British Writers Guild Chair on WGA Solidarity: Studios “Are Making Billions,” But “Refusing to Share”

The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain (WGGB) on Wednesday joined writers and other workers in the media and entertainment sectors around the world for “Screenwriters Everywhere,” a global day of solidarity with striking Hollywood writers. The goal of the protest organized in central London was to “stand in support of the 11,500 members of Writers Guild of America West and Writers Guild of America East” who have been on strike since May 2.

The WGGB trade union, representing writers for TV, film, theater, audio, books, poetry, comedy, animation and videogames, said its members would meet up at London’s Leicester Square from around 1 p.m. local time, with the meeting point being full of symbolism: a statue of William Shakespeare in the square. WGGB president Sandi Toksvig, known as a book author and former host of The Great British Bake Off, among others, and WGGB chair Lisa Holdsworth (A Discovery of Witches, Call the Midwife) were set to be there to raise awareness for the writers strike in the British capital along with such fellow writers as Jack Thorne (His Dark Materials, Enola Holmes), Russell T Davies (Doctor Who, Queer as Folk), Simon Beaufoy (The Full Monty), and Dennis Kelly (Together, Utopia).

Members of fellow Federation of Entertainment Unions, including Equity, Bectu, the Musicians’ Union and the NUJ, as well as WGA members in the U.K., were also set to join.

Similar actions were also planned in more than 20 countries, including at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, the Cologne Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, at the Filmoteca de Catalunya and Valenciana in Spain, at the Netflix office in Buenos Aires, Argentina, at Apple and Amazon locations in Canada, and at the Tel Aviv Central Library in Israel. To show their presence on Twitter, organizers were using the hashtag #ScreenwritersEverywhere.

“I’m proud to go out on the streets today, shoulder to shoulder with my fellow WGGB members and others from across the industry, to send a loud message of solidarity to our colleagues on strike in the U.S.,” Holdsworth said ahead of the action in one of London’s busiest squares. “We also believe in better pay and working conditions for creators, improved payments on streaming services, protections against free work, and safeguards around artificial intelligence to protect compensation and creative rights.”

She also attacked Hollywood giants. “Media conglomerates are making billions in profit, yet refusing to share that with writers and other creative workers,” Holdsworth said. “I want them to see the wave of collective action around the globe today and know that we all stand united.”

Toksvig highlighted on Wednesday: “Everything starts with the writer, and we need to make sure that those who profit from the creative brilliance of writers, share those profits with writers, so they can be paid properly, enjoy fair working conditions and be treated with dignity and respect.”

She concluded: “On this Global Day of Solidarity, I would like to join my fellow union members in the U.K. in sending this message to screenwriters across the Atlantic – we hear you, we support you and we stand with you.”   

The WGGB has been advising members not to work on new projects within the jurisdiction of the WGA for the duration of the strike.

The WGA began its first strike in 15 years last month amid a lack of agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) on such hot-button issues as viewership-based residuals, the use and regulation of artificial intelligence, and minimum staffing for writers rooms.

The cost of a potential new labor deal has been disputed by the two sides. The WGA said it asked for a $429 million raise, claiming that the AMPTP offered $86 million, nearly half of which would be from a minimums increase. The AMPTP shared a different narrative, claiming the value of its proposals on wage floors alone was around $97 million per year, not $41 million a year.

The WGA has focused on shutting down in-progress productions, relying on the cooperation of fellow workplace unions. That strategy is in sharp contrast to its previous strike in 2007-2008, when it found itself far more isolated and at odds with its nominal labor allies, there was no equivalent strategy.