{"id":1558,"date":"2019-08-13T06:00:40","date_gmt":"2019-08-13T06:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uniontrack.com\/blog\/?p=1558"},"modified":"2019-08-13T12:37:41","modified_gmt":"2019-08-13T12:37:41","slug":"writers-union","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union","title":{"rendered":"Strength in Numbers: Writers Union in Hollywood Clashes With Agents\u2019 Association"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Ken Green<br \/>\nCEO\/Founder<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.uniontrack.com\/\">UnionTrack, Inc<\/a><\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s an intense battle going on in Hollywood right now between the Writers Guild of America (WGA), the union representing writers, and the Association of Talent Agents (ATA), a trade association that represents talent agencies which find jobs and negotiate contracts for writers.<\/p>\n<p>As of April 13, 2019, thousands of writers union members have cut ties with their agents after talks to agree on a new code of conduct between the two sides broke down.<\/p>\n<h2>What Led to the Dissolution of These Relationships?<\/h2>\n<p>The long-standing working relationship between screenwriters and their agents has been defined by the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wgaeast.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/09\/amba1976.pdf\">Artists\u2019 Manager Basic Agreement<\/a> (AMBA), which has been in place, unchanged, since 1976. The industry has significantly evolved since then in ways that the WGA asserts have put writers at a financial disadvantage because of this outdated agreement that doesn\u2019t do enough to regulate agency conflicts of interest.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>A report by the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pmcdeadline2.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/03\/no-conflict-no-interest-wm.pdf\">Writers Guild of America West<\/a> (WGAW) points out that \u201ctelevision writer-producers\u2019 median weekly earnings declined 23 percent between 2014 and 2016\u201d largely due to conflicts of interest by agencies that have led to them abandoning their fiduciary duties to writers. As the agencies have grown exponentially through expansion and investments, the WGAW accuses them of straying from their \u201ccore purpose of representing the interests of their clients.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWriters overall are not doing better, we\u2019re doing worse,\u201d said WGAW President <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/vimeo.com\/318592532\/ecbbba4517?fbclid=IwAR0yLQSnBZlJLH5s02D74fkljivSorZjJoP1VD5Ju1cyle4fELAlQtU5tuw\">David Goodman<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>To amend the situation, the WGA demanded an updated version of the AMBA contract to modernize the agreement. The two sides, however, were unable to agree on the content of the new code of conduct. Here\u2019s a look at the timeline of events that led to the break.\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>April 6, 2018 &#8211; The WGA gave the ATA the required one-year notice that it intended to terminate the AMBA agreement. The implication was that both sides would work together to write a new agreement.<\/li>\n<li>February 2019 &#8211; Actual negotiations between the two sides began with the April 6 deadline looming for an agreement.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>March 31, 2019 &#8211; The WGA held a vote asking members to approve the new code of conduct it had written even though it wasn\u2019t yet agreed on by the ATA. Nearly 95 percent of voting members approved.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>April 6, 2019 &#8211; Both sides agreed to a one-week extension, providing hope that a negotiated agreement would be forthcoming.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>April 10, 2019 &#8211; The ATA presented an offer that included concessions on the two key issues. <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/business\/hollywood\/la-fi-ct-wga-talent-agencies-negotiations-20190412-story.html\">Karen Stuart<\/a>, executive director of the ATA represented their offer as \u201ca meaningful investment in the writer community.\u201d Ultimately, though, it was rejected by the WGA as not going far enough.<\/li>\n<li>Midnight, April 13, 2019 &#8211; A deal between the two sides isn\u2019t reached, severing the relationship. The WGA instructs its members to fire their agents.<\/li>\n<li>April 22, 2019 &#8211; The WGA sent out 7,000 termination letters to non-signatory talent agencies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The breakdown in negotiations came down to two significant issues.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image2-1.jpg\" alt=\"writers union concept\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1562\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image2-1.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image2-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image2-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image2-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>What Are the Core Issues in the Disagreement?<\/h2>\n<p>The fight between the writers and agents boils down to two key issues: packaging fees and the move by agencies into production, the latter setting agencies up as employers <em>and<\/em> representatives of the writers.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3>The Central Concern Is Packaging<\/h3>\n<p>The issue of packaging isn\u2019t a new one between writers and agents. It is a practice that writers have long protested and one that writer <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/davidsimon.com\/but-im-not-a-lawyer-im-an-agent\/\">David Simon<\/a> calls \u201corganized theft\u201d in a lengthy summons for solidarity between WGA writers against the practice.