Martin Michaels
Members of the writing team for the celebrity news show on the E! channel, “Fashion Police,” have gone on strike seeking $1.5 million in unpaid overtime pay and back pay. The writers, represented by the Writer’s Guild of America (WGA) filed claims against E! and Joan Rivers’ production company, Rugby Productions, which jointly employ the writing staff.
The writers filed claims against their employers earlier this month with the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. E! employees are proceeding through negotiations with help from the WGA, a labor union representing writers in motion pictures, television, cable, digital media and broadcast news.
Writers Guilds West and East both sent letters to their members last week instructing them not to work on “Fashion Police” because the show is no longer sanctioned by the WGA. Members of both guilds are prohibited from writing for the show under Working Rule 8, prohibiting members from working for non-signatory companies.
“Writers on E! Network’s comedy-variety show, ‘Fashion Police’ walked off their jobs today [April 17] to gain Writers Guild coverage and to protest the company’s unfair labor practices. Their strike is recognized and supported by the WGAW and the WGAE,” the letters read.
The guilds have also urged non-members not to take jobs on the show as a sign of solidarity while the work stoppage is underway.
“This is very simple,” said “Fashion Police” writer Ned Rice. “We have earned the right to be a Guild show, we deserve to be a Guild show, and we want to be a Guild show. The ball is clearly in E! and Rugby’s court right now and we’re ready to go back to work on ‘Fashion Police’ just as soon as they sign a WGA contract.”
Writers are hopeful that management will capitulate to writer’s demands in the coming weeks, especially if the show is forced to air reruns due to lack of new written material.
The Writer’s Guild has a history of strong bargaining. The 2007-2008 WGA strikes were the first time television writers went on strike in 20 years, successfully shutting down some of America’s most popular shows.
The 100-day strike began October 2007 when writers demanded a new contract and increased compensation for the sale of “new media” including revenue earned from sale of DVD, Blu-ray and Internet episodes.
The strike involving some 12,000 writers across the U.S. was a major blow to popular television shows, shortening seasons of major shows including CSI, Boston Legal, Family Guy and dozens of other shows unable to produce new episodes because of the writer’s strike.
The strike ended Feb. 26, when 93.6 percent of WGA members voted in favor of a new three-year contract which was effective through May 1, 2011, with pay hikes ranging from 3 to 3.5 percent. The WGA is currently covered under a three-year contract that will expire May 2014.