In 2014 WGGB launched the Free is NOT an Option campaign to tackle the growing amount of work writers are expected to do for free

Pay The Creator 150x150The campaign followed a survey of WGGB members which found that 87% of respondents in the TV and film industries reported a significant increase in the amount of work they had been asked to do for free. Other writers – authors, poets and playwrights – also reported an upward trend in this practice.

Of particular concern was the increase in the amount of free work expected in the development stage of a project. Weeks of time-consuming research and work on treatments are now routinely required, with no remuneration.

Investing their own time and money, writers condense an entire TV series into a ‘pitch’ of one or two pages to give a producer a feel for how the series works. To do this without losing any of the complexity, depth, twists of plot, character arcs, relationships, dramatic conflict, tone or underlying power of the subject matter takes a great deal of work, not to mention years of experience. Beyond this point a writer must be paid.

Because there is a fundamental difference between a pitch and a treatment, writers have reported being asked to write endless treatments for no money, or have been promised money that never arrived. There were also stories of attending meetings with producers and commissioners, and being the only one sitting around the table that wasn’t being paid.

WGGB has long been aware that this practice has been a problem with small, new or unscrupulous companies, but is concerned that it is fast becoming the industry standard even for large, well-resourced production companies dealing with established writers with significant credits to their name.

“It is extremely worrying how far the dominant narrative on this has shifted and how commonplace and acceptable it has become to expect writers to work for free,” said former WGGB TV Chair Bill Armstrong, who spearheaded the campaign.

Independent TV production companies came out of the survey as the worst offenders, despite a report published by trade association Pact (Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television) in 2014. This showed that the UK’s independent television sector is now worth more than £3 billion to the British economy, quadruple its value a decade ago.

While this increasing expectation that they should work for free is undoubtedly having an impact on writers’ lives, incomes and self-esteem, WGGB is also concerned that there is another worrying implication.

“Of late there has been much debate about the lack of cultural diversity on our screens,” continued Bill Armstrong. “Initiatives are rolled out but seldom make much difference. The elephant in the room, predictably, is never addressed. If so much of a writer’s work has to be done for free, the only people who can afford to enter the business or remain in it are those who have an unlimited overdraft facility from the bank of mum and dad. And those people are most likely to be white and middle-class. If we carry on the way we are going, we will soon find ourselves in the situation where the only voices we hear and the only stories that get told are those of the independently wealthy.”

What our campaign involved

What you can do

Keep us informed

To help us closely monitor the situation, and build up a detailed picture of this practice, let us know by email if you have been asked to work for free (all information will be held in the strictest confidence). Contact casework@writersguild.org.uk

Seek advice

We realise it’s hard to say ‘no’ when production companies and broadcasters make it brutally clear that this is the only way to be considered for a commission or a place on an existing show. Writers are also isolated and highly vulnerable to pressure. If you are a WGGB member you can get free advice and support from our casework team by emailing casework@writersguild.org.uk 

Join WGGB

Less than half of UK TV writers belong to their union. The more members we have the stronger we are. See our Top 10 reasons to join WGGB and join here.

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