Publishing staffers surviving, not thriving as cost of living crisis bites, Bookseller survey finds

People working in the book industry are “surviving not thriving” as the cost of living crisis bites, with many arguing low wages are holding back diversity efforts, according to a survey conducted by The Bookseller. 

More than two-thirds (69%) of those surveyed said they are not paid appropriately for their work, while 41% said they would not recommend a career in the industry. 

The survey, which received more than 230 responses, was heavily dominated by publishing staffers (87%), and found 41% of respondents had not been given a pay rise this year. 

Where there were pay rises, these were very wide-ranging, from as little as 0.04% for an online sales assistant who has been working in the industry for less than a year, to 35% for an editorial director in the industry for five years. The biggest pay rises reported were for editorial directors and publishers; however, several respondents working at university presses also reported pay rises of more than 10% this year. Some said their pay was only upped after threatening to leave their jobs.  

Of those surveyed, 37% said their current salary was not enough to cover the cost of living, rising to 41% when considering if their salary will continue to cover the cost of living this year. A further 33% did not know if their salary would be enough in the coming year, with only 26% saying they were confident it would cover all their costs. Only 16% of respondents said they were part of a union. 

One assistant editor, who has been in the industry for five years, said pay discrepancies were “jarring”, and described “the sheer insanity of not being able to live by yourself or do things in your spare time”. They described “only ever eating reduced food and the near constant stress about money on minuscule salaries" as well as "negotiating book contracts with senior people saying ’bung another couple of thousand on there’ (can they bung another couple thousand on my salary?) and giving us a glass of prosecco to thank us for making them millions of pounds”.

They said: “The way we talk about money in this industry is insane, we’re all so broke and stressed but profits are always up, always soaring, budget is always more profit next year. The disconnect is insane. I’d love to see our c.e.o live on the money he pays entry level [staff].” 

Low entry-level salaries were highlighted by a number of respondents. A commissioning editor who has worked in the industry for 17 years remarked: “I really don’t see how anyone can afford to live in London on a publishing starting salary: £24,000 is about £1,650 take home per month, and if you’re paying £700 for a room in a flatshare and several hundred more on bills and travel costs it hardly leaves anything to live on, let alone save. Add to that the long hours expected of many entry-level staff and it’s a pretty depressing picture”. 

A campaigns manager who has been in the industry for five years agreed, remarking: “I have heard from several younger staff members in my industry that they simply can’t survive on their salaries and have been told they are not allowed to discuss their salaries with one another. It would be simply impossible to live on publishing’s starting and mid-range salaries without support from family or a partner.” 

A translation rights agent for 13 years added: “My cost of living has always been subsidised by the fact that my husband earns more than I do. We weren’t able to take shared parental leave as my publishing salary is so much lower than his and its removal during maternity leave was far less of a financial burden than losing his salary would have been. I genuinely believe it would be hard to recommend this work to someone who doesn’t receive financial support from parents or their partner."  

A project editor for 27 years also commented: “My salary is the same now as it was in 1998 when I took a career break to raise my children. Different companies and slightly different roles but still indicative of the stagnation in pay levels in editorial. Luckily my spouse is the primary earner in our household." 

One senior commissioning editor, who has worked in the industry for 12 years, noted the pay uplift between an editorial assistant on £24,000 and a senior commissioning editor on around £36,000 “is not good enough” especially when “you might have at least 10 years’ experience”.  

Another editor who has been in the sector for eight years said: “Salary squeeze is a real problem. The levels of pay have quite rightly increased massively for entry-level positions since I’ve started in publishing. But in the middle level roles salaries have barely changed. So people coming in with little or no experience are earning nearly as much as people with much more experience, which is a bit galling. Particularly as costs naturally rise when you get older and start thinking about things like starting a family etc. On my current salary there is no way I can start planning for the future". 

Several respondents expressed a fear for their future financial stability, including one assistant editor, working in the industry for two and a half years, who said they are only managing at the moment because they live in "the cheapest accommodation possible". "I am surviving, but I am not thriving," they said. "My biggest concern is long term. I will never be able to get onto the property market and I will never be able to afford to retire. I don’t know what I will do when I am too old to work as I have no family. At this moment, the future looks incredibly bleak."

A number of respondents expressed concern that this would prevent the industry from diversifying. An international sales manager for six years commented: “I feel the industry relies on people that have the access to the bank of mum and dad and can sustain low wages for the ’prestige’ associated with working in publishing. People that do not have this privilege are ultimately pushed out of the profession. The trade-off is too high.” 

An assistant editor with three years’ experience in the role added: “People who love books will always gravitate towards the industry but need to be realistic about their financial prospects within it. Many people have turned away because financially, jobs in publishing aren’t viable if you want to start a family or buy a house and you don’t have inherited wealth or financial support from your parents. 

“Publishing has always capitalised on people’s passion for the job and has used the competitiveness of the job market within the industry to keep salaries lower than they should be. As we try to encourage people from different socio-economic backgrounds into the industry, the salaries become more and more offputting as people (particularly juniors) are unable to afford to live in London and not be living hand-to-mouth, unable to save for the future.”