Obligations of the Employer to Remit Pension Plan and Health Fund Contributions per the Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA) or other Collective Bargaining Agreement

Signatory employers are required to make Pension Plan and Health Fund contributions on behalf of all writers hired by them to perform covered writing services, whether or not the writer is a member of the Writers Guild of America. Article 17 of the Writers Guild of America Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA) explains the obligations of the Signatory Employer with regard to making Pension Plan and Health Fund contributions to the Trusts and details those levels of compensation and purchases on which contributions are due.

A Company must be signed to a Collective Bargaining or Assumption Agreement in order to make these contributions.  The Signatory Departments of the Writers Guild of America East and west administer the process of becoming a signatory employer.  The WGA Signatory Department notifies the Trusts when a company signs or resigns their Collective Bargaining Agreement. The Signatory Coordinator at the Trusts sends a welcome notice to the employer and encloses copies of the Report of Contributions along with written instructions on how to fill out the form to correctly report earnings and remit contributions to the Trusts.

Contributions are due ten (10) days after the writer performed the service for which compensation is paid or due and are considered delinquent after 30 days, after which Regular (and possibly Continuing) Interest will accrue. Interest accrues at the rate of .83% per month. Please be aware that federal law [ERISA Section 515] requires that contributions must be made in accordance with the terms of the plan, and that ERISA Section 502(g)(2) provides for mandatory interest on unpaid contributions at the rate established by the plan.

Not all compensation is subject to contributions . Signatory Employers should contact the WGA, or refer to Article 17 of the MBA, to determine if the compensation being paid to their writer is considered "covered" and what are the applicable ceilings for reporting the writers' compensation to the Trusts.  Employers may also contact the Employer Compliance Department at employercompliance@wgaplans.org or (818) 846-1015 ext. 5 then press 2 for assistance in filling out the Report of Contributions, help in determining what is considered "covered" writing, the applicable ceilings for reporting earnings or for general information.