WGAW’s Staff Union Negotiations

The WGAW invited the PNWSU to come back to the bargaining table on February 22nd and improved its comprehensive proposal in a number of areas to try to reach agreement and end the strike. The moves included a wage scale with increases to minimum salaries and annual wage increases, additional wage increases for longevity in position, just cause protections, and 2 compensatory days off for exempt employees assigned to MBA negotiations and contract or organizing campaigns. 

In response, the PNWSU reiterated its meritless charge of surface bargaining, and it was clear they were not willing to meaningfully engage toward an agreement.

The WGAW again met with the PNWSU on March 11th to try to reach a deal and presented a seventh comprehensive proposal. 

The Guild’s revised offer includes:

• Significantly, we offered a wage scale with step increases similar to the one in the WGAE staff union contract, which the staff union has cited as a model.
• Increasing the Year 1 wage increase to 4%, retroactive to January, which is on top of the 3% wage increase provided in August 2025 (the cumulative Year 1 wage increase therefore is a minimum of 7% for all staff).
• An additional 4% wage increase in August 2026, and then another 4% wage increase in August 2027 have been previously offered.
• Additional longevity wage increases for 15 years of service in a position, which is on top of the longevity increases for 5 and 10 years of service previously offered. Upon ratification staff who have been in their positions for 5 or more years will receive additional increases of 2-6%.

The WGAW’s previous proposal was already a full, robust contract with salaries, benefits, and employee protections that are among the best for any union staff in Los Angeles. The Guild’s March 11 offer improves on this. The Guild spends roughly $9 million annually on salaries for the staff in the bargaining unit and the first year increases we have offered amount to $800,000 in additional pay.

The staff union rejected the Guild’s March 11 offer and continues to insist on its proposals. Those include the right to strike during the term of the agreement; a contract term that lines up with the 2029 MBA calendar, which would require the Guild to once again negotiate with the staff union as it is preparing for MBA negotiations and give the staff union the opportunity to strike the Guild during MBA negotiations; and the reinstatement of three employees who were terminated for cause.

You can see the updated proposal comparison chart here.

The PNWSU will eventually either choose to agree to a contract and end the strike, or end the strike without a contract agreement. 

Non-supervisory staff at the WGAW are represented by the Pacific Northwest Staff Union (PNWSU), a labor union that represents the staff of a number of labor unions and non-profits. On April 22, 2025, the staff demanded voluntary recognition of the PNWSU as their collective bargaining representative.

On the same day, WGAW staff leadership agreed to voluntarily recognize the PNWSU via a card check process.

On April 29, the PNWSU was formally recognized as the labor union representing WGAW non-supervisory staff, after a mutually-selected neutral party verified the PNWSU represented a majority of non-supervisory Guild staff.

The PNWSU has no paid staff and relies on volunteers and elected leadership to organize and negotiate contracts. The chief negotiator for the WGAW staff union is PNWSU President Brandon Tippy, who is a staff member of an SEIU local in Washington state. There are 27 WGAW employees on the staff union’s negotiating committee, about 20% of the bargaining unit.

PNWSU represents 115 non-supervisory staff who work at the Guild. Around 50 executive, supervisory/management, and confidential staff are outside the bargaining unit. This unit was agreed upon by both the Guild and the PNWSU during the voluntary recognition process last April.

No. Under the Guild’s Constitution, management of the WGAW staff and operations is delegated to Executive Director Ellen Stutzman. The Board does not have a role in overseeing Guild employee relations nor in negotiating the PNWSU contract, though Ellen regularly updates the Board about the status of negotiations. You can read the Board’s statement on the PNWSU’s announcement of their strike authorization vote and the Board’s statement on the PNWSU’s strike.

