Saturday, 31 of July of 2010
Representation and action for students of the arts
“The Employment Tribunals, sitting in Reading, have ruled that workers engaged on an expenses-only basis are entitled to payment at least in line with the national minimum wage, in addition to payment for the holiday they accrue.”
Settling down for dinner, imagine my surprise to see the BBC openly admitting to the exploitation of unpaid workers in the production of “James May’s Toy Stories”. To achieve the production of the plasticine garden in the second episode, James May introduces his model maker, and team of ‘helpers’ thus:
‘these art students are an absolutely fantastic find, and very cheap actually! – ‘cos they’re doing it for nothing! But what I haven’t got the heart to tell them, is that this is actually the workhouse, it’s that victorian ethic again’
Hang on a second James – so you’re actually admitting that you’re using these students and exploiting them for their labour to bolster your production? Because that’s what you’ve just admitted to. You’ve just described that they are providing a service that you need, and you’re not paying them. Have you even heard of National Minimum Wage Guidelines? Well done BBC. You’ve broken employment legislation, and then transmitted it, and one of your key presenters bragging about it. Not only that – you didn’t even bother to thank the students amongst the groups at the end of the programme, or even put their names in your credits.
I’m sure these students, and everyone else involved had a great time on the production. But you know what the difference is? If those students hadn’t been roped in, the BBC would have had to pay some poor production assistants to do the job. Instead they circumvented this and cut their costs by exploiting creatives at the beginnings of their careers who were hungry opportunity. This wasn’t “work experience” – you asked them to complete a service for you, and you didn’t pay them. This from an organization that receives public funding. And don’t push any rubbish about voluntary work – this wasn’t a charity project to help the needy, this wasn’t even an internship with the hint of a job at the end of it. The BBC was producing a progamme here – I presume all the management got paid who worked on it, and I’m certain James May got paid for his disrespectful gloating.
The thousands of volunteers who rolled the odd plasticine flower at the ideal home show clearly did this for a bit of fun. Even the Chelsea Pensioners might be justified as doing this as an activity they enjoyed on a casual level (though James May nicely rewards the veterans who’ve defended his country and freedoms by insulting them with a comment about their poor memory), but here in this programme the BBC has abused the labour of young people clearly doing work, and they’ve openly admitted to doing so to cut on the costs of producing a programme.
Shame on you James May. Shame on you BBC. Now go back and pay the people who made your programme possible.
Witness this appallingly casual abuse of labour yourselves by clicking here
On 14th October, Arts Group Chair, Kit Friend, attended the Interns Summit in Portcullis House.
Touted by many attendees as the start of a cohesive movement, there sounds like positive movement will come as a result of this activity. However current discussion from those attending was still focussing around parliamentary interns, quality provision etc – we anticipate a fight for the legisla
Here follows the report from the Office of Phil Willis MP:
Last night around 100 interns, MPs and lobbyists gathered in parliament to demand an end to the abuse of ‘generation intern’.
The event was hosted by Liberal Democrat MP Phil Willis, and featured rousing speeches from The Speaker Rt. Hon John Bercow MP, the Rt Hon. Charles Clarke MP, David Willets MP, NUS President Wes Streeting and president of the parliamentary branch of Unite, Dan Whittle.
The most eagerly anticipated contribution came from Speaker Bercow, who chairs the Members’ Estimates Committee. The Committee will be looking at MPs expenses and pay, including staffing allowances and hopefully the question of interns pay too.
Whilst shying away from directly committing himself to putting the issue on the agenda for the Committee, The Speaker stated that he was very happy to raise it ‘through the appropriate channels’ although ‘this will take time’. He acknowledged that ‘This will not go away, it cannot be brushed under the carpet… I am listening’.
Following The Speaker, David Willets faced the packed room stating ‘I can sense this is the start of a movement, it feels like an uprising!’. Willets made reference to Alan Milburn’s Social Mobility Report published this summer, stating that only 3-4% of interns apply for their positions following careers advice, and called for a ‘revolution’ in careers advice.
With all the talk of revolution and uprising, Wes Streeting and Dan Whittle issued a rallying cry to the interns in the room. Wes Streeting accused many politicians of talking to themselves, and thanked Willis, Willets, Clarke and The Speaker for taking the time to listen. Dan Whittle called for an end to ‘generation intern’, and ended by challenging The Speaker to put this issue on the agenda for the Committee’s first meeting next week, stating that he was ‘disappointed’ by the absence of such a promise.
