Initial response from Hardline Writers was as expected: "This is the worst deal in the history of deals."
The rest of Hollywood saw the merits of the deal and, when the WGA NegCom and the AMPTP restarted negotiations (although informally), most of us collectively and optimistically held our breaths.
The beginning of this week brought rumors that a deal was imminent, and perhaps it is. But as the week has drawn on, there is a growing sense that the hardline view is actually starting to take hold.
People are still buying into the "Sky Is Falling" fear that reruns are going to disappear. This is lemming-like conspiracy-based fear at its most insane. The idea is so farfetched as to be comical, yet folks are falling for Mallory Keaton's warped (though obviously very earnest) view.
The boogeyman is everywhere...
Now the SAG president is squashing the deal. Respected Writer-Director Phil Alden Robinson is writing (rather eloquently) about how bad it is.
I understand that this deal is not the pie in the sky deal that anyone wanted. I even get that some realistic goals were not met -- I thought the streaming residual would come in at around $2000, for example (which is a number that might as well be $1200 as far as many hardliners are concerned).
But I urge these writers -- again -- to really lay out what they realistically expect to gain in a contract that is not currently there. And, again, what price are they willing to pay? What price are they expecting the rest of us to pay?
Is it worth another 6 months of strike in order to get jurisdiction for Reality? Is it worth 3 months to get $4000 for streaming?
Cos guess what? A lot of us don't think it is worth it. We're done with this strike, which NEVER SHOULD HAVE BEEN.
We're sick of the financial losses.
We don't want to lose our homes.
We are sick of you flushing the present down the drain in exchange for a future that would be uncertain even with the bestest, most wonderful contract ever conceived by man, woman, or unicorn.
The DGA deal is an excellent template. If tweaks can be made without derailing the whole process, fine. But it is time to get Hollywood back to work.
This Strike has produced some dividends. It's time to cash in.
Sign the deal.
30 comments:
I'm with you BTL Guy. But the funny thing is that the "Hardliners" who oppose the DGA deal seem to oppose any deal that might come out of the informal talks. They claim that they have faith in their negotiators, but at the same time seem to doubt that they can get a deal without waiting for SAG to strike in June.
Nobody knows what they are talking about in those meetings - not even Nikki Finke. I still think that they must be onto something or one of the sides would have walked out by now.
The sound volume of the so-called hardliners is a knee jerk insecure reaction to the sound of silence coming out of the informals. Just don't listen to or read their cries in the dark. We'll really know soon enough.
Keep the Faith Brothers and Sisters!
TranspoBill
I say amen to that!
Bill is correct.
The hardliners are getting very antsy at this point because there really has been a pretty effective news blackout this time. So they don't know WHAT is going on in there, and they're getting worried from the lack of info.
Some posters are already saying that they will vote no, and that they think a majority of the WGA will vote down whatever deal comes out, specifically so that they can wait for SAG. ("Robin T" at Nikki Finke's gossip site comes to mind) This attitude is more than counterproductive. They don't seem to understand that the collateral damage will be much higher, and that the damage to their own guild will similarly be disastrous. And the "better deal" that they think they'll be getting will only be a matter of a a few hundred dollars per year, which is far from worth the six additional months of striking.
SAG's bellicose attitude right now is particularly striking, since they haven't even picked their negotiators or said what their objectives are. The only statements we've been hearing have been echoes of the earlier hardline WGA statements. And the SAG denunciation of the DGA deal was easily batted away both by Michael Apted and by DGA members in the yahoo group who could see that the SAG hardliners didn't really know what they were talking about.
At this point, all DGA members, including myself, have received the ratification packet, which includes a full summary of all the economic changes in the new contract, in terms of dollars and cents, and in terms of conditions. There's a lot more detail than the bullet points presented before, and I would hope that the predisposed hardliners would actually read the document before throwing it in the trash.
As for WGA, there are other dynamics working inside their guild which the hardliners may not be aware of at this point. One crucial element will come to pass within the next week, and could make all the difference between moderates voting for or against what is perceived to be a decent deal, but not "all that and a bag of chips."
