Written evidence from the Music Producer’s Guild [MiM0031]

About The Music Producer’s Guild

The Music Producers Guild (MPG) is a membership organisation that represents music production professionals such as Music Producers, Engineers, Mixers and Mastering Engineers, as well as Recording Studios.

 

The MPG is run voluntarily by an elected board of working music production professionals.

 

The MPG are also board members of UK Music, the umbrella body representing the commercial music industry.

 

Executive Summary

Typical working practices in music production are described, with particular factors around a male-dominated, primarily freelance workforce with few HR structures, as well as late night working and alcohol, are identified. Data around harassment and discrimination shows that the music industry is similar to other workplaces in terms of frequency of harassment but worse when it comes to sexual assault. Reporting, while higher than in other workplaces, is shown not to be effective and with perpetrators facing little or no accountability, and victims facing further discrimination and loss of income / mental health impacts asa result of reporting. Among the key recommendations are new legal duties to prevent harassment, additional funding to enable victims to enforce their rights, and training for those in senior positions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Terms of Reference

This submission addresses the following 3 points with specific reference to the music production sector.

 

 

       What types of support exist for women experiencing sexism or misogyny in the music industry? How can they report problems or abuse?

 

 

       What expectations are there for women working in the music industry compared to men?

 

 

       What steps should the Government and other industry bodies take to tackle misogynistic and sexist attitudes towards women in music?

 


Background - The Music Production Workplace

 

Position

Seniority

Skill Level

Runner

Entry-level

Low

Assistant Engineer

Junior

Low-V High

Engineer / Mixer

Mid-Senior

V high

Mastering Engineer

Mid-senior

V high

Producer

Senior

V high

Fig 1.1 Music Production Workforce

 

Fig. 1.1 shows the main roles within the music production workforce. The vast majority of the workforce is freelance (90% of MPG members). However, employed positions do exist, mainly at the more junior end of the spectrum for runners and assistant engineers, who will be directly employed either by studios or producers. Respondents to this survey were 64% sole traders or partnerships, 15% Ltd directors of their own companies and 21% employees. In addition, many freelancers will perform a number of the roles in Fig 1.1, as well as related roles in songwriting and education on a freelance basis.

 

Almost all freelancers in these roles are hired personally to perform work - often, every team member will be personally requested for a particular project-  and are therefore protected from discrimination under the Equality Act.

 

Entry-level roles are highly competitive, and unpaid internships or work experience are sometimes still the route in for many people, despite the campaigns against unpaid work by the MPG and others.

 

Most commercial recording studios are SMEs with 30 or fewer employees, and most do not employ dedicated HR professionals. Commercial studios will range from single-room facilities to multi-studio complexes that can include large recording studios, smaller production rooms on long-term lets (producers letting these rooms are typically called “residents”), and an in-house bar and restaurant.

 

Many producers will work on their own as microbusinesses, from facilities that they either own or, more commonly, long-term let, employing or hiring engineers and assistants on a freelance basis, without any management or HR structure in place.

 

At the more senior end of the workforce, many freelance engineers and producers will have management agencies who usually negotiate contracts, manage diaries and promote their clients but will generally not be present while their clients are working.

 

Working hours are long, with typical studio days ranging from 10-12 hours, and some individual producers working longer hours still. Late starts and late finishes are also common. The culture in commercial studios is generally hierarchical with a clear chain of command on as demonstrated in Fig 1.2 below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fig 1.2 Recording Studio Hierarchy

 

 

 

 

 

However, the long days create an informal atmosphere with people eating and socialising together. This is amplified in residential recording studios. They provide accommodation for the whole team (artist and production staff) to ‘live in’ while recording a project. However, they are typically in rural locations and often quite far away from family or support networks. While this may be good for creative output and/or focus, it can create issues by blurring the lines between work and socialising as artists and the production team spend every waking minute in the same room for several weeks, or even months. It can be difficult for workers who experience discriminatory behaviour or assault to remove themselves from unsafe situations.

 

Other personnel who may be present in the studio include session musicians, arrangers, programmers, instrument techs, usually hired on a freelance basis by the artist, producer or label. Friends of artists and record label executives may also be present.

 

The workforce is predominantly male, with around 15% of MPG members being women, the highest level since this was first measured at 5% in 2016.


Misogyny in the Music Production Workplace

Methodology

410 music production professionals responded to an online survey, with a gender split of 50% women, 45% men and 5% trans+ and non-binary. Figure 2.1 shows the split of roles across the industry that responded. Those in the ‘other’ category included musicians, artists, songwriter-producers, composer-producers, music supervisors and music editors and various music management and studio admin roles.

