Writer Earnings Fell $600 Million Due to Strike and Industry Contraction, WGA Says

TV and film writer earnings fell $603 million last year, or about 32%, as the end of “Peak TV” coincided with a 148-day strike by the Writers of Guild of America.

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Writer earnings, reported for dues purposes, dropped to $1.29 billion in 2023. Adjusted for inflation, that is the lowest level since the writers strike in 2007-08.

Employment also fell by 19.5%, to 5,501 working writers, the lowest number since 2014.

In the first “double strike” since 1960, the WGA and SAG-AFTRA shut down most scripted production for half the year, seeking higher wages and protection from artificial intelligence. At the same time, the TV business shrank 14%, from 600 shows in 2022 to 516 in 2023.

The Writers Guild of America West releases employment data as part of its annual report, which was sent to members on Friday.

In the report, the union said the steep declines reflected “both the industry contraction and the companies’ refusal to negotiate a fair deal, resulting in a five-month strike that ended once the companies agreed to address issues across the membership.”

“In this turbulent period, writers in all fields reported declines in employment and earnings,” the union said.

Following the previous strike, which lasted 100 days, the guild reported a 15% decline in overall earnings for 2008. The dramatic 32% drop for 2023 will likely be revised next year to show a somewhat smaller decline, owing to a lag in dues reporting.

The report also stated that writer employment reached an all-time high just before the strike, with 6,835 writers reporting income in 2022 — 80% above the figure from 30 years ago.

In nominal terms, writer earnings set a record in 2022, at $1.89 billion. (Adjusted for inflation, the peak was in 2019.)

In addition to their regular earnings, writers received $598.5 million in residuals in 2023, a 3.5% gain from 2022.

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With the writers on the picket lines for five months, residuals made up a greater share of their total income than usual. Residuals are typically 21-24% of overall writer compensation, but in 2023 they were 32%.

The residual data reflects a rapid shift to streaming. Streaming platforms represented a majority of all residuals for the first time in 2022, and again in 2023.

More than 80% of streaming residuals come from films and TV shows originally made for theatrical, broadcast or cable. But residuals on made-for-streaming shows are increasing fast, jumping to $57.4 million in 2023, a 46% gain. The WGA said the increase was due both to the higher volume of projects and improved made-for-streaming terms under the 2020 contract.

In inflation-adjusted numbers, residuals hit a peak in 2022. That year, Netflix paid $62.5 million stemming from an arbitration case over residuals on the film “Bird Box.”

The WGA did not issue an employment report in 2023, citing the strike. The report issued Friday covered two years of data. For TV writers, the figures do not include “overscale” income, which is not subject to dues.

During the strike, the WGA West made hardship loans to its members from the strike fund and the Good & Welfare Fund. The annual report shows the members owed $6.2 million to those funds as of March 31.

The WGA strike resulted in scale wage increases of 5%, 4%, and 3.5% over the three-year term of the contract, as well as script fees for TV staff writers, full pension and health contributions for writing teams, and a guaranteed second draft for feature writers.

The union estimated the value of the deal at $233 million for each year of the contract, or $147 million more per year than the studios’ final pre-strike offer.

The deal also includes minimum staff sizes for TV shows not written by a solo writer, and a measure to prevent AI-written material from reducing writers’ pay or credit. The union also won a 50% residual bonus for the most watched made-for-streaming TV shows.

Film permit data shows that the the industry was already starting to contract before the unions went on strike last year. The post-strike recovery has been sluggish, as reality TV production has collapsed and scripted production has plateaued below pre-strike levels.

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