Writers Guild’s David Young Takes Medical Leave of Absence, Ellen Stutzman Steps in as Chief Negotiator
In a surprise development that could have major effects on upcoming talks, the Writers Guild announced that its assistant executive director Ellen Stutzman will take over as chief negotiator for the guild’s 2023 minimum basic agreement negotiations.
WGA West executive director David Young, who previously served in that role, is taking a medical leave of absence, the guild told members Tuesday. “We know we speak for the entire WGAW and WGAE memberships in wishing David a full recovery,” a host of guild leaders, including WGA West president Meredith Stiehm and WGA East president Michael Winship, said in a statement.
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Stutzman, a 17-year veteran of the union, has been in the assistant executive director role since 2018 and has overseen the guild’s legal, agency, contracts, and research and public policy departments in that time. “As part of the executive staff, Ellen has played a key strategic role in the past three MBA negotiations and the agency franchise agreement negotiations,” guild leaders said in their message. A graduate of Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations and UCLA Anderson School of Management, Stutzman entered the guild as a researcher and later was promoted to research and public policy director before landing in her current position. She previously worked at the health care worker union SEIU-UHW.
Young — a garment workers’ union and the Teamsters veteran — has served as the union’s fiery chief negotiator since he ascended to his executive director post in 2006. Kicking off his run with the 2007-2008 writers’ strike, Young has impressed the industry with his ability to mobilize writers while also butting heads with some of the business’ top dealmakers, most recently during the WGA’s aggressive campaign against agency packaging practices. (The guild eventually prevailed after thousands of writers fired their agents.)
The change of chief negotiators is sudden, coming less than three weeks before talks are set to begin with studios and streamers on March 20, ahead of the WGA contract’s May 1 expiration date. Rumors have been swirling for months that writers, facing intense financial pressures in the streaming era, may strike at the end of the contract if they do not wrestle significant gains from employers.
Writers contacted on Tuesday described feeling shocked at the news, as many also learned about the negotiations change-up that afternoon. However, several expressed total confidence in Stutzman, who has spoken at recent member meetings. “She’s smart, well-reasoned and well-informed,” says one writer. “She seems quite formidable to me,” adds another.
Meanwhile, employers are facing their own economic headwinds as many studios and streamers are seeking to trim costs. In her post, Stutzman will be facing off against the chief negotiator for the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), Carol Lombardini, a longtime, respected negotiator for top companies in union matters who ascended to the organization’s top job in 2009.
A spokesperson for the AMPTP said Tuesday, “We are sincerely sorry to hear of David Young’s medical issue and wish him a speedy and successful recovery.”
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