With the WGA strike now in effect in the U.S., the Guild across the Atlantic in the U.K. has reminded its members not to work on any U.S. shows.
Following a motion of solidarity it recently passed in support of the WGA, the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain (WGGB) has now said that while it understands that these are “difficult times” and many writers are in “need of work,” it is advising its members “not to work on projects in the jurisdiction of the WGA for the duration of the strike.” WGGB members have already been advised that if they were to work on a U.S. project — effectively breaking the picket line — they would be removed from the Guild.
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As part of its updated guidance issued on Tuesday, the WGGB pointed to strike rules stating that the WGA “can and will bar a writer from future Guild membership,” and that the WGA had called on members to report the names of any individual who they believed “has performed writing services for a struck company and as much information as possible about the non-member’s services.”
According to the guidance, any WGA or WGGB member can still work on a project if it only falls under WGGB jurisdiction.
“We continue to show our solidarity with our sister union and their members in the U.S. as they embark on industrial action to secure fair pay, decent working conditions and to gain their rightful share in the future financial successes of their work,” said WGGB chair Lisa Holdsworth.
“We know that strike action is a last resort and one that requires individual sacrifice. The resounding majority of WGA members who voted for this action have shown the collective strength of their feeling and their resolve to stand firm on issues that affect writers the world over,” she continued. “I know that my fellow WGGB members will share my message of solidarity to our colleagues overseas, and I know many will also have understandable concerns about the impact on their work here, at a time when the traditional boundaries around genre and jurisdiction fall away, and when writers here face their own challenges.”
The strike marks a first for Hollywood’s writers in over 15 years. After negotiations with the labor group representing studios and streamers faltered on Monday night, the Guild announced that a work stoppage would begin Tuesday afternoon. Viewership-based residuals, artificial intelligence and minimum staffing for writers rooms are some of the main disputed issues between the Guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, according to a document laid out by the writers on Monday night.
