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Radio broadcast assistant : Salary and conditions

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  1. Job description
  2. Salary and conditions
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Case studies

  • Range of typical starting salaries: £13,000 - £18,000 in London.
  • Range of typical salaries at senior level/with experience, e.g. after 10-15 years in the role: £17,000 - £25,000.
  • Salary levels are fairly low in many parts of the industry.
  • Working hours are usually long. Shifts vary depending on the programmes you are working on but typically include some evening and weekend work and occasionally overnight shifts. Tight deadlines may require you to work overtime. You will also need to be prepared to cover for colleagues who are on holiday or absent through sickness.
  • The working environment varies depending on what you are working on. You may be required to work on outside broadcasts as well as preparing material in the studio and undertaking administrative duties.
  • The working day is often unpredictable and is generally led by how well a recording is progressing. Work on live programmes can be more predictable.
  • The atmosphere is informal and sociable, but the work can be pressured with tight deadlines.
  • Posts are available all over the UK in towns and cities where there are local BBC and commercial radio stations. National BBC and commercial radio stations are usually broadcast from London, although the BBC's 'Out of London' project is currently seeing the relocation of some radio stations, including Five Live, to Salford.
  • Geographic mobility can be beneficial when developing a career in this area.
  • Self-employment and freelance work are commonly possible. Around a quarter of the workforce in radio operate on a freelance basis or are employed on contracts of less than one year. Radio broadcast assistants at both the BBC and independent radio are often employed on a freelance or short-term contract basis.
  • There are roughly equal numbers of men and women working in this area.
  • The workforce in radio is highly skilled and qualified with around two-thirds being graduates.
  • Travel within a working day is occasionally necessary, but overseas work or travel is rare.
 
AGCAS
Written by AGCAS editors
Date: 
August 2011
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