Striking actors and writers will hold a rally outside Amazon Studios in Culver City on Thursday to push for a bill that would give them unemployment.
Senate Bill 799 would grant unemployment benefits to those who have been on the picket lines for at least 14 days.
New York and New Jersey have allowed striking actors and writers there to collect unemployment after being on the picket lines for two weeks.
WGA West President Meredith Stiehm and SAG-AFTRA Secretary-Treasurer Joely Fisher lobbied for the bill at the Assembly Insurance Committee on Aug. 31, where it ended up passing.
“Writers have had to rely on strike loans from our union, donations, philanthropy, and second and third jobs to pay for their basic needs since May 2,” Stiehm said, according to Deadline. “Four months without work is emotionally brutal and financially disastrous. I’m proud to report that our members have held strong and kept their resolve throughout this long hot labor summer, but they are suffering.”
The California Chamber of Commerce has come out against the law, with Robert Moutrie saying that being on strike is “fundamentally different than being unemployed.”
“This is reflected in the law a bit, but someone on strike has a job and is choosing not to work to create economic pressure on their employer,” he said. “That’s not to say that it’s easy, but it is an economic technique to create pressure.”
If passed in the legislature, it will go to the Governor’s desk.
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