EFF statement on the exploitation of black artists and productions by Multichoice
10 June 2020
The EFF notes the numerous complaints from creative workers, particularly actors and actresses, who are contracted to Multichoice television platforms. On several occasions, actors and actresses are treated with disdain and disrespect.
We have preliminarily realised that Multichoice whose viewership is majority black people, underfunds black-owned production houses while giving huge feature budgets to white-owned production houses. MultiChoice racially funds Mzansi Channels and Moja Love far lower than KykNet and other predominantly white Mnet Channels. This, as a result, puts a strain on black productions and negatively impacts on black actors and actresses.
We know that Multichoice abuses its monopoly and undue control over ruling party politicians to avoid regulation. MultiChoice is at the centre of the Copyright Amendment Bill, which amongst other things will ensure that artists are paid what is due to them. Since its inception, MultiChoice has been refusing to pay actors their due royalties. This must come to an end. The EFF demands that Multichoice make public the budget it allocates to each production house for each television show including those of KykNet and other co-productions on MNet.
Multichoice must also be forced to develop minimum working standards and wages for all workers attached to the production house. Creative and production workers must be paid a minimum of R25 000 per month, and the rest will be determined according to different considerations. We will also be monitoring all Production Houses that are commissioned by MultiChoice to ensure that they provide proper working conditions, including fair pay to artists. We will begin to embark on a naming and shaming campaign of all Production Houses that do not comply with basic conditions.
The EFF has assigned Commissar Fana Mokoena, the Commissar in the Arts and Culture Committee to liaise with the industry and lead a campaign that will improve the working conditions and salaries of creative workers. We will also later in the year submit in Parliament a Member's Bill for the establishment of an Arts and Culture Regulatory body to monitor issues of fair pay, fair working conditions, racial and gender equality etcetera. In this regard, we call on all actors, actresses, and production workers to use the following contact details to raise their concerns in the creative industry.
Issued by Vuyani Pambo, National Spokesperson, EFF, 10 June 2020
