Back in June as part of our Architecture on Stage series, we gathered a range of workers, activists and union members to discuss labour rights in architectural practice.
Architecture has long been notorious for its punishing hours and low pay, but in recent years these conditions have grown markedly worse. Year after year the gap between productivity and wages grows wider, with younger practitioners among the hardest hit: the average salary for Part 1 architectural assistants in the UK - people who’ve invested three years in a post-secondary degree - is now effectively on par with the national minimum wage.
At the same time though, a labour movement is emerging. Among a new generation of architects, burnt out and saddled by debt, the culture of architecture as a vocation fuelled by passion and self-sacrifice has worn thin. Instead, there have been increasing demands for regulated working hours, stable contracts and paid overtime. And that’s where where the story of this episode of scaffold, begins.
The panellists in this episode, recorded live at the Barbican Centre's Frobisher Auditorium on 25 June 2024, represent a broad cross section of current and former architectural workers, some of whom have been in practice for decades, others who are just beginning. They came together to share knowledge and experience across generations, literally from boomers to zoomers, in search of solidarity against forces that affect us all.
With panelists Bob Allies of Allies and Morrison; Charlie Edmonds of the grassroots activist group Future Architects Front; Cristina Gaidos + Maia Rollo of the recently formed union Section of Architectural Workers; and Jane Issler Hall + Owen Lacey of the the architecture collective Assemble.
Scaffold is a podcast series featuring interviews with architects, artists and designers. Hosted by Matthew Blunderfield and produced by the Architecture Foundation, it is available on Apple Pocasts, Spotify, and most major podcast streaming platforms.
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