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Publishing staff wary over poor pay

12.11.07 Katherine Rushton

Concern over low pay in publishing is prompting junior publishing staff to consider leaving their jobs, according to responses to a Bookseller Blog, Making Publishing Pay.

The blog post followed a meeting of the Society of Bookmen, where senior industry figures warned that publishing was losing talent to other industries because of its poor pay levels. Most major London publishing houses offer starting salaries of around £18,000, whilst independent publishers offer jobs to new graduates from around £12,000 to £15,000. Most new entrants also spend time working for free before they secure their first paid role.

Responding to the blog online, and by email, junior publishing staff said they often think about leaving publishing because of the low pay situation, and many added that they depended on family for accommodation or handouts. "It is quite frankly ludicrous at my age," said one Hachette Livre worker, aged 25 and on around £19,000. "I'm ashamed to have to take money from my parents in my mid-20s, and it's this that is making me want to leave." "In my worst moments I feel exploited," added a member of staff, aged 27, at Hachette Livre.

One poster, Jen, added: "Surely, publishers who expect long hours and commitment should at least pay a living wage, despite the high supply of bright, young things?" Another commentator Sridhar Balan said: "Publishing is an underpaid profession everywhere in the world including the developing countries. Publishers get away with this because they mouth the usual platitudes about it being a noble profession . . ."

But senior publishers were divided on whether low pay was a problem--with many arguing that the industry still attracted good staff. "I don't happen to think it's terribly important," said one senior player. "We get a very high quality of people in the industry. The reason is not because we pay as much or more than private equity firms but because we offer an interesting career, mixing with interesting people and creating worthwhile products."

Richard Charkin, executive director at Bloomsbury, said: "It's a market driven by supply and demand, like any other. Publishing is full of Emmas, but lots of these Emmas happen to do a very good job." But other publishers expressed concern that publishing was losing out on key talent because of the low pay situation.

Francoise Woodward, director of people at HarperCollins, said: "The publishing industry is a much sought-after career option for many graduates and has the power to attract a good number of applicants, which drives supply/demand and starting salary levels. But our entry level salaries are regularly benchmarked to the industry and outside to ensure we remain competitive." Attracting graduates for disciplines such as sales, finance and production was more "more challenging", she added, as these people would be considering many industries and may not necessarily have thought about publishing.

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