Fringe whistleblowers tell of ‘exploitation and exhaustion’
Artists and venue staff share stories of poor working conditions online
ORGANISERS of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe want to meet the creators of a “whistleblower” website that has highlighted poor working conditions at the event.
The website, Fringe Whistleblower, is recording stories of poor working conditions and incidents, as well as conducting a survey of Fringe workers to gather information.
It has been set up by artists and producers who are “dismayed” at the state of the Fringe, which comes to an end tonight.
The website has documented stories of excessive hours, poor or late pay and other issues.
At the annual meeting of the Fringe Society, which runs the festival, the new chief executive of the Fringe, Shona McCarthy, said she was eager to engage with the website.
Ms McCarthy said: “The Fringe Society is itself an equal opportunities employer and we work very closely with [union] BECTU, so we would like to think we set a model of best practice, and we are very aware of the whistleblower website.
“We are hoping that they will work with us, and talk to us.
“At the minute it is anonymous, but actually it would be helpful to have that direct [conversation] about something we are conscious of.”
One contributor to the website told of working in one of the “four largest venue providers,” saying: “Like many young people I was lured to work for these companies by perks I could not use.
“I quit after two weeks due to exhaustion, lost my work-provided accommodation and was homeless in Edinburgh until my flight.
“It made me realise that the Fringe is built off the backs of exploited young people.” Another wrote: “I don’t understand why this kind of culture is acceptable at the Fringe when it really isn’t at any other time.
“I don’t understand why people are okay with exploitation and exhaustion. That’s not what art should be about.”
Union BECTU recently launched a code of conduct aimed at supporting Fringe venues and producers in paying the living wage.
The website says it was created by an anonymous collective of artists and producers who are “increasingly dismayed at the state of the Edinburgh Fringe”.
It adds: “Most artists do not get paid at the Edinburgh Fringe: in fact, many lose money.
“Many venue staff work in very difficult working and sometimes unlawful conditions, including 12-hour shifts for six or seven days a week with minimal pay.
“Meanwhile, landlords and hoteliers make vast sums of money, arts administrators can cream off their wages, and some artistic directors of for-profit and not-for-profit venues take a handsome cut.
“Those making a profit from the Fringe are doing so through exploiting artists and front-line workers.”
It adds: “We want to document this in two ways: by collecting anonymous stories of abuse and exploitation at the Fringe, and by starting to gather information about the actual working conditions of front-line Fringe staff.”