WGA LEADERSHIP SAYS WRITERS ARE READY TO STRIKE.

Byline: Jesse Hiestand Staff Writer

If a vote were taken today, the Writers Guild of America believes 90 percent of its members would strike against the studios over residuals disputes - a sign the guild is unlikely to make major concessions in the stalled contract talks.

The assessment is based on support WGA leaders were shown this week in their first meeting with members since negotiations broke down March 1.

``We were delighted and relieved when the response Tuesday night was so favorable,'' WGA negotiations co-chairman Michael Mahern said Friday, as he and other WGA executives pressed their case to reporters at the guild's headquarters in Hollywood.

Their briefing revealed as much posturing as positions.

``There's a deal to be made but it will require a change in their culture where every time they come in and say 'You want an increase - that's a strike issue,''' said WGA Executive Director Jim McLean.

The Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers repeated its offer Friday to resume negotiations as soon as the writers are willing to be reasonable, said alliance spokesman Barry Liden.

``We definitely want to avoid a strike and we still think it's possible to do that,'' Liden said. ``But we're far apart at this point on the financial issues.''

Six weeks of early, potentially strike-averting negotiations collapsed after the WGA rejected a pay increase of $30 million over three years. The writers want $100 million - about $60 million in higher residuals and much of the rest to keep initial payments up with inflation.

McLean said he'd be surprised if a deal were reached if the studios offered $50 million.

There is no plan to resume bargaining before the contract expires May 2, which could trigger a writers' and possibly a separate actors' strike that would stop the industry in its tracks and cost Los Angeles County's economy an estimated $2 billion per month.

Considering this staggering fallout, the writers were asked whether it was worth the risk when the pay raise they are seeking is just a fraction of the possible loss for others in the industry.

WGA director of strategic planning Chuck Slocum said it was imperative that the writers renegotiate payments that, in the case of foreign residuals, have not changed in 30 years.

``Our members simply want a small sliver of that continuing value,'' Slocum said.

The WGA will spend the next two weeks in further meetings with its members and other unions before it decides whether to resume negotiations, executives said.

At the first meeting, Mahern said there was some apprehension over how the members would react when they finally got a chance to confront their leaders after being kept in the dark throughout the negotiations.

Guild leaders said they have the members' support because it was the rank and file who first raised these issues three years ago after voting down a proposed contract at the previous contract talks.

The WGA has been preparing for this fight since then and believes its 12,000 members are more informed and supportive than ever, especially the younger members who are getting their first taste of union activity.