Phil Willis has confirmed that he will be writing to The Speaker to formalise the request.
Phil Willis said ‘Interns are now an integral part in the staffing structure of our Parliament, it’s essential to kick-on and ensure that they not only receive the appropriate recognition for their contribution, but that the authorities develop a kite mark or minimum standard for internships to ensure that they get a really first class experience and appropriate reward’.
Please visit our Registration page here to sign up to attend our October meeting in Liverpool on 19th/20th! now in London on the 19th/20th October!
Arts Group Chair, Kit Friend, met with representatives from the Arts Council England, Skillset, Creative & Cultural Skills (CCS) and Skillfast-uk, to discuss progress in the area of graduate internships. With our “Emerging Workers” paper due to launch soon, outlining our proposed direction in this area. We were grateful for the warm reception from these bodies, and look forward to a productive relationship ensuring the broadest possible benefit to those beginning their careers in the Creative Industries, free from exploitation and with an appropriate value attributed to their labour.
As students across the country get ready to receive their A-level results and look forward to going to university, new research by the National Union of Students (NUS) in conjunction with HSBC today reveals the ‘hidden’ costs associated with certain degree subjects.
The figures, which are taken from a forthcoming student experience report, will come as a shock to many whose chosen subject appears in the top half of NUS’ league table of ‘most expensive degrees’. Someone taking a degree in mathematical or computer sciences, for instance, will be looking at a whopping £1,430 yearly spend on books, equipment and fieldwork on top of their tuition fees and living expenses, compared to £432 for someone taking an education degree*:
Additional annual spend by degree course:
• Mathematical Sciences and Computer Science: £1430.40 • Medicine and Dentistry: £902.16 • Business and Administrative Studies: £873.36 • Creative Arts and Design: £701.04 • Engineering and Technology: £651.60 • Law: £642.48 • Languages: £635.28 • Historical and Philosophical Studies: £568.56 • Social Studies: £539.76 • Biological Sciences: £539.52 • Physical Sciences: £499.20 • Subjects allied to medicine: £461.52 • Education: £432.48
NUS President Wes Streeting said:
“It is completely unacceptable that applicants are left in the dark about the true cost of degrees. Many students preparing to go to university this summer may be in for a real shock.
“Universities need to be much more open about the hidden costs associated with different courses. There should be better information, advice and guidance about student finance on university websites and in their prospectuses.”
The report also suggests that students’ financial situations deteriorate during their time at university, leaving them more reliant on sources of funding other than their grants or loans. 29% of first year students rely on paid employment or other loans or credit as a source of funding, compared to 50% of final year students.
Wes Streeting added: “Universities should also provide students with better financial advice and support whilst they are at university, so they do not have to get into commercial debt or jeopardise their studies by taking on more part time work just to get by.”
Click here to visit http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/Payinterns/ and sign up to stop the exploitation of unpaid interns in the UK
As part of the Arts Group’s work on Emerging Workers, Arts Group’s Chair, Kit Friend, attended the consultation regarding Parliamentary Internships yesterday, and encouraged the initiative to consider the measures recommended as national legislation in the upcoming “Emerging Workers” report to be published soon. These include a 4 week/160 hour limit on unpaid work, and living wage for all interns up to 3 months, whereby they should move to being made regular employees and subject to the same rules and protection.
Phil Willis’ website with continued updates on the Parliamentary Internship enquiry is at www.philwillis.org.uk
More fantastic documentation on the generally shocking state of Internships in this country is at Interns Anonymous
The Next Meeting of the Arts Group will currenly be on October 19th/20th in Liverpool, overlapping with the NUS’ Town Takeover, watch this space for more updates soon.
An important part of human development is about learning, often through accepting the point of view of others and taking something from the process. I think this is a lesson that a whole generation must have missed out on. Welcome to my generation, where conformity is the new cool and where politics certainly isn’t. As Britain heads down the ‘middle’ road of politics, led by New Labour with their not-so-new ideas on how to govern society, the disenfranchised, ‘don’t give a shit’ youth of today file out of universities, proud to be just another brick in the wall.
