Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Women working backstage in West End likely to receive less pay
The Stage: "The Society of London Theatre is being urged to revise its minimum wage agreement to tackle a situation whereby people in female-dominated departments such as costumes and wigs are paid less than their equivalents in traditionally male areas such as sound and lighting."
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10 comments:
Here in America we have something called Title VII which requires equal pay for equal work. Note that I think that costumes, wardrobe, etc are ery skilled positions. However, in America, it could be argued that the male dominated positions are more dangerous (being high up hanging lights) or require more physical ability (lifting heavy objects). This does not, however make the disparity ethically acceptable. I am glad someone is finally recognizing that the skills in the - for lack of a better term - softer side of theatre is just as important as the skills that require more brute strength.
before i came to america, i thgouht everyone will be equal in this country. because they call their own county 'a country of opportunities'. however as i stay here longer, i learn the world can never be equal to everyone. still, sexism is bad.
I agree in parts with Jennie's comment. It is important that people realise the skill and talent required in the areas of costumes and wardrobe. Jennie also makes a good point that the male dominated positions can often be more dangerous, or require more physical ability. For that reason, and not the comparison of skill or talent required, I think it is that male dominated jobs often end up with higher pay because the work related injuries are more serious. Therefore, while some evening of the balances may be necessary to insure that women get justly paid for their talent, it might be more than the industry needs to allow more women into the male dominated positions. I hope that makes sense.
This news surprised me. I thought the payment should be equal regarless of sex in western country.
In some way, maybe women are weaker and slower than men. But we are more thoughtful. Sometimes, we just play a small role like screw and bolt. However, screw and bolt are important and essential.
I agree with the above 2 comment, Jennie and Emily. All I can say now it's "Life is hard for everyone."
Us men like to screw and bolt too.
So that was a little immature. Anyway, I kind of agree with Joe that there will always be people complaining about their pay.
Just because male-dominated aspects of theater tend to be more dangerous doesn't mean they should get paid more, perhaps they should just have better health coverage and injury compensaiton rates. It seems to me that salary should be primarly based on seniority and skill level. No matter what department (that is incredibly idealized). The point is that once someone is running a department, they are good at what they do and they deserve to have a paycheck that reflects that. If a male project manager is more talented than a female costume shop manager, then he has earned his higer paycheck. fair and square. - Maddie Regan
Funny this is such a heated topic. I just finished a STATS assignment (thank you Heniz School) regarding pay inequalities and the correlation between gender and wages. And while I AGREE with Ms. Lake (Title VII is as clear as day), I also can't say I am surprised by this report. This is an age old factum in all lines of work - woman should rally - because what they bring to the table is on average more pertinient and valueable than anyone else.
-J Bogush
Throughout the world, in every industry, women earn less then their male counterparts, and becuase it has been this way throughout history many women have come to accpet this as typical. One would hope that in theater we would be more equitable, but regardless of laws and protections written by any government, I more than relize that in my lifetime I will earn less then a man doing equal work.
-Kim Allen-Poole
Wages reflect what the worker is willing to accept. There are many occupations which are traditionally underpaid, because the auxillary rewards are seen as compensation enough (yeah, right). Would you rather work in a bookstore or on an assembly line? One pays much more, but you might choose the other, so why should one employer match the other?
Throughout the theatre, wages are frequently lower than what one might expect for people who generally have higher education and advanced degrees. When you compound that with the "traditionally female" occupations, you get lower pay because that's what people are used to getting. If there was a sudden shortage of people willing to work in, for example, costumes shops, salaries would go up because they would have to.
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