I'm actually encouraged that Nikki Finke has mostly been quiet since her outbursts last week.
In the meantime, I am starting to see the signs that the town believes the end is in sight. I heard from the line producer of my show this week, for the first time in over a month - just checking in to see where I was. I believe the same thing is happening across the town. That right there is an indication where we may be.
This should help bring a settlement to the table.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117979896.html?categoryid=1066&cs=1
That Variety article discusses what I was mentioning. I did not want to be the first to say it publicly, as I was told about it in confidence. But at this point, it's out in the open.
Basically, the WGA leadership told the members that the clock would stop on their health benefits running out, since they would be unable to earn the qualifying amounts while out on the picket line. This has turned out not to be true. 250 members will lose their benefits as of April 1, and the number will rise when we get to July. To try to stem this, the WGA leadership has now offered to make $1000 COBRA payments for one month for members who lose their benefits. That's an immediate hit of $250K, even if the strike is already over at that point.
I cannot overestimate the impact of something like this. One guild rep said this was a Union 101 mistake. This is clearly one major reason why the WGA leadership is quite motivated right now to try to settle this.
Patric Verrone, once again, puts his foot in his mouth. What a tool.
From the Variety article:
...refused to respond to questions as to why Verrone had provided members with incorrect information about the health plan.
The answer is obvious: Verrone talks out his ass, doesn't fact check, and assumes his rosey vision of the world is perfectly aligned with reality.
Had this guy done a reality check just 6 months ago, perhaps the whole catastrophe that is the Writers Strike could have been avoided.
But, no.
I've said since the beginning that Verrone and Young basically best-cased the lead up to the strike and the strike itself. The industry is now mired in a disaster borne of their hubris.
Writers, if your leadership talks out their ass about something that could have been checked with something as simple as a 2-minute phone call; what other assumptions have they presented to you as fact?
Maybe attacks against Verrone and Young's abilities and motives are not just some wacky AMPTP conspiracy to discredit your leadership. Maybe your guys really did lead you blindly into a clusterfuck.
And they forced the rest of us along for the ride.
Everybody, please answer me:
all this extra money that the WGA and SAG will get after this stike... where will it come from?
From the networks profits? mh.
How about production? Could it be that when we all be back to work we will see our jobs diminished, runaway, and schedule shortened?
Or am I just fearing the impossible?
The new residuals will be paid via the new revenue streams coming from the internet. That shouldn't have any impact on how BTL gets paid.
But it's depressingly regular that the studios tend to "tighten their belts" whenever there is a change of executives. And the changes to the pilot season will certainly cost even more jobs than the flight to Canada did.
I was so pissed off when Bateman posted that letter. If you believe what John Wells had to say about how a show is processed to wring every dime out of it, then she is at the end of her money train.
That post was her yelling to the writers Neg Com behind the doors.
What happen today with the writers loosing their health bennies ought to quiet some of the hard liners.
I don't know why wga leadership promised to freeze benefits. Health insurance is highly structured business dependent on money going in before it goes out
In the end Patric and David will be as reviled as John Wells and Gil Cates.
Chernin coming back tomorrow maybe to rubber stamp the deal.
When this is over I'm going to date a writer. I'm going to give it to her like they gave it to us. Wish me luck.
Just A Thought:
re: your last paragraph---
heeheehee.....BWAHBWAHBWAH!!! I love it!!! (still laughing!!!!) hee......hee.......lemme read it again....
HAHAHAHAHHA!!!!!!!
by the way: my thoughts exactly. : )
Best of luck, Just A Thought.
Dave McNary at Variety issued a fairly gloomy prognosis last night, effectively saying that the talks are not moving very quickly, and that there's a real danger that hardliners on both sides may break things off again. I would normally dismiss such things as gossip, but Variety has been fairly accurate throughout this situation, including the reportage of the impending health insurance mess.
