Due to a new contract the company signed with the UK actors union Equity, performers working on in-house BBC TV projects will be paid more.
The agreement, which goes into effect on April 7, will raise a performer’s episodic remuneration by 13% in addition to other expenses like overtime and production day wages. The minimum weekly fees will also increase by 10%.
Along with the pay raise, the agreement also includes additional clauses on best practices for audition self-tapes, bullying and harassment, and minimizing environmental impact.
In a statement, Equity TV Official Natalie Barker said, “With this agreement, the BBC makes vital commitments to our members that their experience at work will be safe and dignified.”
The BBC TV agreement only covers performers working on in-house BBC drama, comedy, and children’s productions such as Eastenders, Casualty, Doctor Who, and Silent Witness. The agreement covers actors, walk-on and supporting artists, dancers, stunt performers, puppeteers and singers.
Other notable improvements to the agreement include the inclusion of intimacy directors when productions work on scenes with intimate content, provisions for the engagement of minors, and penalties for the BBC’s late royalties.
In order to “minimize the squeeze our members have experienced on their pay over a number of years of high inflation,” Barker went on, it was critical to “secure a significant increase to pay in this round of negotiations.”The dignity and safety of working actors are put front and center by the BBC’s pledges to prevent and resolve bullying and harassment, she continued, as well as the new obligation to appoint intimacy directors for scenes of a personal nature.
