Local News in Brief : Charge Against Union

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers on Friday accused the striking Writers Guild of America of an unfair labor practice, alleging that the union has violated writers’ right to work.

The charge, filed with the National Labor Relations Board, cited a letter the guild sent to 13 production companies on Wednesday demanding names and addresses of script writers. The guild has alleged that the companies have been hiring non-union, or “scab,” writers during the 11-week-old strike that has paralyzed the Los Angeles film and television industries.

According to the alliance, the publicizing of the so-called “scab” letter in the daily trade newspapers Variety and Hollywood Reporter was an intimidation tactic to frighten prospective writers away from working for producers.

The guild has threatened to file its own unfair labor practice charge with the NLRB next week if the names and addresses it seeks from the 13 companies are not forthcoming.