Fair Pay for Film & AV Freelancers
How the Netherlands built a sector-wide rate framework
DDG · FERA Annual Meeting 2026
The problem we had to solve
Freelance-heavy sector
Dutch film and AV production relies predominantly on freelancers rather than employees.
Sector CBA for freelancers
No collective agreement existed that could be applied directly to this group.
Public funding trigger
From 1 January 2025, fair pay became a condition for publicly subsidised cultural productions.
The practical question: if we want fair pay to be real, how do we build credible minimum freelance rates for a sector with many disciplines, project-based work, and no dedicated freelance CAO?
Who built it: The Ketentafel
The table
Sector-wide negotiating forum
18 parties at the table
The full chain
Producers (NAPA, NCP), broadcasters (NPO, CvO), unions (Kunstenbond, FNV), guilds and craft organisations: DDG, DPA, NSC, NCE, NSC, ACT, VCA, ACM, PNN, Auteursbond, NAA and more.
Covering directors, writers, cast, camera, sound, editing, costume, post, VFX and agents. Every link in the chain was present.
The model in three steps
Step A
Benchmark
Use adjacent collective agreements as the reference market: the CAO for Broadcasting Personnel and the CAO for Theatre & Dance.
Step B
Base hourly rate
Translate benchmark salaries into a base rate using net deployable hours — not nominal working hours — per year.
Step C
Freelance uplift
Add a sector-specific freelance surcharge (74.45%) so the rate reflects real freelance costs and risks that employees do not bear.
This made the framework defensible: rates were not arbitrary, but derived from recognised salary structures plus a transparent, itemised freelance correction.
What are "net deployable hours"?
Starting point: a full working year
230 days × 7.3 hrs avg = 1,686 hours/year
Why it matters for freelancers
Why the uplift is 74.45%
Non-billable time
Admin, acquisition, travel not charged.
Non-billable costs
Equipment, overhead, business expenses.
Social charges
6% health, 7% disability insurance, 10% pension.
Fixed emoluments
8% holiday allowance + 3.45% year-end bonus.
74.45% is the total uplift on the base hourly rate. It explains in a structured, auditable way why a fair freelance rate must sit substantially above a nominal employee wage.
The backbone: 11 levels of work complexity
Opdracht Kompas — A to K
Berenschot's job weighting model links any assignment to one of 11 levels using USB points, across 13 departments in film and AV production.
Assessment criteria
This makes the discussion about the assignment, not about personalities or bargaining power.
What the 2026 outcome looks like
General 2026 indexation
Average of both reference CAOs.
Lower scales A–H uplift
Extra increase in broadcasting CAO scales A–H.
Where directors are placed
Level K — €66.64/hr (2026)
Feature film director / complex prestige series. Full creative responsibility across all departments and all production phases. Broad specialist knowledge. High-stakes decisions with long-term consequences.
Level J — €57.80/hr (2026)
Drama series / documentary director. Creative responsibility for end result, steers multiple departments, advises production. Medium-to-large production scale.
How the fee is calculated
Rate × hours = minimum fee
Minimum rate (level) × negotiated hours = minimum fee
Six tools, not just one rate table
1. Glossary
300+ defined terms for contracts and negotiations. Shared vocabulary across all parties.
2. Assignment Compass
Score the assignment → determine the level → link to the rate.
3. Rate Matrix
Minimum hourly rates per level, indexed annually on 1 January.
4. Healthy Work Guide
Working hours, rest times, turnaround rules and safe production conditions.
5. Timesheets
Per-department task lists to estimate total hours before negotiating.
6. User Guide
6-step guide: from task analysis to opening bid. Published at fairpacct.nl.
Making it stick
Mandatory from January 2025
What remains a floor, not a ceiling
Lessons for FERA members
Use adjacent agreements
No sector CBA? Anchor the model in neighbouring agreements that are credible, public and recognised.
Weight the work
A complexity framework keeps the debate focused on the assignment — not on power asymmetry or personal relationships.
Build a toolkit
Rates alone are not enough. Definitions, timesheets, a user guide and annual indexation make it live and usable.
Fair pay becomes actionable when methodology, negotiation tools and yearly indexation are all built into one coherent system — and when the whole sector sits at the table to build it.
Thank you
Dutch Directors Guild · FERA Annual Meeting 2026
fairpacct.nl · directorsguild.nl