SALARY REPORT
The main aim of this salary survey is to capture a snapshot of salary data reported by current animation professionals as a basis for further/future discussion and exploration.
2024 SALARY REPORT
Following the success of the first two She Drew That Salary Rates Report 2022 and 2023 and the interest they generated She Drew That committed to carry out a third and final salary survey to provide workers in the industry with more information about real time salary rates. The aim is to use the findings to promote awareness about pay levels and to support more salary discussion in the animation industry.
The 2024 Salary Report shows the survey’s findings, comparisons, and comment summaries on fair pay and good practice on rates/salary negotiation, as well as suggests some recommendations for the industry.
2023 SALARY REPORT
Following the success of the publication of the first She Drew That Salary Report 2022 and the interest and discussion it generated around UK animation salaries (listen to podcast episode), we became aware of the lack of available UK animation salary data. She Drew That made a commitment to carry out further salary surveys for the next two years to provide workers in the industry with more information about real time salary rates and use the findings to support any further analysis and discussion.
The 2023 Salary Report shows the survey’s findings, draws comparisons and comment themes, as well as provides recommendations for the industry and points for further discussion.
2022 SALARY REPORT
In May 2022 She Drew That shared the Animation & VFX Union rates guide and found that their community did not see salaries within that guide that reflected their own. In response to this She Drew That created a survey to establish what people earned and their work role, seniority and industry sector to compare with the Animation & VFX Union recommended salary rates.
She Drew That has since created a report that shows the survey’s findings, draws conclusions from these findings, as well as provides recommendations for the industry and points for further discussion.
Tips from the Salary Discussion Podcast
If monetary increase is not an option there are other ways your employer could be adding benefits to your employment.Think about these other benefits:
For freelancer workers thinking about accepting a lower rate , note with the producer it is a one-time discounted rate. You can also consider establishing your working hours, which may include fewer hours for the lower rate or making clear in writing that free overtime will not be included in this rate.
For salaried positions it’s worth asking for other benefits if a pay increase is not an option such as a 4 day working week, flexible hours, professional development allowances or additional holiday.
For salaried employees, seek regular reviews to negotiate on salaries.
Seek regular reviews to negotiate on salaries is also helpful as it can be harder to make big jumps when staying in one studio. People will leave a studio to make a large pay increase but if staying at a studio it’s good to have regular salary negotiations so you can make regular small jumps.
To prepare for negotiating you need to get into a habit of documenting your achievements, noting down any skills you’ve developed or specific contributions you’ve made to a project and make sure to create space to share that with your employer when negotiating pay.
Practise negotiations skills.
Always get yourself in a positive mood before you start negotiation emails, do not negotiate from a place of desperation.
Use templates to provide a structure and help keep the emotion out of it.
Be prepared to include evidence of other projects you’ve worked on that relate to style or type of animation they are looking for, especially if you have been paid a better rate for it.
Keep trying and don’t give up.
Don’t be disheartened if someone says no, the next person may say yes or the first person you spoke to may come back on a different project and say yes.
Sometimes you can negotiate as much as you want, and as good as you can but other reasons like the available budget may be against you. So, take the pressure off yourself as sometimes there isn’t the room to increase your pay in that project, but there might be on the next one and your negotiating practice may pay off.
Keep pushing for it, keep trying and don’t give up.
