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Twitter Is On Fire Talking About How Low-Paid Hollywood Assistants Are

#PayUpHollywood

Hollywood assistants are being grossly underpaid.

Twitter is having a productive day discussing and calling out the problems with how Hollywood’s writer and production assistants are grossly underpaid. This is not a new conversation, but it is being brought to light by writer/producer Liz Alper, who wrote a Twitter thread about her own experience as an assistant and the problems with the pay there, especially considering how expensive Los Angeles is.

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Alper’s Twitter thread is important, and so is the ensuing conversation. Hollywood does not pay their assistants enough, and it is a form of gatekeeping. Assistant jobs are the best way to break into television writing, and if the pay is too low for people to afford to take that job and hope to break in, that’s a problem. Assistant gigs shouldn’t pay so low that only people who have a safety net can take them. You shouldn’t have to take on a second job if you have a full time job already.

There’s also the question of benefits. If assistants are doing underpaid or even unpaid work trying to break in, there’s a chance that they might not have benefits either. That means they either pay for a premium out of pocket or don’t have insurance, which is incredibly hard for those who need it. Assistants deserve better for the work they’re doing, which include long hours and running errands all over Los Angeles.

The hashtag #PayUpHollywood has started circulating, with people sharing their stories of working in Hollywood. Class privilege plays a huge role in who succeeds in Hollywood, as well as nepotism. That shuts out so many people from entering the industry because of the fact they simply cannot afford to take or stay in low paying jobs. That’s the sad truth of the way the industry works.

Hopefully, this conversation means that something can change. Change, after all, has been a long time coming in this industry.

(image: Pexels)

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Author
Kate Gardner
Kate (they/them) says sorry a lot for someone who is not sorry about the amount of strongly held opinions they have. Raised on a steady diet of The West Wing and classic film, they are now a cosplayer who will fight you over issues of inclusion in media while also writing coffee shop AU fanfic for their favorite rare pairs.

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