The WGAW already offers competitive salaries and benefits as a non-profit, union employer. All unions are required by federal labor law to publicly disclose the salaries of every staff member on an annual basis, which provides transparency to all employees and job-seekers in the labor movement. Some of the current, pre-contract terms include:

• Annual wage increases normally equal to the minimum increases that writers have negotiated in the MBA;
• Participation in the same PWGA Health and Pension Funds writers struck to establish, and have fought to fund;
• 401k retirement plan with matching employer contributions;
• Tax-advantaged health and dependent expense savings programs;
• 11 paid holidays;
• 12-25 vacation days per year, based on years of service;
• 12 sick days per year and the ability to accrue six months of sick leave;
• Paid parental leave;
• 37.5-hour workweek for fulltime employees;
• 2 days of remote work per week, provided job duties don’t require more in-office time.

Over the course of negotiations with the PNWSU, the WGAW has made proposals that improve on the existing wages, hours and working conditions of Guild staff.

This summary shows the current state of WGAW and PNWSU proposals. The Guild opened with a comprehensive offer which has been improved over the course of 21 bargaining sessions.

See the full, current WGAW proposal (with contract language) to PNWSU for more details.

No. The Guild has offered the following:

• The Guild has no intent to use GAI or Agentic AI in a manner that would result in a reduction in bargaining unit positions.
• The parties can discuss any potential uses of GAI or Agentic AI in the Labor-Management Committee.
• If the Guild intends to use GAI or Agentic AI in a way that impacts wages, hours, or terms and conditions of employment, the Guild will bargain with the PNWSU over the decision and effects of using GAI or Agentic AI as required under the National Labor Relations Act.
• If the Guild uses GAI or Agentic AI, the Guild will provide paid training during work hours for any employee who is required to use GAI or Agentic AI.
• The Guild confirms that any use of GAI or Agentic AI will not result in a reduction in bargaining unit positions.
• Any data collected and/or processed by GAI or Agentic AI systems must comply with applicable privacy laws, and shall not be used to undermine collective bargaining rights.

PNWSU appears to agree in concept with Guild’s GAI proposal (e.g., the parties will bargain over use of GAI and employees will receive paid training; there will not be any job loss as a result of GAI use).

The PNWSU’s proposal, however, could prohibit the Guild from using any technology that could conceivably be described as AI to track calls/emails received and answered, documents reviewed, attendance or generally to assess employee work and workflow, or for purposes of safeguarding against misuse of confidential information or funds. The Guild currently uses technology to perform some of these functions in protecting member information and managing a remote workforce.

The foundation of the MBA was laid 90 years ago and built up over the decades. So when the WGA sits across from the AMPTP, writers are seeking modifications to a discrete set of terms that are part of a well-established, intricate 700-page agreement. In addition, the companies represented by the AMPTP are some of the largest corporations in the world and generate billions in profit based on the works writers create. The WGAW is a non-profit labor union funded by the dues paid by each member.

The staff union is negotiating its first contract, which is often a longer and more challenging process. In a first contract, every word and clause must be discussed thoroughly and agreed upon during bargaining to be sure both sides understand its intent and how the contract will work in practice.

The Guild has tried to meet as many of the PNWSU’s concerns as possible, and find compromises on others.

No. The Guild immediately granted recognition of the staff union through a card check process. The WGAW Board congratulated Guild staff on forming a union, and stated that “[t]he right to organize and collectively bargain are central tenets of our organization.” After the PNWSU announced its strike authorization vote, the Board reiterated that it “continues to support the staff’s right to engage in collective action.”

Guild staff leadership allows staff union representatives to participate in disciplinary meetings on paid time, supervisors have been trained to refrain from discussing the staff union with those in the bargaining unit; and concerns raised by PNWSU have been swiftly investigated. Staff leadership provided PNWSU with requested information to prepare for bargaining, on-site space for bargaining unit meetings, and made representatives available for 21 bargaining dates so far. Despite PNWSU allegations, no employee has been retaliated against for their union activity and staff leadership has made it clear to all supervisors that anti-union activity will not be tolerated. When PNWSU alleges unfair treatment, the Guild asks for evidence, investigates claims, and takes corrective action if warranted.

