Former President Barack Obama is a fixture in the world of entertainment after taking a step back from the day-to-day events taking place on Capitol Hill. During a promotional event for his latest documentary series, Working: What We Do All Day, he offered his thoughts regarding the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike. In short, the former President said that he was “very supportive” of the writers pushing for fair wages and other workers’ rights.
“Part of what this show Working is about is how certain things are constant about the work experience. People trying to find work that’s satisfying, people trying to pay the bills,” the former President said, according to Variety.
“Unfortunately one of the things that’s also been constant is the struggle for people to make sure their employers are treating them fairly and they’re getting a fair share of the pie. I think what we’ve seen throughout American history is that unions and worker organizations have had to make demands on their employers, those that are controlling whatever industry they’re in, to make sure they’re treated fairly and entertainment is no exception.”
While the former President may have verbally offered his support for the guild, others feel that he may have already crossed the picket line by promoting his new Netflix documentary series.
“President Barack Obama, if you want to make a statement about the value of work, please don’t cross the WGA picket line to do publicity for a struck company,” screenwriter Javier Grillo-Marxuach tweeted.
“Obama really made a complex, thoughtful show about labor in America today and how undervalued and underrepresented working people are and then crossed a picket line of workers begging for living wages to go promote it,” screenwriter Colby Day added.
