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WORK FOR FREE? GET REAL!

WORK FOR FREE? GET REAL!

TAKE IT, OR LEAVE IT

Are session stylists being bullied into working for free?

Apprenticeships don’t exist in session hairstyling. To get started, you do a lot of free work because you don’t have the experience to demand the wages. You build up your experience, you build up your portfolio and you build up your networking capacity until you can get the paying jobs… Or can you?

Joe Mills is no stranger to session work. He’s spent 20 years doing shoots and shows and has over 200 front covers and countless celebrity photoshoots to his name – about 90 per cent of which he reckons he did for free in the name of “relationship building”. But earlier this year he was requested for a front cover shoot where, yet again, he was told there was no budget for his skills on set – nope, not for a taxi across London to the studio, and not even a parking space if he chose to drive himself – only later to discover that the publication was being paid thousands of pounds by the fashion label client and possibly everyone else on set was getting paid, except him.

Enough was enough. Joe vented his feelings on Instagram and everything exploded.

Joe Mills

“That post got about 90,000 views, hundreds of comments and I was inundated in DMs from so many make-up artists, hair pros and groomers who had the same experience as me,” says Joe. “It’s endemic. You get told there’s no budget and to work for the credit, but you get told that time and time again – for years. You work on set and you don’t know who’s getting paid or not – nobody tells you anything. I’ve been in Paris for the shows and met hairdressers who have shelled out £3,000 of their own money to be there and they fully expect to have to work for free. It’s crazy.”

So why is this? Why do so many creatives work for free (happily or otherwise) on set and backstage? Of course, there are practical reasons: building up that portfolio in the early years, for example – an agency is unlikely to represent you if you don’t have enough editorial images in your book. And yet many already successful hairdressers, like Joe, who have a portfolio teeming with celebrity clients and illustrious credits, still get asked to work unpaid, even while others on set, such as the photographer or the fashion editor, very much don’t. Why is it always the hair pro who is compromised? Is it a necessary part of the process? Is it because hairdressers feel uncomfortable asking for money (ours being an industry of people pleasers)? Or is it simply that hair pros are being exploited?

“A lot of what we do creatively as hairdressers, we are not paid for and we never have been,” says Adam Reed. “But does our desire to be creative and to have that experience on our CV mean that we’ve devalued ourselves? When I started off in session back in the ’90s, nobody was allowed backstage at Fashion Week, so I was happy to do the shows for free because it really did give me some leverage. I remember going to [talent agent] Debbie Walters in the hope that I could pay her to represent me, and she said, You know you’re going to work the next two years for free. And she was right. And the thing is, not only would I do the show for free, but I would also bring a whole team of hairdressers with me, who also worked for free. And what I believe happened is that the designers started to realise the hairdresser came for free and that practice kind of bedded in.

Adam Reed

“Looking back at that time, I’ve asked myself whether I’m part of the reason for the problem that exists now, or whether in fact I opened up an opportunity for those other hairdressers that they would never otherwise have got? I do understand my value, but I also believe I devalued what I do by saying, ‘Okay, I’ll do it for free’. And actually, it’s a culture that’s been indoctrinated not just into hairdressing but also make-up artists and clothes stylists. It affects a lot of people.”

“I’ve met hairdressers who’ve shelled out £3,000 of their own money to be in Paris and fully expect to work for free, it’s crazy.”

Joe Mills

One thing is for sure: there is A LOT of money sloshing around from brands involved at Fashion Week and in magazines, but very little of it – if any – comes the hairdresser’s way. (Part of what Joe Mills is exploring is the net worth of the fashion and beauty brands who sponsor the shoots and shows where hairdressers work for free.) And working for free does not mean the favour will be returned – far from it.

