slightly off topic, hundreds of radio pro's got a raise

[Deleted User]

Today the federal minimum wage went up to 7.25/hr from 6.55, meaning hundreds of people who work in states that use the federal minimum wage statute got an almost 7% raise today. Luckily for those radio pro's in MA the min wage is 8 bucks an hour!


So congratulations to my fellow board ops, engineers, and on air talents in other markets on the big score. Don't spend it all in one place.

Deregulation & Consolidation, bringing poverty to broadcast professionals since 1983!

 

[oaktree]

Because of that 7% mandated increase ... don't get too cheery. You'd be surprised how many of those board ops, engineers and talent could face trouble with layoffs yet ... because another 7% increase out of a 24% loss of revenue isn't going to make things in this economy any better.

If this was an effort at being funny ... it's not. Those "7% increases" where applicable, add up ... fast.

Don't think that 7% is much? You're right ... it's not. But consider how many "radio pros" across the country are now working for 5% pay cuts ... and not 7% increases, even in states where the minimum wage is like yours ... or the pay even better. It's not pretty to consider. I feel sorry for those in the minimum wage stations. They're the ones who need to keep worrying.

It's not over, I'm afraid. Don't get your hopes up to high.

 

[TheBigA]

Some like to blame the low pay of broadcasters on deregulation and consolidation. But I predate deregulation, and I'm here to tell you that I worked for minimum wage when it was less than $3 an hour. It was at an AM/FM combo that was the ONLY radio station in town. And I got paid more than some of the high school kids, who came in after class to hang around. They did it for free. One day, the owner had a bright idea to actually CHARGE people to learn about radio. So they were paying him to work there. I'm not kidding. It has nothing to do with deregulation or consolidation, folks. It has to do with supply & demand.

 

[smedge2006]

It has nothing to do with deregulation or consolidation, folks. It has to do with supply & demand.

... and the supply has gotten steadily leaner (and dumber) over the past 15 years, from what people in the business tell me. Radio is not the great resume magnet it was in 1983 or 1988. The intelligent and ambitious have gone elsewhere. Even the broadcasting schools are having trouble staying open. Smart young people realize there's no point in spending money to learn a trade that is shedding jobs daily, where new ideas are frowned upon and discouraged, and where the workplace environment is downright toxic. Yes, there were radio stations that were a bear to work for 20 years ago, but the pay was better and something was on the line. Many chains today are just beating up their remaining staffers for no good reason. Radio's current workforce has a few clueless youngsters and a lot of guys who are too old to start over in something else.

As far as your $3 an hour example, there were certainly small towns where radio pay tracked the minimum wage in the past. What is different now is that the minimum is offered at major corporations in big markets.

 

[TheBigA]

The intelligent and ambitious have gone elsewhere. Even the broadcasting schools are having trouble staying open.

Not exactly true. The only school that closed down was bought back by its founder, and quickly reopened. Broadcasting departments in colleges and universities are filled beyond capacity. In fact, it's these broadcasting departments that are responsible for glutting the market. But most students either go into advertising, public relations, television, or they start their own company. All great choices, in my opinion. An on-air career is not for everyone, and 98% of those who try should consider something else.

 

[Silkie]

Those who are in minimum wage stations are not really the ones who need to start worrying. They're cheap enough, the station gets what it pays for, and the rest of us just change the station after about 2 minutes.

 

[TheBigA]

Take my advice....if you're in a minimum wage situation, and you aspire to something better (and admittedly most people don't), it behooves you to be BETTER than what they're paying you. So no, they shouldn't get what you pay for. You should get BETTER. If a rookie hits 350, and is making less than a million, it puts him in a great bargaining position when his contract comes up. If the team gets what it pays for, he'll be dropped before the end of the season. Understand? We need people who aspire to greatness. Not put in the bare minimum because that's what they're getting paid. I'm just sayin....

 

[radiorama1]

Radio's current workforce has a few clueless youngsters and a lot of guys who are too old to start over in something else.

Spot on.

(However... may I add that there are a few "youngsters" out there that show promise, but sadly most will never get their chance to shine because they are handcuffed to :10 second liner copy.)

 

[TheBigA]

Bill Drake was the father of the :10 liner. One think his disciples learned was it wasn't the time you had, but what you did with the time that mattered. A smart and creative person can do a lot with :10 of airtime.

 

[smedge2006]

If a rookie hits 350, and is making less than a million, it puts him in a great bargaining position when his contract comes up.

Except that radio these days is more like baseball in the days BEFORE free agency. Owners acting as a cartel, non-competes as the reserve clause (although not in MA, of course), limited upward mobility, low-balling talent and throwing them under the bus when a scandal erupts (Black Sox = nipplegate). One well-known blogger compares radio to a baseball team that decides to play with eight on the field. The others then immediately cut back to eight as well.

 

[TSBench]

I'm not kidding. It has nothing to do with deregulation or consolidation, folks. It has to do with supply & demand.

