Latest in WGA East

AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler will host a press call Friday with leaders of the WGA East and the NewsGuild-CWA to discuss their efforts at mitigating the economic fallout from the coronavirus crisis on their members as newsrooms across the country are facing furloughs, layoffs and budget cuts. "This is…

More than 1,200 members of the WGA East have signed a petition calling on Congress to pass immediate financial relief for news-gathering organizations, many of which have seen advertising revenues plummet by more than 50% during the coronavirus pandemic. Signers include David Simon (The Plot Against America), Tom…

As the economy begins to reopen, unions covering newsroom workers are encouraging employers to "protect as many jobs as possible during this crisis" and to adopt coronavirus testing and "strict contact tracing" protocols to prevent the spread of the virus among news teams. "Thousands of workers across the media…

On the eve of bargaining with the AMPTP for a new film and TV contract, WGA East executive director Lowell Peterson said today that his members have “mostly kept working” despite the industry's COVID-19 shutdown. Those contract talks, which will start next week, will be conducted at the same time – though separately…

UPDATED with NBCUniversal response, 1:49 PM: The WGA East today accused NBCUniversal of "union busting" in a dispute over the shuttering of its now-defunct Peacock Productions, formerly the in-house nonfiction production wing of NBC News. The guild, which had a contract with Peacock, says that many of the unit's…

Leaders of the WGA East are calling on their members to urge Congress to support paid leave for industry workers whose shows have been shuttered because of the coronavirus shutdown. The guild joins a growing list of industry unions advocating for governmental relief. "Many people in Congress are not fully aware of how…

WGA East members employed at CBSN have unanimously ratified their first contract – the first ever at a 24/7 live anchored digital streaming news network. Launched in 2014 as an arm of CBS News, CBSN voluntarily recognized the union last year as the collective bargaining agent for its more than 65 writers, producers…

Writer-producers at Vox Entertainment have ratified their first contract with the WGA East. The contract, which covers 50 writer-producers and showrunners, "includes many important provisions that should become standard across the industry, like contributions to an industry-wide health care plan, extra pay for extra…

Lisa Takeuchi Cullen will receive the WGA East's Richard B. Jablow Award at the New York edition of 72nd annual Writers Guild Awards on February 1 at the Edison Ballroom. The award, which was established in 1978 to recognize devoted service to the guild, is named after the guild's first counsel, who helped found the…

Richard Price, the acclaimed screenwriter of The Color of Money and co-creator of HBO's limited series The Night Of, will be the recipient of the WGA East's Ian McLellan Hunter Award for Career Achievement. The award will be presented February 1 at the 72nd annual Writers Guild Awards at New York's Edison…

Paula Pell will receive the WGA East's Herb Sargent Award for Comedy Excellence at the 72nd annual WGA Awards, which will be held February 1. The award will be presented by her longtime friend and former SNL colleague Amy Poehler. The honor will be bestowed in New York at the Edison Ballroom; the WGA Awards ceremonies…

The editorial, video, design and photo staffs of Hearst Magazines' 24 brands have unionized with the WGA East. The magazines include Esquire, Cosmopolitan, Harper's Bazaar, Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Popular Mechanics, Car & Driver, The Oprah Magazine, Seventeen, Elle, Woman's Day and many others. According to…