More than 90% of writer’s guild vote in favour of new contract with AMPTP
The Writers Guild of America’s (WGA) members have ratified its new contract with the Alliance Of Motion Picture And Television Producers (AMPTP), with more than 90% approving the deal.
4,282 (90.38%) voters in the WGA East and West chapters supported the package, which was put to members earlier this month, while only 456 voted against.
The term of the Minimum Basic Agreement runs from 2 May through 1 May, 2030. The Guild agreed to the four-year deal with the AMPTP rather than the customary three, after the studios’ representative body had pushed for five.
Turnout of 4,738 out of more than 11,000 members was considerably lower than the approximately 9,000 who voted in 2023 to approve that deal after a bruising 148-day strike.
The new deal includes a 3.25% increase in the health contribution rate starting on 2 May and increases to health contribution caps, worth a projected $280m in new funding to the health plan over the term of the agreement.
Industry contraction meant in recent years more writers relied on extended coverage points as healthcare costs went up, which drove up in-network plan costs by 13% each year since 2019.
WGAW president Michele Mulroney said, “In the face of industry contraction and runaway healthcare cost inflation, writers were able to secure a contract that returns our Health Fund to a sustainable path and builds on gains from the 2023 strike.”
The MBA also brings in minimum increases totaling 10.5% over the term of the contract, with a higher increase for comedy-variety writers in the first year; increased foreign and domestic residuals and improvements to the viewership-based streaming bonus established in 2023; and a new minimum for “page-one” rewrites and expanded protections against free work.
In terms of AI protections, the 2026 MBA preserves the protections from 2023 and adds requirements if the studios seek to license writers’ scripts or projects based on those scripts that get produced to Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) systems.
The studios must five the Guild written notice is they license writers’ work to train a GAI to generate output, and the Guild can ask to discuss the license and remunerations for the writers.
A statement from AMPTP said, “This deal reflects a collaborative approach that supports both writers and the industry’s long-term stability. We look forward to building on this progress to reach fair agreements with SAG-AFTRA and the DGA that support greater certainty while fostering opportunity across the industry.”
SAG-AFTRA resumes negotiations on 27 May, while the DGA is expected to commence talks in May. Both contracts expire on 30 June.
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