Fixing Accommodation for Theatre Workers

This survey is about accommodation when you're working away from home. It was put together in conjunction with Equity Deputies on Commercial tours, and members of Equity's Stage Committee. It is open to everybody who works in theatre.

You will be asked a series of questions about your experiences of accommodation, both before the start of the pandemic and more recently. The answers you provide will be used to develop a comprehensive overview of the problems with the current arrangements for accommodation, which will enable Equity to put together a plan of action for how we make it better than it is now.

At no point in this survey will you be asked to give your name if you don't want to do so, but you will be able to give your email address to be kept informed about (or get involved in) the union's work in this area. If you have any questions or comments you can email Equity's Theatre Official Charlotte Bence on cbence@equity.org.uk, and you can view Equity's privacy policy here.

In this first section, we are asking general questions about your experiences of accommodation. In the second section we will ask you to answer questions with a specific job in mind and finally, you'll be asked for your views on the impact of the pandemic and what the future for accommodation should look like.

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* 1. Are you a member of a trade union?

Equity

Bectu

The Musicians Union

I am not a member of a trade union

I am a member of a trade union not listed here

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* 2. Are you a:

Performer

Director

Designer

Stage Manager

Choreographer

Other (please specify)

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* 3. Have your previous experiences with accommodation made you less likely to audition/apply for a job which would involve working away from home?

Yes

If yes, please explain:

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* 4. What is your best estimate of the amount of time you spend trying to find accommodation for each location when you are working away from home?

Under 1 hour per location

2-4 hours per location

More than 4 hours for each location

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* 5. In which towns/cities is it hardest to find accommodation for the allowances you are given?

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* 6. And where is it easier?

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* 7. Should accommodation allowances be structured in a way that means you would receive more in higher-cost locations, and a lower amount elsewhere?

Yes

I don't know

Comments:

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* 8. What are your personal priorities for accommodation?

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* 9. What examples do you have of good practice from producers around the provision of accommodation?

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* 10. What examples do you have of poor practice from producers around the provision of accommodation?

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* 11. To what extent have issues around accommodation impacted your mental health?

Accommodation problems have had a very detrimental impact on my mental health

Accommodation problems have had a somewhat detrimental impact on my mental health

Accommodation problems have had a minimal impact on my mental health

I have not experienced mental health problems or concerns because of accommodation

Other (please specify)

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* 12. The last negotiations between Equity and UK Theatre for both Commercial and Subsidised Theatre took place in 2018. At this time, Equity claimed for a single living away allowance of £300 per week. Is this figure:

Too low

About right

Too high

Other (please specify)

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* 13. In those same negotiations, Equity argued that living away allowances should be received by the worker a minimum of four weeks in advance. Is this time frame:

Too much of an advance

About right

Not enough of an advance

Other (please specify)

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* 14. How often do you feel safe/comfortable in the accommodation you stay in whilst working away from home?

Always

Usually

Sometimes

Rarely

Never

Comments:

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* 15. To what extent does the quality/safety of the accommodation you are staying in impact on your ability to do your job to your usual standard?

In poor quality/unsafe accommodation I am regularly unable to do my job to the best of my ability

In poor quality/unsafe accommodation I am sometimes unable to do my job to the best of my ability

Poor quality/unsafe accommodation has no impact on my ability to do my job

Other (please specify)

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* 16. When you have raised accommodation issues with your engager, how supportive have they been in helping you resolve them?

Very supportive

Somewhat supportive

Not supportive at all

Other (please specify)

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* 17. Equity believes it is important that accommodation is as close to the performance venue as possible in the interests of worker safety. Do you agree with this position?

Strongly agree

Agree

Somewhat agree

Neither agree nor disagree

Somewhat disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree

Please explain:

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* 18. An important consideration around accommodation is its wider safety implications for workers (such as the potential risks of having to walk home alone through town/city centres you don't know late at night). To what extent do you think engagers consider and/or care about wider safety implications?

They consider it, and they care about this too

They consider it, but they don't care

They don't think about it and they don't care

Other (please specify)

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* 19. Have you ever felt unsafe, or been in an unsafe situation when travelling to or from your accommodation?

Yes, I have felt or been unsafe regularly when travelling to or from my accommodation

Yes, I have felt or been unsafe occasionally when travelling to or from my accommodation

I have felt or been unsafe once when travelling to or from my accommodation

I have never felt or been unsafe when travelling to or from my accommodation

If you would like to comment on this, please do so:

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* 20. If you have ever reported an incident that happened to you when you were travelling to or from your accommodation, to what extent did the engager support you?

I was well supported

I was supported to a limited extent

I was not supported at all

Other (please specify)

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* 21. If an engager has ever provided accommodation for you, was it of a better standard than you would have been able to find yourself?

Yes, it was a better standard than what I would have been able to find myself

It was about the same standard as I would have found myself

It was worse than what I would have been able to find for myself

Please provide further details:

In the second section of this survey, we are asking you to think about a specific production you have worked on, and answer the questions based on your experiences of accommodation on that particular job. The information you provide about specific producers you have worked for will be kept confidential to Equity.

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* 22. Does the example you want to provide relate to a job you did before the start of pandemic in March 2020, or after March 2020?

Before March 2020

After March 2020

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* 23. Which production company were you working for?

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* 24. Was this a tour, or a job that took place in one location away from your home address?

A tour

A job in one location

Other (please specify)

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* 25. If it was a tour, how many venues did you visit?

Clear

i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 26. Did the producer source accommodation for you, or were you responsible for finding your own?

The producer arranged accommodation for me

I was responsible for finding my own accommodation

Other (please specify)

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* 27. If the accommodation was self-sourced, were you given the minimum allowance under the agreement or did the producer pay more?

The minimum

The producer paid more than the minimum

I don't remember

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* 28. Did you find self-contained accommodation, or did you have to share with another person?

Self-contained

I had to share with another person

Other (please specify)

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* 29. Was it clean?

Yes

Other (please specify)

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* 30. Were the cooking/washing facilities adequate?

Yes

Other (please specify)

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* 31. How far away was your accommodation from the venue?

This is the final section of the survey. It asks questions about the impact of the pandemic on accommodation, and for your ideas on what the future for accommodation whilst you're at work should look like

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* 32. In your experience, what impact has the pandemic had on accommodation?

There are fewer options, and what is available is more expensive

There are fewer options, but the costs are about the same as pre-pandemic

The options available and the costs are about the same

Other (please specify)

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* 33. How much more difficult has it been to find accommodation?

Clear

i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 34. Have you experienced additional problems with accommodation platforms/providers compared to before the pandemic?

Yes, I have had additional problems with AirBnb

Yes, I have had additional problems with Theatre Digs Booker

Yes, I have had additional problems with Booking.com

I have had additional problems with all of these providers/platforms

I have had additional problems with a platform/provider not listed here

I have had no additional problems

If yes, please provide details:

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* 35. Do you think engagers understand the additional pressures on accommodation that the pandemic has caused?

Yes

Other (please specify)

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* 36. What should the provision of accommodation look like?

Producers should source and pay for it

Allowances should be increased and workers should source their own

Other (please specify)

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* 37. What else would you like to share with us about accommodation?

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* 38. If you'd like to be kept informed about the results of this survey please provide your email address

Email Address