The Stage

Welsh language TV actors will avoid pay cuts

Published Tuesday 16 June 2009 at 14:10 by Matthew Hemley

Proposals that threatened to dramatically cut the pay of hundreds of Welsh-language actors have been dropped, after Equity secured a new set of terms for its members.

TAC, which represents independent television producers in Wales, informed Equity last year that it was seeking to alter the terms it currently has with the union relating to productions made for Welsh broadcaster S4C, claiming it could not afford to keep paying actors the rates in the contract.

The proposals it outlined - including introducing a flat weekly fee and scrapping a programme supplement - caused outrage among performers working in Welsh-language television, who argued that TAC was trying to “downgrade the value of actors” and who urged Equity to oppose them.

Following a series of meetings between Equity and TAC - the latest of which took place at the end of last week - the two sides have now agreed a way forward, which is understood to avoid the hundreds of pounds of cuts to actors’ pay TAC had been seeking.

A source close to Equity said the meeting had been “positive” and provided a framework from which to move forward.

“The new agreement will not result in cuts to actors and in some cases will be an increase in earnings,” the source added.

Terms that the two sides have agreed have not been revealed, with Equity yet to consult members on the new agreement and TAC to look at the figures involved in more detail.

Gwion Owain, chief executive of TAC, said: “Subject to a few caveats, I think we have agreed terms more or less. They are subject to the internal democratic of Equity and TAC, and subject to a few costings on either side, but I think we have come to acceptable terms as far as we’re concerned.”

Owain said the terms agreed were similar to ones that Equity currently has with the BBC, which he said met TAC’s aspirations and Equity’s, because it offered the union’s members “something they already recognise”.