The Stage

Police face unpaid actors row

Published Thursday 2 September 2010 at 10:50 by Jamie Elliott

The Association of Chief Police Officers has been accused of flouting employment law after it advertised for experienced actors to appear on an expenses-only basis in a film raising awareness of terrorism.

The casting call, which appeared on the StarNow casting website in July, included demanding roles such as the mother of a suicide bomber. “This role requires the actor to deliver strong emotional monologues to camera but also to take part in strong scenes in which she is verbally abused by her disturbed son,” the advert said.

Employment rights campaigner Pat Dean claims actors are entitled to be paid for appearing in the film, which will be shown to hundreds of thousands of public sector workers. “The minimum wage regulations are very clear and say that all workers must be paid at least the legal minimum for every hour they work,” he says. “An individual cannot be excepted as a ‘volunteer’ if they are given set hours and duties to perform.”

A spokesman for Equity agreed. “It was a normal job of work, but only expenses were being offered,” he said. “This is illegal and at least the national minimum wage should be offered.” He added that Equity had reported the case to HM Revenue and Customs, the government department which enforces the minimum wage.

Cliff Edwards, managing director of the production company making the film, said in an email sent to Dean in July that the decision not to pay the actors was part of a cost-cutting exercise. The original casting call was for paid actors, he said, but his “Counter Terrorism and MI5 colleagues” had then insisted his company use unpaid actors in order to save money.

Edwards was unavailable for further comment. After it was contacted by the publication, ACPO said it was reconsidering its policy on paying the actors. “Filming has yet to take place and final payment for those actors involved is currently being reviewed by ACPO in conjunction with the media agency responsible for recruitment of actors to ensure that no breach of employment law has been made,” a spokeswoman said.