Writers on children’s animation shows including Alma’s Way, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and Carl the Collector now have a union.
The WGA East announced Friday that Fred Rogers Productions and Spiffy Pictures, which produce these series for public broadcasting, have officially recognized the union to represent its writers for the purposes of collective bargaining.
These writers will work under the latest Public Television Freelance Agreement, which the WGA East ratified in December after a lengthy and sometimes contentious negotiation cycle with PBS, narrowly avoiding a strike.
In the days leading to the deal, more than 200 PBS animation writers, some of whom work on the shows listed above, stood by the then-94-member bargaining unit, agreeing not to cross their picket lines in the event of a strike and urging PBS management to offer a fair deal, despite not having union recognition of their own.
“We are extremely proud to be working with Fred Rogers Productions. They carry on the legacy of Fred by being true allies in supporting working writers. We’re grateful to partner with FRP and their mission to tell impactful stories that promote children’s curiosity and make it fun for them to learn and grow,” Jill Cozza-Turner, head writer for Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, and Jorge Aguirre, head writer for Alma’s Way, said in a joint statement Friday.
This marks the very first WGA-PBS contract to include writing for the network’s kids’ animation programs. The agreement now covers writing done for animated programs over five minutes in length, made for TV and new media, per the union.
Now that these writers are covered under a WGA contract, they not only will receive pension and health contributions but guaranteed script fees, weekly salaries, and AVOD/SVOD residuals. “Every writer on all of our series over the years has played an integral role in each show’s success, so this was a no-brainer for Spiffy. We hope it paves the way for more companies to follow,” says Adam Rudman, co-founder and executive producer at Spiffy Pictures. Added Lisa Takeuchi Cullen, President of the Writers Guild of America East: “PBS KIDS writers have been a bedrock in educating children around the world and we are glad they can work under a Writers Guild contract that provides them with fair pay, pension and health coverage and residuals. All animation writers deserve union protections just like their colleagues in live action television.”
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