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The Strike Is Over, It’s (Almost) Official

By fred | February 11, 2008

Hurray! It’s over!!

Finally, after month and month the writers’ strike is coming to an end. As I reported earlier, a tentative deal had been reached and writers had to go over it this week-end. They did, and they approved it.

In the words of Patric Verrone, WGAW President : “I am pleased to inform you that this morning the WGA Negotiating Committee unanimously and unconditionally recommended the terms of the proposed 2008 MBA to the WGAW Board and WGAE Council. The Board and Council then voted unanimously to recommend the contract, and to submit it to the joint membership of WGAW and WGAE for ratification.”

Let go for reactions from a few people, and take a look at how things are going to go down now.

Both branches of the Writers Guild of America unanimously approved the tentative deal reached on a new contract this Sunday, and now the main issue is the strike. If showrunners, as well as writers who have production duties, are expected to be back to work this Monday, writers are still on strike, though there will be no more picketing. Writers will have to vote, on Tuesday, and decide whether or not to lift the strike.

But with recent development, and a deal approved, there’s no doubt that they will put an end to the strike, and send themselves back to work on Wednesday. So while it will take 10 to 12 days for the ratification process to complete, by Wednesday everyone should be back to work.

Writers had their fair share of questions when the deal had been reached, but over the last couple of days they were all able to discuss it and question the negotiating committee, and in the end everyone seems to be pleased with the deal reached.

WGAW President Patric Verrone said about it : “Since we began negotiations in July, we’ve been saying, “If they get paid, we get paid.’ This contract makes that a reality. It’s the best deal this Guild has bargained for in 30 years after the most successful strike this Guild has waged in 35 years. It was arguably the most successful strike in the American labor movement in a decade, clearly the most important of this young century. It is not all that we hoped for, and not all that we deserved. But as I told our members, this strike was about the future, and this deal assures for us and for future generations of writers a share in the future…”

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