This time last year I was accepted for at place at university. I was full of hope, ambition and eager to find out what uni life would be like. I chose to study photojournalism, a personal interest of mine. I must clarify that uni came a little later for me than for most, as I had spent two years out in the big wide world away from the education system. I went to the University of the Arts London, which boasts 20,000 students across more than seven colleges.Words: Will Poole
Pics: Will Poole &
Will JobbinsMy college was the London College of Communication, the largest of all the sites. LCC is modern, trendy and arty, and its students were likewise. What the LCC lacked was any credible student community or social network. There was no real encouragement to congregate. Maybe it’s because one really unique and powerful aspect of student philosophy had been lost – that feeling that together, students could do anything. The radical political movements of the ‘60s and ‘70s were dead and with it the rallies, debate and new or experimental ways of thinking.
During freshers’ week, before I had my first class, the student union organised a workshop titled ‘Student’s Involvement in Changing the World’. Just eight people turned up, including myself, out of the entire first year of the university. Even the lecturer failed to attend, and so we had to have a representative from the Student Union take over. We opened up with a Q&A of sorts, so I asked what our union had accomplished in the outside world since the university opened.
The answer was not a lot, to put it politely. They hadn’t run one campaign or rally. This was a union that was fighting to communicate to its own students let alone anyone outside the college walls, a sadly ironic affair considering the college’s name. Yet somehow, before leaving the room, I found myself signing up to the Student Council. I think they may have resorted to putting something in the water.
The Student Council was an eye-opening experience. There were very few people involved and even fewer of those actually turned up regularly. Elections for positions were a farce, because out of tens of thousands of students only 400 people even bothered to vote. Don’t get me wrong here – those that are involved work very well with what they have and are bright, determined and dedicated. The problem here isn’t the people running the show, it’s the apathetic students themselves. Crushing words indeed, but it’s very hard to form any other sort of opinion given the evidence.
The big event for all student unions is the NUS conference, which I was able to attend. The NUS conference is pretty much a three-day bender in Blackpool, speckled with a few hours of pantomime and voting. The same group of reactionaries vote one way on everything, and everyone else votes whichever way the beloved President does. You have to love uni politics – even though I agreed with points on both sides, I was amazed at how mundane the subjects were. Can you believe that the motion to campaign for free education was voted down five to one? At the NUS, of all places? It was also evident that every topic of debate was related to student society, such as the binge drinking culture and the price of a pint. There wasn’t a whisper about the world outside the university walls. The idea of changing the world is now considered an optimistic fantasy by many, but maybe that’s the trait we are lacking. Maybe having a child-like vision of a better future would actually give us something to aspire to. Maybe we have all just grown up a little too fast.
In today’s world we are encouraged to grow up faster and faster. We have a life plan already in existence even before birth and, as soon as we’ve got that out of the way its off to nursery, then primary school, and then some of us – providing we have jumped through enough hoops – go to sixth form or college. Then its university for the lucky ones, then a job, a house, a husband/wife, two kids, retirement and death. There are so many hoops to hurdle and not all of us make it to the final stages, but we all manage to meet at the end. We are taught from birth that this is just the way it is and the way it will always be, with an emphasis on the philosophy that taking maximum enjoyment from life is easiest when jumping through as many of these hoops as possible. We care so much about getting to the end of our course of hoops that we don’t take the time to ask important questions, like why are they there? What was their desired purpose and effect? Could we make them easier to jump through? And should we even jump through them at all?
With these very questions in my head I left university. To me further education had lost its fundamental purpose; to encourage people to ask questions and find answers. However I do have hope for the future, as there is a sizeable minority who are still able to think for themselves and shun conformity. Any large-scale political demonstration is almost guaranteed to be attended by – and in some cases led by – passionate student unionists. Yet they remain a minority, and when surrounded by so many others who honestly aren’t interested in anything more than making grades and winning drinking competitions, I feel that my generation, at least, has lost the fight.
If YOU want to get off your arse and get involved, the NUS can be contacted at www.nus.org.uk
Words: Will Poole
Pics: Will Poole &
Will Jobbins
Republished with permission from Will Poole, original article available at Toxin Magazine where there is a forum for discussion and comments on it.