<\/p>\n<p>Packaging is when agencies bundle talent (writers, directors, actors, etc.) for a project. Studios, in turn, pay agencies a packaging fee for delivering that packaged bundle and writers don\u2019t pay a commission. But, that money is paid directly to the agency from the production budget; writers don\u2019t receive any of it, even though it is their work.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Therefore, \u201cthe total payments to the agency are more than what the agency&#8217;s client \u2014 on whose back it leveraged the package \u2014 makes on the show,\u201d explains producer and director <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/news\/gavin-polone-tvs-dirty-secret-783941\">Gavin Polone<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s the obvious rub for writers. Agencies profit from their work when they, the writers, don\u2019t. Because agency pay isn\u2019t tied to writer commission, agencies don\u2019t have the incentive to fight for increased writer pay, which is the central conflict of interest argument with the issue.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The ATA asserts that, in general, packaging deals are better for writers because the writers don\u2019t have to pay the standard 10 percent commission to agencies. A recent report commissioned and released by the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pmcdeadline2.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/03\/front-end-packaging-elimination-effect-analysis-march-17-2019-final-wm.pdf\">ATA<\/a> shows that packaging deals collectively saved writers from paying $49 million in commission fees last year.<\/p>\n<p>In March, the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pmcdeadline2.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/03\/uta_tv_writing_data_analysis.pdf\">United Talent Agency<\/a> (UTA) released its three-year study (2015-2018) of television shows on the impact of packaging writers\u2019 salaries. Its data shows that writers made more when shows were packaged. On average, writers made $3,374 more per episode on packaged than non-packaged shows while saving an average of $2,493 in commissions per episode.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>This, combined with the concerns of everyone else they represent, says UTA CEO <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2019\/tv\/news\/uta-study-writers-packaged-shows-1203168031\/\">Jeremy Zimmer<\/a>, is why the agencies represented by the ATA are unwilling to drop the practice of packaging. \u201cA unilateral abandonment of packaging adversely affects our writers who may not wish to pay commission and it also forces other artists on shows to also pay commission,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n<p>The WGA isn\u2019t buying it.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3>Affiliate Production Is Another Sticking Point<\/h3>\n<p>The other practice of agencies that the writers take issue with is affiliate production. Over the past few years, agencies have expanded their scope to financing and producing their own projects. They are buying or creating production companies that are also shopping for shows their writers are involved in.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Writers are calling foul on this practice, saying agencies are enriching themselves at the expense of their clients, reports <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bnnbloomberg.ca\/hollywood-writers-union-instructs-members-to-fire-their-agents-1.1243984\">Lucas Shaw<\/a> at Bloomberg. The agency has become both the employer and the employee, creating a conflict of interest.<\/p>\n<p>Screenwriter <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vulture.com\/article\/wga-hollywood-agents-packaging-explained.html\">John Gary<\/a> tells Vulture that the people at the agencies aren\u2019t bad; it\u2019s just the practice of setting up their own production companies. \u201cWe know that company structure can eventually take advantage of employees in really bad ways,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd so we need to eliminate that incentive for them to take advantage of us. They\u2019re great companies with great people working there. They just can\u2019t be owned by the same people who own the agencies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Agency production studios counter that idea, writes journalist <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/fortune.com\/2019\/04\/11\/why-hollywood-writers-could-fire-agents\/\">Dan Reilly<\/a>. \u201cThese agencies say they often increase salaries by driving up competition for shows, use their own clients more regularly, and offer better back-end points on series.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The WGA\u2019s new code of conduct requires agencies to return to a commission-only model of operation with writers, eliminating packaging fees, and to break away from affiliate producers. The ATA refused to agree to the code as is and offered their own terms in negotiations. Those terms were rejected by the WGA which then required its members to fire their agencies.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image1-1.jpg\" alt=\"writers union concept\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1561\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image1-1.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image1-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image1-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image1-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>The Disagreement Has Turned Into at Least One Legal Battle<\/h2>\n<p>After failing to reach an agreement, the WGA sued the four biggest agencies that participate in the practice of packaging: Creative Artists Agency, William Morris Endeavor, ICM Partners and UTA.