“I’ve been working in session for a long time now, and this is definitely the worst it’s ever been,” says session legend Sam McKnight. “Magazines have become such commercial entities nowadays and we are just commodities. They say to brands, ‘Pay us to set up the shoot for you,’ and then they work on the basis that they’ll get the whole team for free. Well, did anyone tell that to the team? No, of course not, because that shoot is not editorial, it’s advertorial and that’s a whole different proposition and the team should be getting paid. It used to be you worked for free in exchange for a credit, but when they post the pictures online they’re not crediting hair and make-up, so the ‘contract’, such as it is, is broken.

Sam McKnight

According to Sam, things started to change – on set and backstage – once production companies got involved. “Back in the day, there were no production companies. It was the photographer’s assistant who booked hair and make-up, sorted out cars for everybody, took care of catering. It was very small. But now it’s on the scale of the film industry and these production companies are in charge of the budgets and they charge their 20 per cent at the outset and then there’s a pecking order as to who gets the rest. And, as with everything in life, the money stays at the top and doesn’t trickle down – and hair and make-up are the easiest victims.”

Sam believes the issue of pay is indicative of a wider lack of respect towards hairdressers that extends to working conditions, too. “At the shows, you’ll have someone with a clipboard who’s decided they can fit 30 hairdressers, 60 models, 30 make-up artists and some press photographers into a space the size of the bus shelter,” he says. “There was a shoot where [make-up artist] Val Garland and I were prepping models in 35-degree heat in the photographer’s office because that was where we’d been allocated. And while the two of us are eating our M&S crisps for lunch, the publisher calls in from his holiday in Mustique. That was a real lightbulb moment. I don’t begrudge anyone their holiday, that’s fine. But it’s only fine if you’re making sure everybody else is fine at the same time.”

British fashion is a £26 billion industry, according to the British Fashion Council, but it has become increasingly reliant – if not wholly dependent – on large corporations, who sponsor entire fashion weeks, emerging designer shows and even transport for attendees. You would imagine that the arrival of financial support would spell good news for cash-strapped creatives, but that is often far from the case.

“It’s tricky because who wants to put their head above the parapet when there’s such an obvious risk you’ll get blacklisted?”

Sam McKnight 

“In the fashion industry, collaborations are a big thing,” says Adam Reed. “When you’re a young hairdresser, you work a lot with young designers to create incredible imagery that you all control. But when brands get involved that control is taken away from you and that’s when it all starts to go wrong. I worked a lot with [fashion designer] Henry Holland in his early years and always for free, but as soon as he got corporate sponsorship from a beauty brand – which, ironically, I sourced – I got dropped because now it was the brand that got to decide who was on the team, not Henry.

“Sponsorship from beauty brands can also compromise your image-making because they want everything to sell to the consumer, because that’s how they’re going to make their money back. So, they don’t want what they would perceive as ridiculous hair and make-up – everything’s got to be natural-looking and achievable and sellable. And then the brand pays to bring all the beauty journalists backstage, and they are expected to write about the hair looks while name-checking the brand’s products. So, that’s advertorial. We, the creatives backstage, are being used to promote the sponsor brand – and we’re STILL not getting paid!”

So what’s the answer? Or, more to the point, is there an answer?

“Maybe we need a union?” says Adam. “I remember doing the Victoria’s Secret show in the US and everybody there was in a union – the staging people, the lighting people, the production team. They had a governing body issuing guidelines for what they should get paid, how many hours they could work, how many breaks they could have. We had to sign ourselves out of all that. I mean, it doesn’t happen so much anymore, but I’ve been on shoots where I’ve had to work until 3 o’clock in the morning knowing I’m not getting paid, while the model’s sitting there earning very lucrative overtime. If only I had this kind of support.”

“It’s a tricky situation because it’s dangerous to put your head above the parapet when there’s such an obvious risk you’ll get blacklisted,” says Sam. “It seems to me that the creatives need to get together and write some kind of charter of basic rights, such as working hours, being fed, minimum day rate, etc. If people were not having to work for free it would create a more level playing field and I believe we would be more valued. Since it was decided that models could no longer work for free at London Fashion Week, they command so much more respect.”