The Guild’s staff leadership handled negotiations with the same approach. The first proposal to the staff union was comprehensive and contained important union protections, 3% annual increases to salaries across the board in Years 2 and 3 as opening wage increases (in addition to 3% already given the first year), plus increases to starting salaries of some entry level positions, and an extra holiday. There have been additional improvements as the negotiations have proceeded, including robust AI protections that preserve bargaining unit positions. We’ve prepared a summary of the status of WGAW and PNWSU proposals, and you can read the WGAW’s current comprehensive proposal to the staff union.

The core work of the Guild is continuing, supported by the 50 staff (30% of the entire Guild staff) not in the bargaining unit.

MBA negotiations in particular are minimally impacted since the executive staff and managers who play key roles working directly with the WGA Negotiating Committee are not on strike.

Unless otherwise announced, during the PNWSU strike, the Guild’s headquarters at 3rd and Fairfax is closed to members and the public, including the Foundation library and member lounge. Guild screenings at the Writers Guild Theater, committee meetings, panels, and educational events are suspended. 

Guild inboxes are being monitored, so please reach out if you have a current enforcement issue that needs immediate attention or contact us if you have other time-sensitive Guild business.

No, the Guild is not soliciting bargaining unit staff to work during the strike. The PNWSU went on strike on Tuesday, February 17 at 12:00 p.m.  The Guild did not lockout the staff. After the strike started, the Guild restricted bargaining unit employees’ building and IT access for security reasons, which required us to ask the staff if they are working so they could regain access and to make sure any working employee is properly paid. It is the Guild’s legal obligation as an employer to not discriminate against those who choose not to strike, nor those who choose to strike. The text of the email the Guild sent to all bargaining unit staff at 1:55 p.m. on February 17 is included below. 

Earlier today, the Pacific Northwest Staff Union (PNWSU) called a strike against the WGAW. Effective Wednesday, February 18, Guild staff not on strike will be working remotely unless instructed otherwise by their supervisor.

As you are in the bargaining unit represented by the PNWSU, we are writing to ask whether you intend to work your regularly scheduled work hours today and for the remainder of the week. The reason we are asking this question is so that bargaining unit employees who choose to continue to work have IT access (e.g., VPN and Remote Desktop) to do their jobs and are paid properly. If you are striking, please be advised that you may not access Guild property, including the Guild’s IT systems such as your WGAW Outlook email account or Remote Desktop.

You are not required to respond to this email.

No employee will be retaliated against either for participating in a lawful work stoppage or for choosing to work. Nor will any employee be retaliated against based on their response (or lack of response) to this email.

No. A member of the staff was terminated for performance issues prior to the PNWSU launching its union recognition drive in April of 2025. Since the staff union organized, two staff members have been terminated for cause. In both instances, the PNWSU represented the two employees during the discipline process and the Guild provided the PNWSU the information relevant to the terminations. During negotiations for the first contract with the PNWSU, the WGAW offered interim just cause discipline protections, as well as a grievance and arbitration procedure, which would have allowed the PNWSU to arbitrate whether there was just cause for the two terminations. The PNWSU rejected the WGAW’s offer.

Because this is a first contract negotiation, there is neither a ‘no strike clause’ nor a contract deadline, which allowed the PNWSU to strike at any time.

The PNWSU became the exclusive representative of WGAW non-management staff on April 29, 2026. The PNWSU first contacted the Guild on July 23, 2025 to schedule negotiations for a first contract, requesting “to enter negotiations by the end of August 2025.”  On July 29, the Guild offered 21 dates in August and September 2025 that it was available to bargain. On August 11, the PNWSU selected September 9, 2025 to begin bargaining. The parties have held 21 bargaining sessions between September 9, 2025 and March 11, 2026.

The Guild can and must carry out MBA negotiations with the AMPTP, regardless of whether Guild staff are on strike. MBA negotiations are scheduled to begin on March 16, 2026, and the Guild has a duty to its members to negotiate the MBA, including securing funding to protect the PWGA Health Fund, which provides health care for writers and all full-time WGAW staff.

The Guild executive staff and managers who play key roles working directly with the WGA Negotiating Committee are not on strike.

You can read more about 2026 MBA Negotiations here.