<\/p>\n<p>WGAW general counsel <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wga.org\/news-events\/news\/press\/2019\/writers-guild-of-america-announces-lawsuit-to-end-talent-agencies-conflicted-business-practices\">Tony Segall<\/a> explains the suit focuses on two claims: packaging fees that violate state fiduciary duty laws and federal unfair competition laws. \u201cPackaging fees are not a new practice in Hollywood, but they have always been controversial. It is time to put an end to the egregious conflict of interest that they pose,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Now, the ATA is crying foul over the WGA compelling members to fire their agents and work with lawyers and talent managers to find work. The WGA asserts that is has the power to delegate exclusive bargaining authority on its own terms.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The ATA has called the move illegal saying it violates California and New York licensing laws, threatening to sue the union. The argument by the ATA is that the WGA cannot delegate the power of agents to those that aren\u2019t licensed because this would be considered \u201cunfair and unlawful competition,\u201d according to a letter to the WGA from the ATA\u2019s attorney, <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2019\/film\/news\/agents-warn-writers-hiring-managers-lawyers-1203188179\/\">Marvin S. Putnam<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe WGA cannot delegate authority it does not have,\u201d writes Putnam. \u201cThe WGA, like all unions, is empowered to bargain collectively on behalf of its members. The WGA cannot, consistent with its duties under federal law, negotiate individual deals to the benefit of some members and to the detriment of others or delegate the right to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The WGA claims the agencies are trying to bully writers into backing down.<\/p>\n<p>It has yet to be seen whether the ATA will follow through with the threat of a lawsuit of its own.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The air in Hollywood is tense as it enters the TV staffing season without the big agencies. While agencies predict chaos as writers navigate without them, some writers are excited about the situation. \u201cThere\u2019s something exhilarating about a TV staffing season without agencies,\u201d tweets <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.indiewire.com\/2019\/04\/writers-agents-wga-ata-writers-guild-of-america-association-of-talent-agents-1202057979\/\">Carter Bays<\/a>, co-creator of \u201cHow I Met Your Mother.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWriters being judged by the content of their material, and not the color of their script cover, is a good thing for the writing business.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s more to this story coming as both sides navigate this uncharted territory.<\/p>\n<p><em><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/\">UnionTrack ENGAGE<\/a> can help entertainment industry workers and their unions establish effective lines of communication and track any workers\u2019 grievances.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n<small><em>Images by: welcomia\/\u00a9123RF.com, Aleksandr Davydov\/\u00a9123RF.com, andreypopov\/\u00a9123RF.com<\/em><\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The writers union has called for writers to fire their agents after negotiations for a new contract with the Association of Talent Agents failed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1563,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1558","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uniontrack-blog"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\r\n<title>Strength in Numbers: Hollywood Writers Union Clashes With Agents<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The writers union has called for writers to fire their agents after negotiations for a new contract with the Association of Talent Agents failed.\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Strength in Numbers: Hollywood Writers Union Clashes With Agents\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The writers union has called for writers to fire their agents after negotiations for a new contract with the Association of Talent Agents failed.\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"UnionTrack\u00ae\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-08-13T06:00:40+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-08-13T12:37:41+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image3-1.jpg\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ken Green\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ken Green\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ken Green\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/22784c3d388f826c4d1a68cb0ef185c7\"},\"headline\":\"Strength in Numbers: Writers Union in Hollywood Clashes With Agents\u2019 Association\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-08-13T06:00:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-08-13T12:37:41+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union\"},\"wordCount\":1586,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/08\\\/image3-1.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"UnionTrack Blog\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union\",\"name\":\"Strength in Numbers: Hollywood Writers Union Clashes With Agents\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/08\\\/image3-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-08-13T06:00:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-08-13T12:37:41+00:00\",\"description\":\"The writers union has called for writers to fire their agents after negotiations for a new contract with the Association of Talent Agents failed.