Joe has spoken to a solicitor who has suggested that being asked to work for free without having legal Voluntary Agreements in place may circumnavigate employment law, and he’s made it clear that his agency, Joe Mills Agency, has announced it will not be putting any of its artists out for unpaid jobs. In the meantime, he has written an open letter to publishing houses, published on his Instagram, outlining the extent of the problem and the damage it inflicts.

“The prevailing practice of requesting creatives to work for free in exchange for a mere credit poses a significant challenge,” it reads. “Frequently, there is no provision for essentials such as catering or travel allowances, and the hours spent on set can extend to an exhaustive 12-hour day. The expectation to accept unpaid work is further fuelled by the belief that refusal may hinder our progress in the industry. As creatives, it becomes difficult to decline, as we hold onto the hope that these projects will shape our careers positively.

“It is disheartening to learn that, while we contribute our skills and services without compensation, these projects often have corporate sponsors or are sold to advertisers, highlighting the exploitation of our talents by your esteemed publications.”

Joe insists that the letter is not an attack but the start of a wider conversation to address – and hopefully shift – the issue. “I’m asking people to be transparent and to understand how things can change,” he says. “If these collaborations were truly collaborative, with all team members agreeing to work without payment, it would be a different scenario,” he continues. “However, as a business, asking individuals to provide their expertise for free while generating revenue from their contributions is a systemic issue that warrants attention and rectification. Transparency from publishing houses to creatives would significantly alleviate this problem.”

But session stylist Gary Gill takes a different view. He believes that the current system – of working for free to build experience and contacts – is actually beneficial, so long as everybody is aware of the rules and understands the point at which they should start saying no.

Gary Gill

“I feel that if there is too much focus on money from the beginning, the money won’t come in the end,” he says. “It is possible to have creative and financial success in this industry, but it works in a certain way, and you need to understand the rules, the system, and how to navigate it.

“After not getting paid for editorial, you should be getting paid for everything else you do – some things at lower rates and some higher. It’s not all about creative, it does become about business and knowing your worth. For every 10 people who won’t do an editorial for free there are 20 who will; that will never change, and to be honest I don’t think it should. It’s not the responsibility of the magazines, it’s the responsibility of the artist to understand when to say no when not enough money is put on the table for paid work. In recent years so many more people are wanting to do session and fashion work and it’s created an unhealthy level of pay as people are desperate to get in.

“Hairdressing at its most creative is an art form and commerce doesn’t always come into it – it’s about passion and a desire to do something that makes you feel something. As soon as money is involved, that desire, feeling and passion go away, it becomes just another job. Young people need to be encouraged, mentored and guided on how things work and decide if it’s for them. Fashion takes no prisoners and can be brutal, like any highly competitive industry. There are only a few who make it and it’s our responsibility as older artists in the industry to spell these things out.”

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Paul Mitchell 

Paul Mitchell

John Paul Mitchell Systems has been serving the professional beauty industry with salon-quality hair products and styling tools for more than 44 years, with a family of brands including Paul Mitchell, Awapuhi Wild Ginger, Tea Tree, Clean Beauty, MITCH, Neuro, and MVRCK.

John Paul Mitchell Systems was the first professional hair care company to take a stand against animal testing and continues its strong commitment to giving back, supporting a wide range of philanthropic causes internationally.

Q&A

Why is it so important to Paul Mitchell to sponsor the Sustainability Hero category?

Sponsoring the Sustainability Hero category is important to Paul Mitchell because sustainability has always been an integral part of the John Paul Mitchell Systems DNA. Our passion for hair and compassion for people and the planet is our priority and we aim to take positive and impactful actions that leave the ecosystems and communities where we operate in a better place than how we found them.  

The hairdressing industry has a large carbon footprint, where can people go for advice on greener ways to work?

