Owed wages and sexual harassment top agenda

Comedians have mooted the idea of forming a union to fight against clubs who hold up their payments.

More than 100 club-level stand-ups staged a meeting in central London yesterday, sparked in part by long-running problems in getting money from Jongleurs, Britain’s largest employer of comics outside the BBC.

The meeting at the Cockpit Theatre also raised the issue of sexual harassment – both from promoters and from abusive hecklers.

No firm plans were set down, and it was also proposed that the association may take the form of a pressure group more than a formalised trade union.

It is not the first time comedians have planned to start a union; but an attempt in the 1980s collapsed after two meetings ‘for reasons of factionalism and cynicism’.

However, those attending yesterday’s meeting – led by Sara Pascoe, John Gordillo and Lynn Chambers, all pictured – appeared energised by the prospect of a collective bargaining body that could act as a support system for comedians and allow them to be vocal about impropriety in the industry without fear of retribution from bookers.

Andrew Lukas, a former chief executive of The Directors Guild of Great Britain, suggested the pressure group approach after pointing out that a formal union posed problems in the amount of financial backing needed; the time taken to establish enough bargaining clout to be effective entity and the labyrinthine registration process.

Comics are eligible to join Equity – although it is often felt that the performers’ union does not cater enough for the specific needs of stand-ups.

Yesterday’s meeting proposed establishing a code of practice for the industry to curb the unacceptable behaviour of audience, promoters and other comedians.

Resentment against Jongleurs was palpable, with the chain’s slow payments and lack of honest communication with comedians frequently used as a shorthand for mismanagement and corporate apathy.

On a separate issue, Pascoe made the point that, in any other work environment, sexual harassment would lead to a £60,000 settlement but in live comedy it’s seen as an occupational hazard; just part of the job.

It was agreed that if comedians are being subjected to relentless abuse by an audience member, the onus should be on the management and their security detail to deal with the problem. However the difficulties in delineating between heckling and abuse and in imposing sanctions on transgressors was acknowledged.

The meeting was established, in part, because of the conduct of certain promoters. In a post floating the idea of a union back in May, Gordillo said: ‘According to several comics, there’s a promoter who routinely harasses the women he books for his club. Yet, though the person's identity and behaviour seems common knowledge to many, there's a reluctance to name him. Meanwhile acts continue to play the club, some apparently expecting the behaviour to continue.’

One suggestion was that a mailing list and forum for comedians be established to share problems they encountered. However the legal risk of defamation was considered a problem, so there was talk of a monthly fee being paid into a benevolent fund for comedians, which would also pay to keep a lawyer on retainer.

Although nothing concrete was settled yesterday, an email list was compiled so the collective could help draft a mission statement, code of conduct and a plan for moving ahead.

Also, a name was touted: Comedians United aka CUnts.

• Last year, both Tiernan Douieb and Dave Cohen wrote about the possibility of a comedians' union in Chortle's Correspondents section.

And it’s not just the comedians…

The manager of Jongleurs Nottingham comedy club has quit after 13 years with the company because of the unpaid bills fiasco.

Phil Mansfield started working for the club chain in 2001 and has managed the Nottingham venue in April this year.

He survived the collapse of both former owners Regent Inns and operators Momo Leisure, which ran several Jongleurs sites until it, too, went bust last year. Mansfield was owed £1,400 from that collapse, but said: 'I took this on the chin, some might say stupidly and carried on, with less responsibility and less wage.'

However he said once he took over the management of Jongleurs Nottingham, he soon found himself 'constantly chasing Jongleurs' for money, including the wages of the sound technicians.

He told Chortle: 'I decided that I'd had enough and felt the time was right for me to hang up my manager's clipboard and leave Jongleurs.

'I gave them a months notice and in that time, had to chase payment all the time.' He said he is still owed £460 'which in the light of how much they owe some of the comedians, is not a large amount but yet again, Jongleurs is not returning emails, phone calls or text messages. I feel really let down having given 13 years loyal service.'

Mansfield says his sound-tech colleague at another branch is also owed £500 and has started legal proceedings to recover it.

Published: 6 Oct 2014