 

Fig 2.1 Distribution of roles in this study

Discrimination at work

Over 90% of women felt discriminated against because of sex or gender. A large number of women also reported facing discrimination due to age (57 %), with 20% reporting discrimination for sexual orientation, 18% for race / ethnicity and 8% for pregnancy / maternity, with some commenters adding that being a mother, single parenthood, and weight were also characteristics they felt had been discriminated against.

Sexist comments and Online harassment

 

76% of all respondents had witnessed sexist comments in the workplace, with 94% of women having either witnessed or had sexist comments directed at them or deliberately said in front of them.

90% of women had experienced online harassment by people working in the industry. From our casework at the MPG, this has ranged from trolling to the most serious form of online harassment which was referred to the police for stalking.

 

Pregnancy and Maternity Discrimination

As this issue is specifically related to the sex of the respondents we have outlined some of the key issues facing new and expectant mothers in music production.

 

When self-employed people have families, only the mother qualifies for paid leave (Maternity Allowance or MA claimed through DWP). At the same time, there is no paternity or shared parental leave that would enable fathers to take any paid time off. Additionally, strict rules govern the amount of work the mother is allowed to do while claiming MA. This effectively places the entire burden of childcare in the first year on the mother and removes her from the freelance workplace.

 

As outlined earlier, music production is very competitive. It relies heavily on personal relationships, and the impact of the break from the workplace lasts beyond the nine months of statutory maternity allowance. Research[1] by Parental Pay Equality showed that only 20% of self-employed mothers return to their pre-baby earnings by the time their child is two.

 

On returning to work, the long hours and lack of a set pattern raise logistical and financial difficulties with childcare, which tend to impact the mother’s career significantly more than the father's. We have anecdotal reports of women moving sideways out of production into admin-related roles with more regular hours.

 

 

There is definitely a sense that once you have children, as a woman, you are less able to work in such a youthful industry that's reliant on social relationships. You have to work harder to disprove the stigma.

Freelance Female Producer-Manager

 

Flagged experiences of discrimination (particularly around maternity) at every level with the studio that mostly employs me. No action was ever taken. I experienced direct disadvantage (pushed out of job and forced to take pay cut). While senior leaders recognised the harm caused, no action was ever put in place to repair the damage. I have also reported clients for sexual harassment but they were still welcome to book the studio. I was just not put on their sessions. This review is meaningless unless you are also looking race discrimination as this is a far worse issue in this industry.

                                                       

                                                                                                  Freelance Female Engineer/Mixer

 

Sexual Harassment

53% of women have experienced sexual harassment at work, compared to 11% of men and 50% of Trans+ and non-binary people. This is similar to the TUC’s 2016 findings that showed that 54% of women experienced sexual harassment in the workplace. This suggests the problem is endemic in workplaces generally.

 

The type of harassment ranged from the most serious ‘stalker’-type behaviour that was reported to the police to harassment that respondents felt was not serious or repeated enough to warrant further action.

Sexual Assault

21% of women reported being sexually assaulted at work, and 13% reported witnessing sexual assault at work. This was over twice as high as the rate of workplace sexual assault generally, which in a 2021 YouGov poll[2] was put at 10%.

 

Reporting unacceptable workplace behaviours, including harassment and assault.

 

For instances of sexual harassment and sexual assault, respectively, 33% and 38% did report it to a senior person at work, which is higher than the average in workplaces according to the TUC[3], where only 20% reported incidents to an employer.

 

However, 60-70% were dissatisfied with the action taken. It was often insufficient, or no action was taken, and the victim of the harassment was expected to leave their workplace or modify their behaviour rather than the perpetrator. Women’s safety concerns were often dismissed or ignored. The late-night working and alcohol consumed by senior people in some sessions exacerbated the perceived risk for women, and it appeared commercial studios were unwilling to take any concrete actions such as providing additional staff for safety or banning known perpetrators from the premises.

