10/10/06
Jongleurs Pay Hike -
Categories: I really should treat this blog like I do my diet; doing a little and often, instead of trying to bit off a massive chunk with fairly large intervals. (I notice Ray Peacock manages massive chunks with fairly tiny intervals, so I'd better end the diet analogy here before he thinks I'm taking the piss).
So anyway, here are the topics that didn't make it into today's blog, but might be picked up later in the week:
1. I'm doing my Edinburgh show again in a few days and I'm stressing over the fact that in just 6 short weeks, I've forgotten it. And that the box office figures are a bit all over the shop.
2. I'm now writing a blog for the local newspaper as well - The Argus.
3. The national car magazine I write for has been shelved* by Future Publishing. (*What a stupid euphemism that is for cancelling something. If a publisher puts a magazine on a shelf, he's stocking it.)
4. I've had two lessons for the Alexander Technique, and it's both fascinating and baffling, and I have no idea if it has made any difference. Definitely one for a future blog.
5. The Komedia officially opened its new venue upstairs. I've written about this on the Argus blog I mentioned previously.
6. I've crashed my car. And I wasn't in it at the time. Confusing, I know, but it's my fault. Significant dents in both it and my pride.
7. I can't work out if selling DVD's is 'selling out' or not. (Spritually, that is. With 2000 in stock, they are some way off literally selling out just yet).
8. Want to wax lyrical on te ticketing nightmare that is the Brighton Comedy Festival. Just need to clear the story with my 'internal lawyers' (i.e. my sense of judgement on what will get me into trouble for publishing it).
Anyway. Here's what I want to talk about.
This morning I got a letter in the post from Jongleurs, attached to my usual confirmation letter for what shows I am doing for the next six months.
It's tough to read, but in a nutshell, the performers rates are going up by between £10 and £30 per show across the board, with different rates for;
1) In London
2) Out of London (OOT)
3) Scottish acts in Scotland
4) Non-Scottish acts in Scotland
And within each band, there's seperate fees for comperes, 1st & 2nd acts, and headliners.
This is obviously good news, but what makes it more significant is that the rates hadn't changed for a while and at the back end of the summer, an email campaign circulated around various Jongleurs regulars saying that we should 'unionise' over this and demand a payrise. I'm not sure if this action was the catalyst to this move by the big J, but it can't have hurt. I sent a text to Milton Jones earlier, as I remember speaking to him about it at the time. He was one of the first people to be so outspoken over his indignance over the Jongleurs rates, so I congratulated him. Jokingly, he told me that he'd be taking 10% of my increase.
Thank God he's not my agent. The suggested 10% is actually greater than the increase in performers' fees, meaning I'd be further out of pocket. That said, he's been part of a successful campaign to hike pay from one of the biggest companies in comedy. In that respect, he'd make a bloody good agent, as - let's face it, that's one of their key jobs.
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