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Suggested rates of pay for professional organists / directors of music

We recommend for professional organists and their churches a tidy, systematic and just salary solution that eliminates the need for future negotiating and maintains a transparent and demonstrable connection between the given duties of the organist and the size of his or her stipend.
  1. Take as a starting point the local diocesan salary rate for a full-time (lay) officer. In the example below (from a specific diocese in the UK), the rate is £24,659 p.a.
     
  2. Agree the overall average number of hours a week (taking the whole year into account) that is required to carry out the post. Remember to include:

    • Actual time of all regular services
    • Getting out music at home, half hour in church before each service, tidying up after service
    • Actual time of all seasonal services (Christmas, Easter, other festivals / saints' days etc)
    • Getting out music at home, half hour in church before each service, tidying up after service
    • Actual time of all school or institutional services
    • Getting out music at home, half hour in church or elsewhere* before each service, tidying up after service
    • Practicing time for hymns, voluntaries and (if appropriate) anthem accompaniment
    • Actual time of all choir practices
    • Getting out music at home, quarter hour in church before each practice, tidying up after practice
    • Concerts: Plan, coordinate, attend, play or accompany where appropriate, learn repertoire for any concerts you are playing and other possible accompanying
    • Meetings with minister (e.g. regular hymn-choosing or other staff meetings)
    • Study time: any courses attended or other church music studies including reading journals etc.
    *Travel time from home is not covered by the church, except in the case of travel to schools or other institutions
     
  3. Having arrived at an annual weekly average time, work this out as a percentage of a "full-time" post (reckoned to be 40 hours a week)
     
  4. Agree an annual salary as per the following example (based on full-time salary of £24,659 p.a.):

    Hours per weekPercentage of 40 hoursAnnual salary £
    1 2.5% 616.47
    2 5% 1232.95
    3 7.5% 1849.42
    4 10% 2466
    5 12.5% 3232.37
    6 15% 3698.85
    7 17.5% 4525.32
    8 20% 4932
    9 22.5% 5548.25
    10 25% 6165
    11 27.5% 6781.22
    12 30% 7397.70
    13 32.5% 8014.17
    14 35% 9050.65
    15 37.5% 9697.12
    16 40% 9864
    17 42.5% 10480.17
    18 45% 11096.55
    19 47.5% 11713.02
    20 50% 12329

     
  5. Review the time-use regularly once each year, so that the musical director and the church are both satisfied that the salary reflects the actual demands of the post
     
  6. Remember that the actual annual salary figure is linked to the diocesan rate, so this will automatically be reviewed each year.

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