Back in the early 80s, I worked at the thousand-pound-gorilla of Boston radio stations. I strolled into the PD's office right after he had had a chat with one of our producer/board op types. He mentioned that the fellow had just asked for a raise and he had turned him down flat. I asked why, since I thought the guy was one of the station's more competent producer types and thought that losing him over, literally, a couple of bucks, wasn't worth it.

The PD pointed over to one of his five-draw file cabinets.

"That cabinet is filled with applications from people who would be willing to do his job, and do it just, or nearly, as well, for free."

Regards,
TSB

 

[oaktree]

Whether it's "live" or "voicetracking." Whether it's "button pushing and reading :10 liners (which you chose to do as no one forced you to take the job,) or whether it's small market, medium or large ... it's about giving your best, opening your eyes and ears and learning what someone wants you to do ... not merely what you want to do.

And doing it to the best of your ability ... not what the paycheck says. Don't like the paycheck or the wages? Then don't be in it. Radio (or any job,) owes you nothing. You work ... they pay ... your choice.

Talent is not a guarantee of big money. There is a lot of talent, believe it or not, working for minimum wage. Both good talent and horrible no-talents. In all kinds of stations. Including voicetrackers. You give your best, not based on your paycheck. And if your "talent" doesn't fit, then, no matter what you get paid will ever matter.

I was once told by a Drake/Chenault higher up ... "You know, it doesn't matter if you're offered $50,000 a year and a company car ...if they only pay you for 13 weeks, you still come up short."

Point being: You're only as good as your last shift and only as good as what the billing, ratings and relationship with management is ... in addition to your ability and talent. It IS "all about you." If you take it out of "love and passion for the business," then do it to the best of your abilities, with no guarantees. Don't like that youu don't make that $50,000? Be lucky you've got a gig.

A lot of very talented people are on the beach today. There are lots of reasons why. But taking the job is your choosing, just like in any other job. You take your chances ... supply, demand or whatever.

Just do your best with what you've got. Unfortunately, that file cabinet drawer, that mp3 by email, that FedEx package is right now on somebody's desk or computer. A lot of people looking for work.

At any price. Sad ... but true.

It's your choice.

 

[smedge2006]

Just do your best with what you've got. Unfortunately, that file cabinet drawer, that mp3 by email, that FedEx package is right now on somebody's desk or computer. A lot of people looking for work.

The file cabinet won't be full much longer. Talented young people are avoiding this business. They're heading for greener pastures. The "supply" is collapsing, just not as quickly as the demand.

 

[beachguy3b]

My first radio job was afternoons in a small town for a whopping buch-65 an hour. Which I usually wasn't paid, by the way.

I've had young folks ask me about getting into broadcasting because I was in it for so long. They aren't asking about radio, though. It's TV. I haven't had a young person ask about radio in 10 years at least.

 

[radioray]

I disagree that at least some of the blame can't be shown to be due to consolidation, though.

A jock may MD one station, do middays on another and VT a third in the cluster overnights.

In pre-consolidation days that would not have happened because it would have been considered working for the competition (not just considered, that's exactly what it would have been).

This has been bad bad bad for jobs in this industry. On-air jobs, off-air jobs, etc. I think the biggest losers have been GM's and Chief Engineers FWIW, but jox too.

 

[JoshuaC]

"That cabinet is filled with applications from people who would be willing to do his job, and do it just, or nearly, as well, for free."

An important and true observation. The key, then, is to be able to do the job better than the next guy, or cheaper, or both. This industry is small. It is going to get smaller. The technology that allows for VoiceTRACs and consolidation is not going to be un-invented. People need to get over that and be prepared to, if they have the job, work hard for it and, if they don't have the job, find something else to do. In many respects, that's the way it always has been in any industry.

I think the barometer of success in Radio today, especially at the entry level, has a lot less to do with how well you do a job and more with how many jobs can you do well. I got my start in radio as a jack of all trades... I knew audio, I knew music, I knew how to solder wires and how to program a computer, I could unjam a copy machine and set up a broadcast tent. Eventually they figured it was cheaper to pay me enough to keep me around than to constantly have to scrounge around for part-timers who didn't know as much and couldn't necessarily be relied upon. You have to keep in mind your own self-promotion and self-investment. Make sure people understand (or think they understand) that they need you around. A lot of the "successful" people in radio are the ones who have convinced everyone else how important they are and how much things would fall apart without them (whether this is true or not). They are often also the people who realize that it is up to them and only them to create this success.

"Things do not happen. Things are made to happen." - John F. Kennedy

It's not a mystery that radio or media in general is a desirable field to be in. Granted the mythos of the the Radio DJ has faded in recent years, it is still a good stepping-stone industry. Just ask Ryan Seacrest. But in any industry you are only as good as your last mistake, and especially nowadays you need to be so much more aware of the 10.2% of the American Public who would love to get paid to do something.

 

[TheBigA]

A jock may MD one station, do middays on another and VT a third in the cluster overnights.

In pre-consolidation days that would not have happened because it would have been considered working for the competition (not just considered, that's exactly what it would have been).

We're talking about pay, not responsibilities.

In my minimum wage days, I actually did work for the competition under a different name and in a different position. Easy to do when you're 22.