The Writers Guild of America is the joint efforts of two different US labor unions representing TV and film writers: * The

Writers Guild of America, East The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) is a trade union, labor union representing writers in film, television, radio, news, and online media. The Writers Guild of America, East is affiliated with the Writers Guild of America West. Together the ...

(WGAE), headquartered in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

and affiliated with the

AFL–CIO The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL–CIO) is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 12 million ac ...

* The

Writers Guild of America West The Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) is a labor union representing film, television, radio, and new media writers. It was formed in 1954 from five organizations representing writers, including the Screen Writers Guild. It has around 20,000 mem ...

(WGAW), headquartered in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Common activities

The WGAE and WGAW negotiate contracts in unison as well as launch

strike action Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became common during the In ...

s simultaneously. *

1960 Writers Guild of America strike The 1960 Writers Guild of America strike was a labor dispute held by both Writers Guilds of America ( WGAW and WGAE), against the Association of Motion Picture Producers. It lasted for 146 days (from January 16 until June 10, 1960, with network ...

1981 Writers Guild of America strike The 1981 Writers Guild of America strike was a 3-month strike action taken to establish compensation in the then-new markets of "pay TV" and home video. Most scripted television series seasons started much later than originally planned as a result. ...

* 1985 Writers Guild of America strike *

1988 Writers Guild of America strike The 1988 Writers Guild of America strike was a strike action taken by members of both the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) against major United States television and film studios represented by the ...

2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike From November 5, 2007, to February 12, 2008, all 12,000 film and television screenwriters of the American labor unions Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), and Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) went on strike. The Writers Guild of America ...

Effect of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike on television Effect may refer to: * A result or change of something ** List of effects ** Cause and effect, an idiom describing causality Pharmacy and pharmacology * Drug effect, a change resulting from the administration of a drug ** Therapeutic effect, a ...

, a list of television shows affected by the strike Although each Guild runs independently, they perform some activities in parallel: *

Writers Guild of America Awards The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility The ...

, an annual awards show with simultaneous presentations on each coast *

WGA screenwriting credit system The Writers Guild of America (WGA) credit system for motion pictures and television programs covers all works under the jurisdiction of the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW). The WGA, originally ...

, determines how writers' names are listed during the credits *

WGA script registration service The WGA script registration service is a service run by both the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and the Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) to establish the date of creation of literary property, typically a motion picture screenplay, usefu ...

, online services to prove when scripts were written and by whom *

International Affiliation of Writers Guilds The International Affiliation of Writers Guilds is an international trade union federation representing guilds of professional screenwriters and playwrights. Some affiliates also belong to national trade union federations. Activities The IAWG st ...

(IAWG), both Guilds belong to this international labor federation

Common activities

See also