---Warning--- Continuation of long winded pretty boring rant
Part 2…
Ok, so here’s how the freelance stagehand world goes around. The vast majority of people out there that need to utilize the services of stagehands, do not need them all the time. The industry is very much a feast and famine type deal… As a company, you may have nothing going on one day, and multiple events going on the next. So what that means is you need a great deal of flexibility in the size of your staff. Some companies handle it by working with the local stagehands union, (that’s IATSE incidentally) others use non-union labor companies, and still others maintain a list of freelance stagehands. My beef with the industry is primarily with the last case.
Ok, so you need people, and you start going through your list. You manage to get enough of them to say yes, they can be there, that you fill your call out. These people show up at the appointed time, on the appointed day, and do what you need them to do. They then go home. (or more likely to a bar to blow off a little steam after a typically frustrating day)
As the employer, you then look at the time sheets, figure out what you owe them, and when your next pay period comes around, you send them a check… (that’s the ideal… lots of these companies don’t pay until they’ve been paid… sometimes as much as 120 days out)
There are a few items right there that scream out that these freelancers are not Independent Contractors.
You are giving them specific dates and times and location for the work to be done.
You are in general providing them with paperwork on how you want things set up, and run.
You are paying them based on either an hourly rate, or in many cases a daily rate based on a 10 hour minimum. (the minimums vary company to company, but that was the one that I did and still do use when I freelance)
Right there, there’s enough to say hey, these people are employees…
But wait… There’s more…
Virtually none of these people carries their own liability or workers comp insurance…. These people are not working based on a written contract (under most cases) so they stand no real chance of losing money. These people do not have to provide their own tools and equipment. (again, that one comes and goes… I take a lot of gear with me when I freelance… mostly because what companies will provide you with is crap) Also, though these people are essentially temps, they are an essential part of the company in question’s operating method.
Ok, you say, great… The freelancers should be employees… Who cares?... Shouldn’t they be making this case themselves?...
Well yes… I’d prefer that all the freelancers out there getting the 1099’s would get together, and decide to not accept it anymore… Unfortunately, the market is so competitive, that many of them are willing to take the 1099 in return for getting more work. Well it works, I know, since I used to do it… The problem comes later at tax time, in terms of the financial aspect… That’s a choice I suppose is theirs to make… However many of them do not know they end up having to pay a lot more to the government than if they were employees since the company would be contributing their part to the taxes… Ok… So these people don’t have a clue… Let them suffer?... No thanks… Not my style…
The industry is a dangerous one… We work some insane hours, and the pay isn’t great most of the time, so lots of people double book events back to back just to be able to survive financially…. Problem is, that tends to lead to people getting hurt now and again… If they’re on 1099, they’re screwed since there isn’t any workers comp. Many of the companies do get around that by telling the freelancers that if they get hurt, then they will go back and put them on payroll for that day, so they can collect the insurance… Hello… Doesn’t that seem just a tad sleazy?..
As an employer, what does it save you to screw these people?... Well you do not have to pay in to the taxes like you would for a normal employee. Workers Comp insurance is billed based on what your payroll is. If you have everyone on 1099, you have no payroll… Your insurance is almost nothing… Paying people is much faster as there are no hassles of figuring out what people owe, and sending that off to the government, so you save on accounting costs. (you still have to track the money, but it is a TON easier)
Ok… Go do something about it, instead of bitching?... I do… Everyone that works for me is getting paid properly… I make damn sure they understand the differences between the two methods… I make a point of rotating people new to the industry or the area through my shop, not only to develop my freelance list better, but to make sure they too understand the deal… I’m not the only one… There are a number of other reputable companies that play the game by the rules all the time too… It’s the companies that don’t that are the problem, as well as the universities that keep turning out technicians without telling the kids anything about reality… I can’t blame the union for any of this as there are certainly no union jobs that are 1099… It might be nice if they could find a way to get out there more and try to spread the word about this issue, without it feeling like everyone should be joining up… The union simply is not for everyone… The arts breeds people that are very independent… They just need a little help getting a clue…
Ok… This is me getting off my soapbox… I’m going to put it away for a little while... I promise...
Posted by Backstage at September 9, 2003 07:39 PM