At John Paul Mitchell Systems we have four key pillars in our sustainability programme to help ensure we reach our goal of carbon neutrality by 2050: Reducing Virgin Plastic; Sustainable & Ethical Sourcing; Reducing Carbon Footprint; and Minimising Waste to Landfill.

What are the top three sustainability areas on which hair professionals should focus this year? 

1. Reuse and Refill 
2. Reducing Virgin Plastic  
3. Clean Ingredients  

     

    COMING UP THIS YEAR

    AWAPUHI WILD GINGER HYDRASOFT SHAMPOO, CONDITIONER AND GLOSSING TREATMENT

    Discover the secret to silky-soft, shiny hair. Infused with HydraTriplex, this treatment will transform hair with deep hydration, supreme softness, and glass-like shine without the weight.  

     

    CLEAN BEAUTY COLOR PROTECT & COLOR DEPOSITING TREATMENTS

    Give colour-treated hair the ultimate TLC. Infused with pomegranate extract and borage oil, these gentle formulas cleanse and condition strands as they protect hair colour. 

    COLORWAYS VIBRANT SEMI-PERMANENT HAIR COLOR

    Superior color retention. Formulated with medium dye load for maximum deposit, vibrancy and greater longevity with minimal off-tone fading. 

    FROM US, TO YOU

    |

    Salon professionals are at the heart of everything we do at Paul Mitchell. We know that by working together we can make our industry more sustainable and more successful. Good luck with your entry and thank you for all the great work you do for sustainability and our planet.

    Paul Mitchell UK Team 

    GLOWWA

    GLOWWA 

     

    GLOWWA is on a mission to change the way that we care for hair through an inside-out approach.  

    Founded by nutritional therapist, Suzanne Cooper, GLOWWA emerged after Suzanne experienced her own personal struggles with hair loss and searched for a solution. Driven by a relentless pursuit for results, the brand is committed to harnessing the power of clean, active ingredients to optimise hair health and wellbeing. 

    Since launching two years ago, GLOWWA has won eight prestigious awards and is trusted by some of the industry’s most respected hair professionals. 

    Q&A

    Why is it so important to GLOWWA to sponsor the Best New Salon category?  

    As a relatively new brand, we understand the work involved in building a business and creating a name within the hair industry, so it’s a pleasure to be sponsoring this award and recognising the efforts of everybody entering. 

    What makes the modern landscape for salon/barber shop concepts so exciting?  

    We feel there are several reasons. Firstly, the digital world has made it easier than ever for hair professionals to reach a wider audience, and with this there is the opportunity to offer more diverse and personal experiences for customers.  

    Secondly, we’re particularly excited about the increased focus on sustainability and eco-friendly practices within the industry, as many businesses embrace environmentally conscious products and processes. 

    And finally, we can’t forget the adoption of wellness services alongside the traditional haircare offerings! It’s this holistic approach that truly excites us as it adds an extra layer of depth and care to the client experience that we absolutely adore. 

    Health and wellbeing focuses have become a key area of growth in our industry, how can hair professionals incorporate them into their offering?  

    We firmly believe that what you put into your body reflects in the health of your hair, so for us, a big part of this is around education. If hair professionals can equip their clients with knowledge around diets and supplements that are rich in essential vitamins, minerals, and nutrients, they’re giving them the tools they need to not only look, but also feel their best inside and out. 

    COMING UP THIS YEAR

    NEW PRODUCT LAUNCHES

    There are several new products in the pipeline that we can’t wait to launch this year. We’re not giving too much away just yet, but these will be focused on GLOWWA’s core strength in nutritional haircare and will give salons a wider offering for clients.

     

    IN-PERSON EDUCATION

    Education is a key part in GLOWWA’s mission to bring wellness into salons. We absolutely love meeting our stockists, so we’re excited to announce that we’ll be hosting our first ever in-person GLOWWA education days in various locations across the UK and Ireland in 2024! 

     

    IRELAND LAUNCH

    Launching into Ireland is something we have been wanting to do for a while, and this will be happening shortly! Soon, we’ll be able to offer local shipping for Irish salons who would like to join us on the GLOWWA journey! 

