ABSTRACT. Generalizing a result of Babenko and Pichugov, it is shown that if T is a weakly compact operator on Ll{p), where p is a rj-finite nonatomic measure, then \\L + T\\ = 1 + ||X||. A characterization of all operators T on L1^) having this property is also given.In [2] Daugavet proved that if T is a compact operator on C{p), then ||/-r-T|| = 1 + ||r||, while Babenko and Pichugov [1] subsequently showed the same is true for a compact operator on L1{p) (see [6] for recent extensions). In general, if X is a Banach space and T G Z{X), then T is said to satisfy Daugavet's equation In a recent paper [5] it was shown that Daugavet's equation actually holds for any weakly compact operator on C{p). The purpose of this note is to give an analogous extension of the theorem of Babenko and Pichugov to weakly compact operators by proving that if p is a rj-finite nonatomic measure on a space S, and T is a weakly compact operator on L1{p), then ||J + T|| = 1 + ||T|| (Theorem 1). Related results concerning extensions and generalizations of this theorem, including a characterization of all operators Ton L1{p) for which ||J-r-T|| = 1+||T|| (Theorem 2) are also given.We begin with a simple result concerning the norming of operators on L1{p). As usual we denote by Z{X) the space of all bounded linear operators on a Banach space A, by \A the characteristic function of a measurable set A c S, and by ||/||i and 11g||oo) the norms of functions / G Ll{p) and g G L°°{p), respectively. The complement of a set A in 5 is denoted by A'. PROPOSITION 1. LetT G ¿{L1^)).Then given any e > 0 there is a measurable set Ac S for which 0 < m{A) < e and ||T(xA/m(A))||i > ||T|| -e.PROOF. Since p is tr-finite, {Ll{p))* = L°°{p). Therefore if T G t{Ll{p)), then T* G £{L°°{p)) and ||r|| = ||T*|| = sup,|B,|oo = 1 ||T*ff||oo. Hence given any e > 0 there is a function g G L°°{p) for which ¡¡pH«, = 1 and \\T*g\\oo > \\T\\-e/2. Since ||T*g||oo = ess supt \{T*g){t)\ it follows that there is a measurable set A c S for which m{A) > 0 and \{T*g){t)\ > \\T\\ -s for all t G S. Replacing A (if necessary) by a subset B c A for which 0 < m{B) < e and on which the sign of {T*g){t) is constant (which may be done since p is nonatomic), and replacing g by (-g) if