Pay and industry relations

Directors, as the creative leads, are responsible for navigating productions through increasingly pressured schedules and tightening budgets, while embracing new working practices and technologies and acquiring new skills.

But while the expectations placed on the director have significantly increased, the pay for this complex, specialist work has not.

Although we’re not a trade union, we do ensure that employers understand the value of creating the right incentives for directors and employers in continuing drama have made a number of important improvements to the employment packages of directors in recent years. On this page you can find details of our work promoting better pay and working conditions for directors.

PAY DEALS

ITV pay deal

In 2026, ITV has proposed to increase fees for directors working on its continuing dramas following discussions with Directors UK. 

Read the latest pay information here

INDUSTRY RELATIONS

Directors UK’s industry relations work strengthens directors’ voice in an industry where freelance working cultures can sometimes be shaped by fear, opacity and overwork. This work supports members facing contractual, professional or cultural problems, working with Directors UK’s General Counsel to offer legal guidance, practical strategies and clear arguments they can be used for better outcomes.

When directors compare experiences and agree on what “good” looks like, they can create a consensus with real cultural power — one that challenges unhealthy practices and supports a fairer, more sustainable working environment. Alongside casework, Industry Relations helps directors build those shared standards and collective clarity that can shift industry norms.

Current priorities include improving engagement practices across scripted drama, unscripted factual, entertainment multi-cam and continuing drama, as well as contributing to wider initiatives such as Action for Freelancers, the Mentally Healthy Production Standards working group, and the Directors and Producers Forum.