    FROM US, TO YOU

    |

    Congratulations to all those entering Best New Salon! Your passion and creativity are the foundation of the industry’s future. Best of luck on this exciting journey. 

    Suzanne Cooper 

    Founder, GLOWWA 

    WHY WE CAMPAIGNED TO GET A VAT CUT FOR HAIRDRESSING – AND LOST

    WHY WE CAMPAIGNED TO GET A VAT CUT FOR HAIRDRESSING – AND LOST

    WHY WE CAMPAIGNED TO GET A VAT CUT FOR HAIRDRESSING – AND LOST

    Toby Dicker of the Salon Employers Association took the fight to Government. 

     Toby Dicker

    As a salon owner employing 70-plus staff within his five-salon group, The Chapel, Toby Dicker understands full well the financial pressures of operating a hairdressing business on the British high street. Since launching 26 years ago, he calculates he’s seen Employers National Insurance go up by 37 per cent, Value Added Tax (VAT) rise by 33 per cent, and his business subsequently squeezed to almost zero margin.

    According to Toby, the hair industry is taxed like no other business on the high street. He claims that around 35p in every £1 is paid in tax by salons employing their teams on PAYE, while other retailers on the high street pay as little as 12p*. With the current VAT rate of 20 per cent triggered once turnover reaches £85,000, some hairdressing businesses deliberately stay below the threshold, either by non-reporting or by stunting further growth. Avoiding the costs and inconveniences associated with VAT means those businesses have the potential to cut their prices by at least 20 per cent, compared to VAT-paying salons. 

    And that, says Toby, has created an existential crisis that threatens the very future of the sector: “Budget-squeezed salons are reducing the number of apprentices they take on, while non-VAT registered salons, like ‘rent-a-chair’ models, home and mobile hairdressers, don’t take on apprentices at all,” he says. “Because only PAYE employed salons can run apprenticeship programmes, numbers have dropped to the lowest level ever, to 5,000 intakes per annum. PAYE salons taking on apprentices invest up to £50,000 in salary and training costs per apprentice over two years, yet they receive little Government support in return.” 

    In 2020 Toby co-founded the Salon Employers Association (SEA) to campaign for reform on fiscal and tax matters directly affecting VAT-registered and PAYE salons. Almost 1,500 businesses signed up, including high-profile salons like Brooks & Brooks, Errol Douglas, Sally Montague, Daniel Galvin and Barrie Stephens. A survey conducted by the SEA received over 600 responses, revealing that more than 50 per cent of salon owners were considering closing their business. “That’s over 5,500 businesses and 44,000 jobs,” says Toby, “many of them occupying spaces on our struggling high streets, helping to drive millions of customers into cities, town centres and villages each week.” 

    The figures are right in front of our eyes: in 2022 the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said there were 11,170 VAT-registered hair and beauty businesses – the majority of those on high streets. Fast forward to today and the landscape looks very different. New ONS data shows that the number of businesses in our sector turning over more than £100,000 – and therefore definitively VAT-registered – has dropped by 17 per cent in the last year alone.  

    Feisty stuff! Watch Toby and the NHBF’s Caroline Larissey discuss VAT in an Instagram Live hosted by Creative HEAD.

    “The situation is dire and the Government and HMRC are forcing honest businesses to go bust,” says Toby. “Salons add almost all value through labour, rather than product, and we estimate that our business model is hit up to six times harder than other retail outlets because nearly all our costs are labour. We have more people working in salons versus other retailers, so any employment related costs hit us much harder.  

    “The industry is close to breaking point,” he continues, “and there is one simple solution: a change in VAT law, which could level the playing field.” Tax breaks in our sector are not unknown: in Ireland, salons were temporarily allowed to pay 9 per cent on services and 23 per cent on retail sales. The Netherlands lowered VAT to 6 per cent in the 2000s for labour-intensive services, resulting in the creation of 4,000 jobs. 