 

 

“In every instance of reporting a sexual assault or harassment, I’ve seen zero positive action taken in the interest of the victim. In my own situations, I was told the man targeting me is probably “just having a bad day because he got into a fight with his wife or something and must be taking it out on you. It happens.” and that I should’ve known all of these things would happen to me as a woman in a male dominated industry. I should expect it, accept it and move on. I was never allowed to do anything and always expected to “take the high road”. It has led to several missed opportunities, some I find out about years later. “

 

female engineer / mixer

 

 

“8 weeks into my internship as a trainee engineer at [redacted] studio the [redacted - “senior person”] approached me while I was in the kitchen making refreshments and said during conversation that he had a "brown person at home to keep the place clean for him there too". He said that "my housekeeping skills didn't go unnoticed and that the annual bonus in my paypacket would reflect this". I reported this to management at the end of my contract as I was scared that speaking up beforehand would mean I may lose my opportunity to work at the studio at the time or in the future. To this day I have not had an apology. No action was taken other than the studio closed ranks on me and made me out to be in the wrong. My reputation was also shunned due to speaking out and other studios were made aware that I was seen as a trouble maker. This has made my journey 1000 times harder. My mental health has been affected and I am scared to speak up other than anonymously.”

 

female assistant engineer

             

            I reported a conversation between a group of artists and the engineer (all males), they were making claims about “what women want and what they’re good for” etc etc in a v misogynistic manner…I was new to the job/studio so I thought it was best to ask other assistants and engineers, and they all said “it’s just a thing that happens - get over it”…

             

male assistant engineer

 

** There are two additional testimonials which we are making available in appendix 1 to the committee but have requested are not published as they may identify individuals or companies involved and we do not wish to identify or retraumatise the victims

 

 

 

A small percentage of people <10% reported sexual assault and harassment to other organisations - education establishments and record labels, the Musicians Union and the MPG, but also online communities (Facebook groups) for women and gender minorities.

6% of those who experienced assault and 3% of those who experienced harassment reported it to the police.

 

While it is positive that some victims of harassment and assault felt they could go to a senior person, it is deeply concerning that those people did not act in a way the victim found helpful, and in some cases, made life harder for the victim. The lack of accountability for perpetrators means that men who have harassed and even assaulted their female colleagues continue to work and hold senior positions in the industry.

 

 

 

 

 

Reasons for not reporting

50% of those who did not report stated that they did not believe reporting would change anything, with 45%  listing that they were worried about their career as one of the reasons. Only 10% stated being unsure of their rights as a reason for not reporting.

“It was rife within the environment and included the head of A&R at a major label - reporting risked reprisals/termination of my career”

Freelance female artist / producer

“The organisation had already been terrible with handling previous complaints.”

Freelance Female Assistant Engineer

 

The data from those that did report the incidents suggest that both the assumptions made above were correct. The music production community is small and close-knit. Junior people depend strongly on close personal relationships with individual producers, artists and studios for career progression. Perpetrators are generally people more senior in the industry than their victims - they may well be an important client commercially for the studio where the behaviour has taken place. There is fear that reporting an individual will not only destroy the working relationship with that individual but that they could damage career opportunities across the industry for their victims. Some of the victims that did report harassment or sexual assault regretted doing so due to the way it was handled.

A small number of people stated they had nobody to report it to (1%),  while 2% felt the incidents of harassment they experienced were not serious enough to warrant reporting.

 

 

Impact

The impact of harassment, assault and other forms of discrimination is significant and can affect women’s income, confidence and mental health.

 

27% reported that it had had a significant impact on their ability to make a living, while 44% reported it somewhat impacted their ability to make a living.

 

I believe that being required to work amongst known abusers contributed significantly to my burnout and poor mental health during the first few years of my career - I found myself completely exhausted from trying to avoid [redacted], and trying to stay courteous when he would strike up conversation in the presence of clients. I also have recently needed to stop taking out of hours sessions pretty much entirely, as the studio I usually work for do not employ any studio-specific out of hours security [redacted], and do not mandate that clients book additional staff for out of hours sessions. While the catalyst for this decision was a physical injury, a huge factor in this choice was the frequency of sexual harassment from clients on out of hours sessions, and not feeling that the risk of sexual assault is appropriately managed or taken seriously. My income has taken a big hit as a result of this decision, and I am concerned that others may not be able to take the same financial hit, even if they need to make the same decision for their safety.

 

Female Freelance Engineer/Mixer

 

 

As a woman, I feel that my status and place in the industry is always under question and scrutiny. I have been sexually assaulted and harassed, as have fellow female musicians. It is so common, it's normalised, and it is part of the culture of the industry which is a breeding ground for this type of behaviour to flourish, unchecked.

 

                                                                                                  Female Freelance Engineer/Mixer

 

 

I became suicidal after a year of trying to raise the issue of my experience and trying to stand up for myself and doors being closed to me because of this. I was told by some studio managers that i should think twice before speaking of such issues because potential employers would think twice about employing me.

