Bectu Declares Emergency In Freelance TV Community Due To Unprecedented Lack Of Work

UK broadcasting union Bectu has declared a state of “emergency” in the unscripted TV community due to an “unprecedented” lack of work.

The declaration of “emergency” was made at the union’s conference last week and comes with much freelance work having dried up across the industry.

Bectu Head Philippa Childs said freelancers have been “telling us this is the longest period without work that they have ever experienced,” with some saying they haven’t had any posts since January.

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With many freelancers leaving the industry for good, the union is also concerned there won’t be enough supply when production ramps back up again. The current situation is a complete reversal of what happened last year, when shows rushed back into production and the UK TV sector was virtually at full tilt. Many at that point said they wanted to leave the industry due to a lack of job security, wellbeing or mental health issues. Since then, a cost-of-living crisis and spiralling inflation have caused networks to approach commissioning with more caution.

In March, Deadline revealed Bectu had launched a campaign to standardize working conditions across unscripted TV following an open letter that amassed more than 1,000 signatures. The union’s desire is to bring UK unscripted TV working conditions more in line with scripted, which recently saw a new deal brokered between Bectu and indie trade body Pact – although this took almost a year of negotiations.

“The ‘feast or famine’ nature of the industry – whereby there may be an overabundance of work one minute, and none the next – is an incredibly challenging environment to work in and we urge the industry to come together not just to address the current crisis, but to commit to long-term change,” added Childs.

“Broadcasters must better communicate with freelancers and give them a seat at the table to find solutions to a system that places all of the risks of employment and unemployment on the individual workers.”

The conference motion “declared an emergency in the freelance TV community,” describing the current situation as “uncharacteristic.”

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