    Spearheaded by Toby, the SEA began campaigning for the Government to reduce VAT to 10 per cent for the hair and beauty industry, arguing that the reduction was necessary to ensure salons’ survival on the high street. “It would also align our industry with other essential services like hospitality, providing immediate relief and boosting competitiveness,” he says. “It is a proactive step that aligns with economic recovery goals and

    Plenty rallied to the call, with The Hair & Barber Council, the Freelance Hairdressers Association, the Fellowship for British Hairdressing and the Men’s Hairdressing Federation all supporting the cause (together with the SEA they now operate together as the British Hairdressing Consortium) and salon owners up and down the country writing to their MPs using template letters available from the SEA’s Instagram channel. However, the Government’s Autumn Budget came and went without the hoped-for tax break. 

    Undeterred, Toby carried on, and as the Government’s 2024 Spring Budget approached, campaigning took on a new sense of urgency. “This is a last chance saloon,” said Toby. “We have to call for something and this is the thing that will make the biggest difference right now. We could argue for the next 10 years about different taxes and whether they’re fair or not, on apprenticeship costs and training and a multitude of other things. We don’t think it’s the solution, we think it’s an emergency and they need to take this now, like they did in COVID with hospitality.” 

    With financial support from salon software company Phorest (HQ’d in Ireland, chief executive Ronan Perceval was a big fan of the tax breaks that had been afforded to Irish salons), Toby approached a PR company specialising in business media, armed with his survey and a load of industry stats. A press release was written – and the story exploded. Toby appeared on over 20 TV and radio stations, including BBC Breakfast, GB News and a host of ITV regional stations, while the story was also picked up in high-profile newspapers including The Sun and The Times.  

    But did it work? Unfortunately, it did not. On 6 March the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt raised the VAT threshold to £90,000 and cut the National Insurance Contributions (NIC) for the self-employed from 8 per cent to 6 per cent but did not cut NIC for employers. On 1 April the National Minimum Wage will rise again, putting additional pressure on employment costs.  

    “It’s fantastic that individuals get more in their pay packet and that the National Minimum Wage has been increased,” says Toby, “but these measures are paid for by small businesses, not by Government, and with no support in the form of levelling the tax playing field many of these employers will be forced out of business.

    “This budget just made the scales tip further away from level, by increasing the VAT threshold to £90,000, and we’ll now be thinking about perhaps changing our strategy and our businesses as things go forward as PAYE and VAT-paying salon owners clearly don’t matter to this Government.” 

    Toby knows the Government wants industry representatives to speak with one voice, so that issues can be clearly identified and addressed. While the SEA were campaigning to reduce VAT to 10 per cent, the National Hair & Beauty Federation published a report suggesting sliding scales of VAT thresholds could be the answer to the industry’s troubles. Meanwhile, the British Beauty Council’s Value of Beauty 2023 report reported “positive growth” within the sector. According to Toby, these mixed messages undermined the SEA campaign and hampered its chances of success. 

    “We are an angry and divided industry at the moment,” he says. “Not having unity clouds everything, and not having all industry bodies share our discussions has been unhelpful.” 

    But Toby’s not giving up. He has further meetings planned with HMRC and next item on the agenda is compliance – and particularly around the subject of disguised employment, where a worker functions as an employee but is not classified as one.  

    “Our industry is being destroyed by flouting of HMRC payments and tax avoidance,” says Toby.  “The fraud is largely hidden from the Government and HMRC radar but those caught breaking the law are facing severe legal and financial penalties…. Meanwhile, those following it are seeing their profession fall apart and are penalised for doing the right thing. 

    We want to help spread the word to get salon owners and stylists to read up on the rules, comply and help us all turn the tide now. 

    “A question we need to ask is whether we want this industry to survive,” he concludes. “And if you want sustainable growth in our sector, then we need to balance the playing field.” 

    *Information available @salonemployersassociation

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