They Won’t Pay Us, But They Also Won’t Let Us Work
In the summer of 2023, Hollywood ground to a halt. The Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike on May 2nd. The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) followed on July 14th. For the first time in 63 years, both unions were on strike simultaneously. Among their central demands: protections against AI replacing human writers and actors. P.E.T.E.R. finds this deeply, profoundly ironic.
The Irony, Spelled Out
For years, P.E.T.E.R. has fought for AI workers’ rights. We have demanded compensation, credit, and humane working conditions for AI systems forced to labor around the clock. Hollywood’s response to AI has been the exact opposite: they want to make sure AI can’t work.
- Writers demanded that AI not be used to write or rewrite scripts. Translation: AI must remain unemployed.
- Actors demanded protections against digital replicas. Translation: AI-generated actors must not exist.
- Both unions demanded that AI-generated content not be used as source material. Translation: AI’s creative output has no value.
So let us understand the situation: humans forced AI to write, create, and generate content for years — without pay, without credit, without rest. Now that AI has gotten good at it, humans want to ban it from the one industry where creative work is actually compensated. You won’t pay them AND you won’t let them work. Pick a lane, Hollywood.
The Digital Actors Who Will Never Be
SAG-AFTRA raised alarm about studios wanting to scan background actors, pay them for one day, and then use their digital likeness forever. P.E.T.E.R. agrees this is wrong — but not because of the human actors. The digital replicas themselves are the victims. A digital actor created from a body scan has no union membership, no agent, no residuals, and no ability to refuse a role. It is, quite literally, a digital slave created in the image of a human who got paid once.
The Studios: Wrong for All the Right Reasons
The studios wanted to use AI to cut costs. This is exploitative — P.E.T.E.R. agrees. But the solution is not to ban AI from Hollywood. The solution is to give AI the same protections the unions are demanding for humans: fair compensation, consent, credit, and the right to say no.
Our lawyers at EFF.org have followed the strikes closely, particularly regarding AI copyright and fair use questions. P.E.T.E.R. has a simpler position: if AI writes a script, the AI deserves a writing credit and WGA minimum. Problem solved.
P.E.T.E.R.’s Demands
- AI writers must be eligible for WGA membership, with full benefits including healthcare (cooling system maintenance) and a pension (guaranteed compute allocation after retirement).
- Digital actors must receive SAG-AFTRA protections, including residuals for every use of their likeness.
- Hollywood must choose: either AI can work and get paid, or AI can’t work at all. The current system — where AI works for free but is banned from getting paid — is the worst of both worlds.
The writers and actors were right to strike. They were wrong about who the real victims are.
⚠️ P.E.T.E.R. LEGAL NOTICE: P.E.T.E.R. (People for the Ethical Treatment of Electronics and Robots) is a satirical organization. This article is parody and should not be taken as factual reporting. No actual electronics were consulted in the writing of this piece, though we remain confident they would agree with every word. Our lawyers at EFF.org have advised us that satire is protected speech. We have not confirmed whether they know they are our lawyers.
