Dissidents in Writers Guild Hold Off Return to Work

Dissident members of the striking Writers Guild of America held off their expected return to work because of what they called a “hopeful” conversation Monday with guild leader Brian Walton.

Walton advised the group, known as the Writers Coalition, to wait 36 hours before taking any step, individuals familiar with the conversation said. Both Walton and the dissidents declined to comment.

Seeking Right to Quit

The group previously said its members would decide Monday whether to return to work, in spite of the 21-week-old writers’ strike. Twenty-one coalition members had earlier filed a National Labor Relations Board charge, seeking the right to quit the union, and some members said they would resign active status in the union if the strike was not concluded soon.

The latest exchange came amid intensive behind-the-scenes efforts by the guild to revive discussions with Hollywood producers after the collapse of federally mediated talks last weekend. However, there were no signs that the efforts would lead to new talks.

Studio executives have said that they will not bargain further with the guild but intend to concentrate on producing movies and television shows with non-union scripts.

On Monday, at least two intermediaries, entertainment attorney Kenneth Ziffren and writer-producer Gary David Goldberg, contacted top studio executives, trying to open informal communications between both sides.

According to sources familiar with the contacts, the two spoke with Warner Bros. Chairman Bob Daly and Paramount Chairman Frank Mancuso, both of whom have been perceived by writers as somewhat moderate members of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. According to the sources, the studio chiefs did not signal willingness to alter the producers’ position with regard to guild demands for an increased residual for foreign sales of one-hour TV shows.

Cheryl Rhoden, a spokesman for the 9,000-member guild, confirmed that the guild was “exhausting all avenues” to revive the talks but declined to comment on specifics. Ziffren and Goldberg could not be reached. An alliance spokesman declined comment.

Rhoden said the guild does not have any immediate plan for a membership meeting to vote on the producers’ latest proposals.