The NUJ’s Freelance Day of Action takes place on 7 June, when the
union will launch the online Freelance Fees Guide, the first one
written specifically for online publication.
An evening social
event will mark the occasion along with the end of a countrywide Day of
Action, designed to put freelance issues in the spotlight.
Online publication will mean the Guide can be regularly updated and keep a better track of conditions and pay in the industry.
The Guide has always tried to reflect best practice in both rates and conditions.
Its recommendations arise from research into real fees paid by real publishers.
This
might be a good opportunity to clear up a misunderstanding that has
appeared from time to time: contrary to a commonly held belief, the NUJ
does not advise its members not to work for local and regional
newspapers.
It only says that it cannot recommend the rates that some (there are honourable exceptions) papers pay.
Rates
for writing, for example, can be as low as £25 per 1,000 words (in one
case, around £12 per 1,000). By contrast, even the smallest-circulation
magazines quoted in the Guide pays £160 per 1,000 words. Rates for
subediting and photography are often similarly low.
For the online Fees Guide, visit www.londonfreelance.org.uk.
Jenny Vaughan NUJ, Freelance Industrial Council
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