Agreement reached; strike averted. -- X-Philes World-X-Files Movie 2

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Date Posted: 07:20:30 05/07/01 Mon
Author: c_shantal
Subject:

Agreement reached; strike averted.

Thanks to Agent Extremis:

http://www.msnbc.com/news/569008.asp?0na=2105Eg24

HOLLYWOOD, Calif., May 4 � The Writers Guild of America and the
Alliance of
Motion Picture and Television Producers reached tentative agreement over
a
new contract after last-minute negotiations with the Directors Guild of
America over creative issues.

THE AGREEMENT AVERTS a threatened strike by some 11,000 film and
television
writers.

Guild treasurer Michael Mahern announced the agreement at press
conference
at the guild�s Los Angeles headquarters. Mahern said the package
included
�groundbreaking improvements, and without a strike.�

The deal was reached Friday afternoon after nine weeks of bargaining. It
set
the stage for a similar deal by film and TV actors, who begin
negotiating
their own new contract next week.

The WGA contract must still be approved by the WGA, west, board, and the
WGA, east, council, and then ratified by the guild�s members.

The agreement came after last-minute discussions the Directors Guild of
America over creative issues. Consultation with the DGA became the key
to
settlement of final terms in the writers� creative package. Directors
have
an immediate interest in those issues, since any change in the status of
writers may affect that of a film�s director. One person familiar with
today
�s DGA session said long-form television issues had been one of the last
remaining areas of dispute. The WGA has been asking that screenwriters
be
employed for the entire period of a TV movie production, that expansion
of
the so-called possessory credit.

It would be highly unusual for guild membership to reject the package if
the
East- and West-Coast boards follow the negotiating committee in
recommending
the pact. Membership of the committee and boards overlaps substantially,
making board approval likely, even if some members dissent.

WGA, west, board member Bryce Zabel, interviewed shortly before the deal
was
announced, said he expected any deal to be approved by members, but
suggested the vote would nonetheless test union president John Wells and
other leaders. In Zabel�s words: �(The question) will shift from �What
does
the community think?� to �What do the members think? Who cares what the
community thinks?��

In the tense weeks leading up to the settlement, guild leaders and
companies
had faced intense pressure from Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan and
many
entertainment workers to avoid a walk-out that promised to cause
billions of
dollars in economic damage.

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