Writers Strike Puts Spotlight Back On Animated Scribes’ Challenge To Be Covered By The WGA

Peter White
·3 min read

At the start of the writers strike, The Animation Guild, an entirely separate union to the WGA, came out in support of the labor action, pledging to “stand in solidarity” with WGA members.

However, as the strike hits the eight-week mark, one of the key issues in the TV animation world has reared its head again: the unusual way that animation projects are covered by labor unions.

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Michael Jamin, a co-executive producer of animated series including King of the Hill and Brickleberry as well as live-action series such as Tacoma FD and Lopez, highlighted the topic in a recent video (see it below).

“By some strange loophole, animated shows are either covered by the Animation Guild or the WGA, and strangely, it’s the studios that get to decide which one, not the writers themselves,” he said. “It seems to be me as that should be illegal, it seems like labor should decide which union they want to belong to, not the employer.”

Many of the biggest animated hits are covered by the WGA including 20th Animation’s Bob’s Burgers, Family Guy, American Dad! and The Simpsons and Netflix’s Big Mouth and Disenchantment as well as a number of series from CBS Studios. But there are plenty that aren’t.

RELATED: Nickelodeon Animation Studios Recognizes Animation Guild As Bargaining Rep For Its Production Workers

In fact, the majority of animated projects are covered by The Animation Guild, which is part of IATSE Local 839, rather than the WGA. Writers, who can be members of both unions, argue that this makes it cheaper as they don’t have to observe WGA minimums and residuals.

This is a fight that’s been brewing for some time.

Last year, more than 1,500 WGA members, including Seth MacFarlane, J.J Abrams, Nick Kroll, Amy Poehler, Mike Schur, Mindy Kaling and Spike Jonze signed a pledge for the WGA to cover animation writers.

The Simpsons exec producer Mike Scully also headed up the recently formed Animation Writers Organizing Committee, alongside Futurama’s Patric Varrone and Family Guy’s David A. Goodman, both former presidents of the WGA.

This week, Scully said on Twitter: “If there’s little difference in pay, studios wouldn’t need [The Animation Guild] to rep writers. Cheapness is the point. WGA animation coverage has been won by many writers and not just names. [It] requires organization, strategy, and walking away if possible and producing partners and reps who’ll back [you].”

He added that the loophole that Jamin referred to was “bullshit” and urged creators and partners to refuse to join a second union. “Studios never volunteer to do right thing. Make them,” he added.

Ben Siemon, who has written on series including The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle, said he can’t see a “way out of this.” “So long as one union is insanely cheaper, animation studios will always choose [The Animation Guild] unless the powerful creators have enough sway to make it WGA,” he wrote. “I wish we had the ability to get TAG writers paid more so the choice mattered less.”

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