Shortly after the WGA agreed to return to talks on November 26, Patric M. Verrone, President, WGAW, sent the following email, Subject: Don't Break Out The Champagne Just Yet:
To My Fellow Members:
This evening the WGA and the AMPTP announced that we will resume negotiations on Monday, November 26.
This announcement is a direct result of your efforts. It is the direct result of the hours you have spent on the picket lines, the days you've spent educating friends and colleagues, the boundless energy you've put into engaging with not only the Hollywood talent community, but people all over the country and the world. It is a direct result of your dedication to this union and to each other.
Over the past two weeks we have shown incredible resolve and resourcefulness. Every fifteen minutes someone sends me an e-mail with a new suggestion or a copy of a supportive news article or an entertaining and informative pro-writer YouTube video. Actors, local legislators, fans, and fellow members of the Hollywood workforce joined us in droves on our picketing lines this week. SAG's Alan Rosenberg and I were warmly welcomed in Washington D.C. and offered support from every member of Congress with whom we met. These developments all undoubtedly contributed to the decision to return to the table.
For 12 days I have repeated that a powerful strike means a short strike. In that time we have proven that bad news won't slow us down. Now it is equally important that we now prove that good news won't slow us down, either. We must remember that returning to the bargaining table is only a start. Our work is not done until we achieve a good contract and that is by no means assured. Accordingly, what we achieve in negotiations will be a direct result of how successfully we can keep up our determination and resolve.
We have an abridged picketing schedule next week. Next Monday, November 19, we will return to the lines but on Tuesday we have a Labor
Solidarity Rally scheduled and Wednesday through Sunday we will not be picketing due to the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. The picketing schedule for the following Monday, November 26 (when we return to the table) will be determined in consultation with the Strike Captains and will be designed to continue to have maximum effect on our employers and include both studio and location picketing. We will keep you posted through your Strike Captains.
Once again, I thank you all for your efforts and ask you to continue to dedicate yourself to this cause with the same level of energy and enthusiasm that has gotten us to where we are today. We are all in this together.
Best,
Patric M. Verrone
President, WGAW