McNary's unnamed sources are citing a potential danger that the studios may break off the talks again if progress isn't made within the next few days. McNary also cites WGA moderates on the Negcomm as saying that they've been left out of the loop of the current talks and are now concerned that Verrone and Young are positioning the WGA to reject the deal and wait for SAG. This was not helped by WGA leadership asking the members to sign a blanket support letter.
I still think these guys can work something out. It's my hope that McNary is simply relaying the pessimism of people who've already been burned a few times and don't want to get their hopes up. If McNary actually has something more than that, we're apparently looking at a strike that would go not just through June but potentially all the way to October. The effect of that long of a strike would be nothing short of catastrophic.
C'mon Kev - they're still in there and under a blackout. When these "journalists" like Dave McNary or Nikki the Finke say unamed sources it means nothing. Nothing to report other than filler. Tensions rise and we all feel sick to our stomachs - thanks Dave and Finnki...
Though I try not to listen, the Transpo coordinators and captains I work for say it won't be too long now....of course I can't name names here...
I will buy you and BTL Guy beer at the Saddle Ranch when this is all over.
Keep the faith brothers and sisters!
TranspoBill 399
At this point the biggest problem is SAG. They want the WGA not to settle. Rosenberg would love to see the perfect storm.
The statements from Rosenberg and Bateman remind me of children at the bedroom door telling their parents not to forget them while they make another baby.
There's another side to this. What if these are the formal talks. The WGA has always said they wanted to talk to the guys that really make the decisions. That's who their talking to, Isn't it.
AS for the moderates being left out of the loop, That won't bode well for Verrone and Young. After yesterdays events with their health plan I think even the hard line strike captains are thinking WTF. Unless Veronne and Young have absolute power to make the decision to pay the cobras I don't think the rank and file will go for 250,000 a month without a resolution to the strike. Besides they lied to their members in the first place.
Remember Young's statement at the beginning of this Look what I have wreaked on this town. He said it was taken out of context but what other context could there be.
Remember date a writer and someone should date Bateman and Rosenberg to get their hormones in check.
Bill, I hear you. I've just tended to find McNary's reporting to be, well, reporting, as opposed to the gossipping being done by Nikki and company. I hope we hear something positive soon. The indications I have seen are the same as the coordinators and captains you're hearing from. But I'm trained not to accept it until the check clears... When this thing is over, I'll be happy to have that beer.
And I agree that the consequences for the mistakes made by the WGA leadership will be seen fairly quickly within that guild. The moderate members are not likely to reelect these guys due to things like the health insurance snafu, and the hardliners are unlikely to stay with them if the upcoming contract is not everything they wanted.
It's awfully quiet at the United Hollywood blog.I think I hear a collective OH SHIT
just a heads up, when the WGA persuaded the 12 members of the story dept. at America's Next Top Model to walk off their jobs, promises were made that were constitutionally impossible to keep as well. other promises were made that were just plain stupid, but just as impossible to keep.
For example:
The story dept was told that up to 75% of their regular pay would be covered by a WGA strike fund, prior to getting the needed approval from the WGA E board. Regardless, the WGA strike fund does not cover non members, and the funds were taken from a separate 'slush' fund and described as 'organizing expenses.'
Not to put too fine a point on it, had the WGA not offered to pay their salaries, those Top Model folks would not have gone out on strike.
Patric, David, Jeff and Sarah also promised on many occasions that the WGA would help any "writer" from top model find a new job, suggesting that they would be better off after the strike, job wise, than before, even if the strike failed. This demonstrated a profound disconnect on their part as to how this industry functions, and how people get jobs.
another side note, the ANTM strike was meant to be a 'practice' run for the contract strike. I'd say they're both working equally as well.
They didn't see fit to reach out to the IATSE before or during the Top Model strike either, even though the editors on the show were all working under an MPEG contract.
As always you make some good points (and some I disagree with), but one question I'd like answered is whether the WGA hardliners are a small but loud minority, which is the perception given here, or the mainstream. We can't know for certain without an actual polling, but based on the writers I know and have spoken to, my perception is it's actually the latter.
