UNION.
Freelancers unite!!! Impossible you say?
I’m not talking about wage negotiations. I’m talking about fair treatment and ethics… the kind of things that used to be common business practices… but aren’t anymore.
Why should a freelancer show up for an ad agency assignment, find it isn’t ready and leave without billing for his/her time? Why should a freelancer sit and wait for a job and then get pressured not to put the time on his/her timesheet? Why should a freelancer work long, late hours without financial compensation? When an account team works late and the staff employees order dinner and take car service home, why not the freelancers, ...
UNION.
Freelancers unite!!! Impossible you say?
I’m not talking about wage negotiations. I’m talking about fair treatment and ethics… the kind of things that used to be common business practices… but aren’t anymore.
Why should a freelancer show up for an ad agency assignment, find it isn’t ready and leave without billing for his/her time? Why should a freelancer sit and wait for a job and then get pressured not to put the time on his/her timesheet? Why should a freelancer work long, late hours without financial compensation? When an account team works late and the staff employees order dinner and take car service home, why not the freelancers, too? Why should a freelancer have to spend months begging for a paycheck? Why should employers use the tax codes to their advantage, issue you a 1099 at the end of the year, mess up your business deductions and give you no benefits at all?
Here’s a thought… look up the Screen Actors Guild (union) contract on the Internet. Their working conditions have quite a bit in common with advertising freelancers. Thanks to the SAG contract, employers know they must meet minimum working condition standards. Individuals don’t have to fight individual battles for reasonable working conditions. Employers can’t threaten to give jobs to someone else who won’t make a fuss. Ethical working conditions are spelled out for everyone.
For that matter, look at the protections that are given to artists, authors, photographers and models in the copyright laws. When a piece of art runs for longer than the original contract, extended usage is paid. When a model or actor appears on television, they’re paid royalties. No battles necessary.
As ethics and fair business practices erode, I hear more and more freelancers complaining. If you’re a freelancer and haven’t experienced any of the irritating and costly experiences I’ve described, consider yourself lucky. Being a professional freelancer isn’t the same as being out of work and picking up a few bucks while you look for a staff job. For professional freelancers, assignments aren’t just found money. They’re your way of life. Unethical business practices erode your ability to make a living.
Actors, models, photographers, authors and artists have put a stop to unfair practices. How long before advertising professionals will be driven to do the same?
Leslie Sisman is a creative professional working in advertising… both copywriting and art direction. She started in the magic marker, rubber cement and typewriter era and happily retired the messy fingers and Wite-Out for the expanded capabilities of the compute. But there’s one important thing the computer can’t do (yet)… that’s the thinking.
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Advertising union |
Ethical business practices |
Freelancer's union |
Professional freelance |
Unfair business practices |
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