June
5The Big Strike's Big Toll
SAG members may want to take a quick look at the report of a think tank, the Milken Institute, on the impact of the writers strike.
Though activists in the WGA are still boasting about their wins, the Milken folks report that the strike will result in the loss of 37,700 jobs and $2.1 billion in personal income through the end of 2008. It also says the strike helped tip the state into a recession.
According to the report the three-month event will continue to resonate over time, with a direct impact on employment, output, wages and salaries. In turn, this will affect retail sales and cause ripples through other industries, with an expected drop of $3 billion.
So were the gains worth it? As writers themselves catch up on mortgage payments, they have reason to wonder. And so do the actors, who now must face some critical decisions that will affect not only themselves, but citizens across the state.
Talent strikes are not a game.
Though activists in the WGA are still boasting about their wins, the Milken folks report that the strike will result in the loss of 37,700 jobs and $2.1 billion in personal income through the end of 2008. It also says the strike helped tip the state into a recession.
According to the report the three-month event will continue to resonate over time, with a direct impact on employment, output, wages and salaries. In turn, this will affect retail sales and cause ripples through other industries, with an expected drop of $3 billion.
So were the gains worth it? As writers themselves catch up on mortgage payments, they have reason to wonder. And so do the actors, who now must face some critical decisions that will affect not only themselves, but citizens across the state.
Talent strikes are not a game.
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No, Mr. Bart, talent strikes are not a game. But in an age where companies are not content to make mere millions, what do you honestly expect?
Posted by: storyme | 6/11/2008 2:15:17 PM
Bring on the recession, perhaps we'll lose the unions altogether. They were only worth having when the mafia controlled them.
Anybody who looks past a three year marker will realise the deal struck by the WGA is yet another temp, a staller so that in three small years it can happen all over again.
Unions don't fix, they tinker. And the recession last-time round caused Hollywood to change for the better.
Posted by: Brit01 | 6/7/2008 8:41:09 PM
What would the alternative been, Peter? To have rolled over? The recession, in case you haven't noticed, is global. And Hollywood's retrograde stands on technology - enabled by both parties - doesn't help matters.
Posted by: tongueuntied | 6/6/2008 5:35:08 PM