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  • #16
    Agreed, some volunteers are not very good at acting. Sometimes it is up to us to help them find where they fit in ;-)

    Please don't think I took any of your comments the wrong way, I think it's healthy to express our experiences and discuss the pros/cons and why we do the things we do!

    -- I
    -------------------------------
    http://www.fx13studios.com

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    • #17
      Darkangel,
      I run a park in TX. We have about 100 actors we pay them. I hate it. I wish that we were a volunteer haunt. I do not make profit from the park, I get paid to do my job. My main issue is that we get many people who want to draw a paycheck. they dont care if they work at my haunted house or if they work at Mcdonald's. I do my best to weed them out early in the process or give them a passion for what we are doing and try to give them the fever.
      I am a professional haunter, it is just about all I do. I want amateur haunters to work for me. Not because they are unpaid that is not what amateur means. Amateur means that they love it. It comes from the word Amore. A love for what we do is imperative to doing it right. The best way to surround yourself with people who love what they are doing is to not pay them. As soon as pay is involved it is a job and not a passion. So I fully understand haunts that have volunteers as opposed to paid actors. It should bee a hobby that they are passionate about.
      In the haunt that I own I approached pay differently. I pay my actors based on how many people come through. they get a number per head. On busier nights they make more money on slow nights they make very little. I did that to ensure a spirit of ownership and belonging. It works, I have a great loyal team there. The average haunted house cannot afford that, I really cant afford that. I do not make alot of money at my show, but I have the best team ever.
      Allen H
      www.Stiltbeaststudios.com
      http://www.youtube.com/user/Stiltbea...s?feature=mhee

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      • #18
        Actors benefits

        we're in our 13 th year and we used volunteers our first year to get started and I thought it was a problem. also, the labor board told us that we can not use any volunteers if we are for profit. here in Delaware unless your a 501c3 or like that you have to pay them minimum wages at the least. I believe that may be a national labor law?
        anyway, last year we still gave $170,000 to our charity and paid 150 people on payroll. Our payroll and Workers Comp expenses were well over $100,000 and I still wouldn't trade that to go back to none paid volunteers, just my opinion. PS.. Pat, hope to see you in St.louis
        frightland.com

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        • #19
          Allen,

          I understand your point but to be honest from what I have seen it's not about the paycheck for people who love it. It's lke pro sports, there are many people who are pro athletes who have the passion and are great because of that passion which drives them. They would do it for free, they just happen to get paid but their passion in not to be rich its to be great or the best, and that's how it is with haunt actors or any employee its not that volunteers are better not by a long shot. Volunteers could have the same approach as a paid employee, instead of getting paid though they are there just burning hours for community service or there because their friend or relative is there and brough them, and just to "hang out" with friends or to try to land a gf/bf it's basically the same idea whereas they are not really motivated to be great just there for a sense of community or something to do.

          Bottom line, people who really have the passion have it regardless of getting paid, since no actor is really making enough to do much with it anyway they are there because they love it and want to scare people, have some fun and blow off some stream maybe from home or their real job.

          If you are a for profit haunt and not paying your actors, you;re digghing your own grave. Sooner or later they will lose motivation as it gets tougher and tougher and more demanding on your time, it's not worth it you need some reward and movie tickets don't pay the bills! lol

          IMAX, no worries exchanging our opinions and ideas is what these forums are all about! I'm glad to discuss this topic with you here!

          DA

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          • #20
            Phil,

            How many actors do you guys have? And how much is workers comp approx? Or per person?

            Thanks,
            DA

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            • #21
              Workman's comp...

              I think it depends on the interpretation of your insurance carrier... but the workman's comp rate for amusements is 7%. To put it in perspective, office help is somewhere between 2 and 3 %... farming 15% and construction can get into the 20% range. If you make workman's comp claims due to injuries in your haunt, your rate can increase. I have heard horror stories about businesses being raised to 35% after a major incident! Rule of thumb... take an employee's hourly wage and double it for total costs per employee.

              Patrick

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              • #22
                Actors benifts

                our Workmen Comp in Delaware is based on Gross wages, we fall under "Entertainment" so that is the hightest rate they have, 9.99 % , now if you own a contracting type biz then you only have to pay 3 % . so if our pay roll is $100,000 we pay $9,999 to Workers Comp for the year. We never had a claim in 13 years, but I was told if we had a claim the rate still stays at 9.99 %
                frightland.com

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                • #23
                  We're a for profit haunt and pay our actors. Two years ago we had a basic per hour wage for all actors, regardless of the night they worked. This year we decided to stagger the hourly wage to more per night the later we got into the season. We also provided a Blood Lake water bottle, as well as giving them soda and candy every night... with a big dinner from Chick-fil-a on Halloween.

                  Another thing we attempted to do was build on a volunteer system. We figured out a minimum number of paid actors we could afford/had to have every night, then created a volunteer pool off of that. While the volunteers didn't have an hourly wage, they had complete flexibility of their schedule (could choose the night(s) they wanted to help out), as well as the ability to move up to our paid cast if we had some no shows or ones that quit. We also had a handful of gift cards for them as prizes on random nights.

                  This system is definitely something we'll continue to work and improve on. It's really the only way a small haunt like ours can continue to be for profit and afford to invest in improving and expanding the show every season.

                  - Ryan

                  Blood Lake Haunted House & Haunts of Richmond Ghost Tours
                  www.bloodlakeva.com www.hauntsofrichmond.com
                  Located in Richmond, VA

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