Wednesday, January 23, 2008

L.A. story: $1.5 billion lost due to the strike


'People are scared and angry — and some will be losing their houses soon'

According to one estimate, the writers' strike has resulted in a $1.5 billion hit to the Los Angeles economy. Now that the Directors Guild of America has reached an accord with Hollywood studios, the striking writers have returned to the bargaining table in the hopes of pounding out an agreement with the studios.

A settlement won’t come a moment too soon for those affected by the walkout.
“The writers’ strike is having a much larger economic impact on L.A. than its direct impact on writers and studios,” said former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich. “The L.A. economy revolves around entertainment, and entertainment depends to a large extent on entertaining scripts. Without the latter, the entire economy becomes more fragile.”

Opinions vary as to whether the 11-week-old writers’ strike has had a seismic or modest effect on the Los Angeles economy. Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp., estimates that to date the strike has resulted in a $1.5 billion hit to the local economy. But a forecast put out by the UCLA Anderson School of Management suggests that the number is much lower — an estimated loss of $380 million if the strike lasts until March — and that several factors will offset the impact of the work stoppage.

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