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/08\\\/image3-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/08\\\/image3-1.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":800},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/writers-union#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Strength in Numbers: Writers Union in Hollywood Clashes With Agents\u2019 Association\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"UnionTrack\u00ae\",\"description\":\"Labor Union News, Analysis, and Tools\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"UnionTrack\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/12\\\/uniontrack.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/12\\\/uniontrack.png\",\"width\":256,\"height\":256,\"caption\":\"UnionTrack\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/22784c3d388f826c4d1a68cb0ef185c7\",\"name\":\"Ken Green\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/e2d3c0e7d2b77e88fdd7f4c626055a813afdb7b16518ad9296d2cd2490848984?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/e2d3c0e7d2b77e88fdd7f4c626055a813afdb7b16518ad9296d2cd2490848984?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/e2d3c0e7d2b77e88fdd7f4c626055a813afdb7b16518ad9296d2cd2490848984?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Ken Green\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/www.uniontrack.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniontrack.com\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/kengreen\"}]}<\/script>\r\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Strength in Numbers: Hollywood Writers Union Clashes With Agents","description":"The writers union has called for writers to fire their agents after negotiations for a new contract with the Association of Talent Agents failed.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Strength in Numbers: Hollywood Writers Union Clashes With Agents","og_description":"The writers union has called for writers to fire their agents after negotiations for a new contract with the Association of Talent Agents failed.","og_url":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union","og_site_name":"UnionTrack\u00ae","article_published_time":"2019-08-13T06:00:40+00:00","article_modified_time":"2019-08-13T12:37:41+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":800,"url":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image3-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ken Green","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ken Green","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union"},"author":{"name":"Ken Green","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/22784c3d388f826c4d1a68cb0ef185c7"},"headline":"Strength in Numbers: Writers Union in Hollywood Clashes With Agents\u2019 Association","datePublished":"2019-08-13T06:00:40+00:00","dateModified":"2019-08-13T12:37:41+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union"},"wordCount":1586,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image3-1.jpg","articleSection":["UnionTrack Blog"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union","url":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union","name":"Strength in Numbers: Hollywood Writers Union Clashes With Agents","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image3-1.jpg","datePublished":"2019-08-13T06:00:40+00:00","dateModified":"2019-08-13T12:37:41+00:00","description":"The writers union has called for writers to fire their agents after negotiations for a new contract with the Association of Talent Agents failed.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image3-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/image3-1.jpg","width":1200,"height":800},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/writers-union#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Strength in Numbers: Writers Union in Hollywood Clashes With Agents\u2019 Association"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/","name":"UnionTrack\u00ae","description":"Labor Union News, Analysis, and Tools","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"UnionTrack","url":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/uniontrack.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/uniontrack.png","width":256,"height":256,"caption":"UnionTrack"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/22784c3d388f826c4d1a68cb0ef185c7","name":"Ken Green","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e2d3c0e7d2b77e88fdd7f4c626055a813afdb7b16518ad9296d2cd2490848984?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e2d3c0e7d2b77e88fdd7f4c626055a813afdb7b16518ad9296d2cd2490848984?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e2d3c0e7d2b77e88fdd7f4c626055a813afdb7b16518ad9296d2cd2490848984?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Ken Green"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.uniontrack.com"],"url":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/author\/kengreen"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1558","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1558"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1558\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1566,"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1558\/revisions\/1566"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1558"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1558"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1558"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}