Letter of solidarity with IATSE members seeking to end long hours culture in Film & TV

Head of Bectu Philippa Childs has written to IATSE to pledge solidarity with their ongoing campaign for better working conditions in the film industry.

The fight against long hours culture has reached a critical point, with crew on both sides of the Atlantic reflecting on their poor work-life balance and taking the necessary action to address the problem.

This week, IATSE’s strike ballot coincides with the beginning of renegotiation talks between Bectu and Pact regarding the TV Drama Agreement. The first round of talks will have a renewed focus on tackling long hours culture and prioritising mental health and wellbeing in the film and TV industry.

IATSE’s commendable efforts to secure reasonable working hours and fair working conditions are issues that affect freelancers across the world, and we pledge our solidarity in the global campaign to better the film and TV industry.

The Time Project is a great initiative that tackles the issue of long hours in the film and TV industry. It allows employees and freelancers to record hours worked and how many of these hours were over contracted obligation. It is an innovative way of gathering data to understand the nature of the long hours culture and how we can best tackle the issue. Start logging your hours here.

Read the letter here.