Vancouver: Talent agents in B.C. – rated among the 10 worst industry sectors generating complaints at the local Better Business Bureau – now face regulations that are designed to protect performers from unscrupulous operators.

Provincial Minister of Labour Joan Smallwood unveiled the new regulations Sept. 21 after two years of consultations with B.C.’s 5-70 agents and the u.s. and Canadian film industries. ‘After many complaints by consumers and performers, and consultations with all affected parties, I am pleased to be able to provide some protection for workers and agencies alike,’ she says.

In 1998, the bbb of Mainland b.c. received 2,575 ‘inquiries’ about bogus talent agencies, putting the business category on the list of top 10 scams. In 1999, inquiries have dropped, probably because of the onset of the new regulations, says Valerie MacLean, gm of the local bbb office.

‘The bad companies we were monitoring and their principals are gone,’ she says. ‘They knew the climate was becoming less friendly.’

The new regulations are widely regarded as precautions that ward off the few ‘bad apples’ that taint the industry for credible and responsible talent agents.

According to Smallwood, complaints about talent agents include problems with the payment of wages earned by performers, commissions and fees that result in performers receiving less than minimum hourly wage, and agents charging additional sign-up or portfolio fees.

‘Most of the agencies have the best interests of the performers at heart,’ says John Juliani, president of the Union of B.C. Performers. ‘Unfortunately, there are a few agencies that don’t and therefore tend to give the rest a bad name.’

Says Ian Waddell, the provincial minister responsible for the film industry: ‘These regulations will ensure that performers are paid appropriately and that those looking to break into the growing industry are not taken advantage of by `fly-by-night’ agencies.’

Specifically, agents who plan to charge commissions for their services now have to become licensed by the Director of Employment Standards, who can refuse a licence if an agency has been involved in ‘illegal, dishonest, fraudulent or deliberately misleading’ activities.

If a licensed agent receives wages on behalf of a performer, those funds must be remitted to the performer within five days of receipt of payment if the money comes from within British Columbia or 12 days after if the payment comes from outside b.c.

Commissions are capped at 15% of wages; however, the agency has to ensure that the net payment to the performer represents no less than minimum wage.

Licensed agencies can charge no more than $25 per year for photographs and photo fees may only be deducted from a performer’s actual earnings. Agents can charge no other fees for finding or securing work for clients.

Finally, directors and officers of talent agencies are personally liable for unpaid wages. Licensed agents must remit wages received on behalf of a performer to that performer within five days of receipt of the wages.

The estimated 50 to 70 active talent agents in b.c. have a two-month window in which to secure their licences. The broad range in the estimated number of talent agents is indication of the fuzziness of the specific business sector and transitory nature of some nefarious companies.

‘If an agency is operating appropriately, with a high code of conduct, they should not be afraid of the regulations,’ says Richard Lucas of Lucas Talent.

According to the province, the new regulations are consistent with the code of conduct required by the Talent Agents and Managers Association of Canada.