Earlier in January, TV Industry Human Rights Forum published a report called, “Let’s fix it in post: why broadcasters and production companies can and should address human rights risks in post production”. Over the next few months, they are going to highlight some of the key themes from this research on LinkedIn and the WorkWise for Screen platform. The first of these covers illegal and barely legal practices.
Post production includes a large number of people who are self-employed or people working on fixed term contracts. Even where people have permanent jobs, the ups and downs of the industry over recent years have meant that these roles do not always feel particularly secure. The pandemic, strikes and commissioning downturn in unscripted has led to a dramatic reduction in available work, meaning there is considerable competition for each project.
Our research found that this precarity often makes people feel powerless in negotiating terms and leads people to accepting poor and sometimes illegal working conditions.
Many reported working without contracts or any form of written terms and conditions. A lack of written terms is illegal in most circumstances. By law and since April 2020, all UK workers, should receive written terms and conditions on or before their first day of work. A lack of a contract also means that last-minute cancellations or postponements often come with no compensation for the worker. Such treatment significantly affect a person’s ability to find alternative work.
Sound Editor“So often I will get a project cancelled the night before and I wouldn’t even be contacted by the client to check. It gives you false hope and then makes you feel disposable ”
Late payment is a particular issue for freelancers who may have rent, mortgage payments or other regular costs to meet. It is also more likely to affect those in post production because they are at the end of a long chain of payments. Interviewees described different techniques that companies use to avoid prompt payment, including referring to 30 working days rather than calendar days and not accepting an invoice without a purchase order (PO) number but then taking a long time to issue the PO number. As one said, “Every time there’s something in our favour, they find a way to get round it”. Several gave examples of not being paid at all for work.
Our research identified another example where legal attempts to improve conditions have been undermined. An interviewee reported a company that sometimes offered 6-day per week fixed term contracts, but with work rarely happening at the weekend. Workers were then deemed to have taken the weekend days they hadn’t worked as ‘holiday’ and were not entitled to any additional days off or holiday pay.
Individuals reported that they are accepting below minimum wage work, either because there is nothing else available or because they fear being blacklisted if they turn it down. Self-employed workers are not entitled to minimum wage and other protections for contracted workers, but the line between worker and self-employment is grey.
What is less grey are salaries for entry-level applicants. At the time of our research, Glassdoor estimated post production runner salaries at £17-£22k per year, with a median salary of £19,152, equating to £11.64 per hour. This is slightly above the legal National Living wage in 2024 of £11.44, but should average hours exceed 35 per week, which reports suggest they regularly do, employers would be breaking the law on National Living Wage if their employees are 21 or over.
Sound Editor“We’re so easy to be taken advantage of because everyone knows we’re worried about the next job”
All of these labour issues are not simply about working practices but have significant impacts on workers in other ways. The stress of finding work and the financial struggles of working with precarity are key factors in affecting the mental health of workers in post production. The situation also affects the human right to a family life. For example, one interviewee said that, “Insecurity over money, cashflow issues, the sense of no protection or increasing job security over time – it’s a factor in not having children”.
The low pay and informal processes for accessing work also have a detrimental impact on diversity, making it much harder for people without existing links into the industry or other means of financial support to find a way in or to progress. Recruiting from closed networks that rely on word of mouth can be particularly hard for outsiders to break into.
In addition, with less work available, producers are preferring to use people in craft roles with more years of experience. Given historical lack of diversity in post production, there are fewer women and people from minority ethnic backgrounds with this type of experience meaning that they are again losing out on opportunities.
TV production is an ecosystem and each part of that ecosystem needs to take action to ensure that individuals are not harmed as a result of the way TV production happens. At a practical level, that includes ensuring prompt payment practices start at the top of the chain with commissioning practices and flow all the way through. It also means that broadcasters, production companies and post production facilities ensure that all those involved with a project have written terms and conditions, making it a requirement of their subcontractors and doing targeted checks to see what is in place. In addition, it is about working together to improve access to work opportunities and reduce the reliance on word-of-mouth recruitment.
All companies working in TV production need to respect the spirit of the legal protections in place to support workers and recognise the value that post production workers bring to the whole industry.
Note: The report was developed in partnership with The Film and TV Charity, together with post production consultancy from Emma Butt, freelance Sound Editor.