WGA West Finds Fall In Writing Jobs For 2024

2024’s Writers Guild of America West’s annual financial report may point to an issue for Hollywood. The 2023 report showed film writers’ earnings and employment had declined from 2022 levels. This wasn’t surprising, given that 2023 saw a 148-day strike from the union. However, the 2024 report shows lower employment levels than the previous year (even without work stoppages).

While employment was down, earnings were up slightly, at least from 2023. The Hollywood Reporter reviewed the document and found that “the total number of WGA West members reporting earnings fell 9.4 percent compared with the prior year and 24.3 percent from 2022. At $1.5 billion, members’ total earnings rose 12.7 percent compared with 2023, but were still 21 percent below 2022’s $1.9 billion.” Television writers’ earnings specifically rose 12.3% from the previous year; however, that number was still 25% lower than in 2022.

While an uptick in earnings is a good sign, the overall report is troubling, especially regarding employment. It is no secret that Hollywood production has been down. In April, it was reported that Hollywood film and TV production dropped 22% in the first quarter of 2025 compared to last year. Also, in April, the WGA revealed that during the 2023-2024 season, jobs were down 42%. Luminate also released a report in January, finding that the total number of TV series and episodes fell in 2024.

The new report also found that news, promotion, informational and interactive programming writers also saw a nearly 26% decline in work. Television and digital platform writer employment has also been dropping, with a 28.5% decline from 2022. Theatrical film writers did slightly better. Their earnings rose 14.2% (however, that was still 9.5% lower than the 2022 numbers.) Theatrical film writers also only saw a 3% decline in employment (which was, unfortunately, a 16.2% dip in relation to 2022.)

These numbers are concerning and point to a declining industry, especially one that seems more risk-averse. However, the film and TV industry isn’t alone. Unemployment in the US rose to 4.2% in June, the highest rate in eight months.