Even as employment and income for writers fell in 2021, Writers Guild of America West saw an increase in the residual flows to members via film and television.
Guild members received an “all-time high” of $493.6 million in residuals in 2021, a 5.4 percent increase from 2020, according to the WGA West’s latest financial annual report, released on June 29. Overall, television residuals increased 4.7 percent for the year and film residuals increased 6.9 percent. According to the Guild, new media was “the largest residual category in general”, accounting for approximately 45.2 percent of all residuals in 2021, an increase of 8.5 percent compared to 2020. In television, residuals for new media increased by 31. .7 percent over the previous year and in film they were up 27.1 percent.
Over the course of the year, however, writers’ income and employment declined overall as, according to the report, “the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continued into 2021.” Over the year, 5,900 writers reported being employed by the Guild, down 6.1 percent from the previous year, while writers’ revenue totaled $1.55 billion, down 7.7 percent compared to the previous year. (In 2020, at the start of the pandemic, writer’s income and employment also fell 5.5 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively, compared to 2019.)
Writers working in news, promotional, informational and interactive programs reported the largest drop in employment, with a 21.6 percent drop from 2020 (revenues down 5.2 percent). The number of jobs for screenwriters fell 6.8 percent, while profits fell 13.3 percent. Writers of television and digital platforms saw 5.1 percent job losses and an overall 5.5 percent drop in compensation.
Overall, the Guild’s total revenue during fiscal 2022 (which ended March 31, 2022) decreased year-over-year, to $38.9 million, from $46.1 million the prior year. “The decline in total sales is attributable to weak stock markets that resulted in an unrealized loss of investment of $0.2 million, compared to last year’s profit of $8.8 million,” the report said. The Guild’s total net assets for the fiscal year were $92.2 million, and operating surplus was $4.5 million.
The Guild also kept costs lower through fiscal 2022, spending $34.4 million, up from $36.2 million the previous fiscal year, which the organization says is the result of the end of its campaign against agency packaging costs, the decline in in-person Guild events during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a number of unfilled staff vacancies. Membership revenue, meanwhile, rose to $33.4 million, from $31.4 million the previous fiscal year.
“While managing a union during the pandemic has certainly presented challenges, the Guild’s overall financial condition remains strong as we move into MBA negotiations in 2023,” the report states.
The Guild, which elected a new leader in 2021 in longtime member Meredith Stiehm (Homeland, the bridge), is gearing up for the final election to its Board of Directors, with 18 candidates running for eight seats so far. The voting period starts on August 31 and ends on September 20.