Meet the Negotiating Committee: Michael Schur
Bio: Michael Schur started as a writer on Saturday Night Live in 1998. His first half-hour job was on The Office, and from there he created or co-created Parks and Recreation, Brooklyn 99, The Good Place, and Rutherford Falls, as well as executive producing Master of None, Hacks, and the upcoming Primo.
What prompted you to join the Negotiating Committee?
I joined the Neg Com because over the last 20 years I have watched as the blueprint for writing careers in television has been completely upended by smaller orders, capped writer budgets, and the inability of young writers to gain meaningful experience in all phases of production.
Tell us about a time when you have felt a strong feeling of solidarity with your fellow writers.
This negotiation and strike action of 2007 was the first time I truly understood what it meant to be in a union.
What makes the 2023 contract cycle different from past ones that you have witnessed or in which you have participated?
Collective action and solidarity are the only tools the labor force has to protect its members against the ceaseless tide of corporate malfeasance. I was proud in 2007—and am again now—of writers' ability to stand up for each other and to ensure a viable future for all of us.