 

                                                                                                  Female Freelance Assistant Engineer

 

 

“Sexist behaviour and misogyny has certainly affected my confidence and the mindset I go into when I approach a session. Sessions can be made unenjoyable when you don’t feel worthy of being in the room because of your gender, or it can be uncomfortable to be in the room when unsavoury comments have been made about women in general. a few artists/producers/engineers etc have a reputation for being misogynists so that’s always worrying when going into a session with one of them knowing this information, even if your experience around them is ultimately fine.”

 

                                                                                                  Female Freelance Assistant Engineer

 

 

I haven’t experienced direct sexist comments, but frequently fend off unintentional misogynistic remarks, like men assuming i cannot do my job. I believe this affects my ability to work as i think men are less likely to hire me, 100% of my clients so far have been women or bands with women in. it also affects my confidence and makes me less likely to pursue the same jobs and opportunities as a man might, though i am always trying to overcome this.

 

                                                                                                  Female Freelance Engineer / Mixer

Resources Available

 

There are a number of free resources available to advise women in the workplace about their rights and provide practical advice to keep them safe. The MPG has referred members to all of the services below.

 

Rights of Women - legal resources for women, including a free advice line for women experiencing sexual harassment at work. https://rightsofwomen.org.uk/

 

Musicians Union Safe Space Scheme - The MU Safe Space Scheme is an anonymous reporting service available to everyone working in the music industry to log cases of sexual harassment and abuse at work https://musiciansunion.org.uk/safespace

 

Suzy Lamplugh Trust  Charity focusing on victims of stalking and harassment - has provided practical advice for victims of online harassment and stalking https://www.suzylamplugh.org/

 

Help Musicians Bullying and Harassment Helpline ​​confidential advice line for those working in music experiencing bullying and harassment https://www.helpmusicians.org.uk/get-advice/bullying-and-harassment-helpline

 

Help Musicians Music Minds Matter

Dedicated mental health service for those working in music

https://www.helpmusicians.org.uk/about-us/music-minds-matter

 

While these services are valuable and welcome, there are gaps in prevention and enforcement.

 

Prevention:

Our research showed that senior co-workers who had discriminatory behaviour and assault reported to them took inadequate actions and rarely met the victims’ needs.

 

Victims reported further discrimination as a result of reporting.

 

Opportunities to prevent abuse were missed as perpetrators were not held to account and allowed to continue working at a facility. In addition, suggestions from victims of discrimination and abuse of measures to keep workers safe such as extra staff in the evenings and termination clauses in contracts for producers on long-term lets were not acted upon.

 

Workers have been employing several strategies to try and prevent abuse. 69% of women and 62% of all respondents have a mental or physical “blacklist” of unsafe individuals to avoid working with.

 

Low reporting levels and inadequate subsequent enforcement mean many perpetrators continue to hold senior positions in the workplace, putting workers at risk.

Enforcement

The services above that provide legal and other advice to those working in music do not provide free legal counsel for enforcement action, such as a tribunal, except for the Musicians Union to its members. While some music production professionals are MU members, this is not the norm for many engineers. This means a cost barrier exists for those who want to take action.

 

While some reporting was also done in online communities - these have no enforcement action, and there is risk involved in publicly disclosing information even in so-called  “closed groups”.

 

 

 

Recommendations

 

It is clear that interventions are needed to improve the situation for women working in the industry, and that the current framework of an unregulated, informal, mainly freelance industry is not meeting the needs of women in the workforce.

 

The MPG recommends the following actions by the government:

 

  1. Introduce a duty in Workplaces to prevent sexual harassment, including from third parties and for all freelancers.
  2. Increase the tribunal time limit from 3 months to a minimum of 6 months.
  3. Government funding (i.e. legal aid) for free / affordable legal support with the resources to support enforcement action.
  4. Reform of parental leave for freelancers to bring into line with employees and allow mothers and fathers to share paid leave.
  5. Publicity and communications on existing workplace rights.

 

The MPG recommends the following actions by the industry:

  1. Urgently continuing the work started by the CIF and others on setting up an Independent Standard Authority to regulate the music industry.
  2. Funding to train those in positions of responsibility in HR/ employment rights for freelancers and best practices for preventing harassment.
  3. More resources to support legal enforcement action by individuals working in music production.
  4. All Studios to review their procedures around harassment and seek support from industry bodies such as the MPG or MU in doing so.
  5. Further work on how the data around abusive and discriminatory individuals can be used in a safe, legal and fair way to prevent further harm.

July 2022


[1] http://www.parentalpayequality.org.uk/survey-results-in/

[2] https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/sexual-harassment-work-yougov-poll-b1874631.html

[3] https://www.tuc.org.uk/research-analysis/reports/still-just-bit-banter