the negotiation process would start over.)
The end to the strike follows a tentative agreement made Sunday night between the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) to lift a work stoppage that began in early May.
“We can say, with great pride, that this deal is exceptional—with meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership,” the WGA wrote in an email to its members on Sunday evening. “What we have won in this contract—most particularly, everything we have gained since May 2nd—is due to the willingness of this membership to exercise its power, to demonstrate its solidarity, to walk side-by-side, to endure the pain and uncertainty of the past 146 days.”