The whole ANTM fiasco was one of the laundry list of Union 101 mistakes that got listed off to me by a guild rep. Here's another - telling people that their initiation fee to join the guild would be waived if they walked out.
Couple that with the attendant mistakes involved in this strike and you have a recipe for a complete changeover at the guild once this is all done. The moderate writers I know aren't hotheads. They're actually quite reasonable, and while they were absolutely willing to strike when the AMPTP tried the "no residuals til after we show profit" canard, they're not willing to play all these other games. Most of them simply want a fair contract, and to go back to work like the rest of us. What drives me crazy at times is the rhetoric of the hardliners at the top and on the fringes.
Ruthie, you may well be right, but I'm not certain that the mainstream of the WGA is going to be happy to support another 6 months of striking if it doesn't garner them something really substantial. And the ones that are losing their health coverage are going to become the loudest voices. And all of the guilds and unions deserve the best and fairest contracts to be had - so I'm not saying anything against the WGA's right to a fair and equitable contract. I'm just saying that when a guild leadership misleads their members about basic conditions, there's a serious problem. If this had happened at the DGA, the membership would be in a state of outrage.
What I really wonder is this. The amptp will at a certain point say this is our last and final offer. Do they meaning WGA NEG COM have to bring it back to their members and ask them to vote on it. Or do they have the power not to show them anything and keep this strike going.
just a thought said...
"What I really wonder is this. The amptp will at a certain point say this is our last and final offer."
Generally the language of "best and final offer" is used by the negcomm when they have agreed to present an offer to the rank and file for a ratification vote.
If the AMPTP were to make a final offer to the WGA negs that was unacceptable, then the reps would post it in an email to members or on the WGA website.
We (Hollywood Teamsters) settled our contract with the producers last summer a very strong gains including a provision to cover future forms of media. Our reps used the "last and best offer" in their sales pitch to us with a chuckle. Those producers don't usually try and talk tough with Leo Reed and the Teamsters. Too bad we couldn't get Leo in there right now!
Transpobill
My question is about how much power those guys have. Can they hide deal. They been caught in lies. Can they leave their members in dark about what really was there.
I don't think I ever got a chance to vote yes or no on the last IA contract.
sorry I hit the wrong button
Anyone have a lawyer friend who can ponder this question?
Can those of us affected by this strike (non WGA members) have any leverage to file a class action suit against the WGA (for incompetence among other, more proper reasons) and the AMPTP (for not negotiating in good faith) for our lost wages, pension, and healthcare?
It's worth a though.
Why are the moderates, those who want to go back to work, letting the fringes frame the debate? I realize it's scary but why not initiate a little discussion? Maybe a thread here where most of the people are civil and reasonable - just to let people know that they aren't alone in their thoughts. Don't know exactly what form it should take. Any thoughts? The union, to my way of thinking, is being hijacked - led down a different course than the initial plan with a membership that wasn't fully informed.
Yep, I'm anon - it's witch hunt time out there for anyone who dissents and I don't have the money or the name to swim upstream alone.
to the last poster
"Yep, I'm anon - it's witch hunt time out there for anyone who dissents and I don't have the money or the name to swim upstream alone."
You bet there's witch hunt going on. The moderates will have to take back your guild once this is over. For now they should post here anonymous.
Over at Hollywood United dissent isn't allowed. If you don't agree your either ignorant, clueless or a shill.
Let them know there's another voice in the guild. Do it anonymously
I'd like to offer up a spot to openly discuss. You can click on my name in this comment for the link. I didn't know what to call the board, and only a couple of people have stopped by.
You don't have to register to post and you can start threads if you like.
Yes, the fringes are dominating the debate a lot of the time, but that's happening with the country as a whole right now. The people in power pander to the extremes because they know these people are generally the most active and vocal. Us moderates generally get lost in the shuffle until, every once in a while, we decide that enough is enough.
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