# Crew Rate Lookup: Union Minimums by Film Role

Source: https://storiara.com/tools/crew-rate-lookup
Last updated: 2026-09-14
Author: Nick Harty, Storiara

> The crew rate lookup is a searchable table of union minimum rates for film crew and production roles. Search by role name or union local, or filter by department, and each row shows the agreement, the minimum amount and unit, the date it took effect, and a link to the union or official rate sheet it came from. It only lists rates we confirmed on that sheet.

## Searching the table

Type part of a role name ("gaffer", "script supervisor") or a union local ("Local 600", "DGA") into the search box. The search looks at the role name and the text of each rate label, so a local's number, a schedule name, or words like "weekly" all work. The department filter narrows the table to one department, and the two can be combined.

Each role name links to its full role page, which covers the job, the day, and how people get hired. Each agreement label links to the rate sheet itself. If nothing matches, the table says so.

The columns are:

| Column | What it holds |
|---|---|
| Role | the job, linked to its role page |
| Agreement | union, local, schedule or tier, and whether it's daily or weekly |
| Minimum | the published minimum and its unit: per hour, per day, per week |
| Effective | the date that rate took effect |

## Reading a row

Say you search "Local 600" and look at the 1st assistant camera. Two rows come up for the same job: $67.99 per hour for a daily employee, and $2,937.98 per week for a weekly guarantee. On the Local 600 Western Region rate card for 2026 to 2027, the daily rate carries time and a half after 8 hours with an 8-hour minimum call, and the weekly guarantee is built on a 43.2-hour week at a lower base hourly rate.

So for an 11-hour day on a daily hire:

- 8 hours × $67.99 = $543.92
- 3 hours × $101.985 (time and a half) = $305.96
- Gross: about $849.88, before fringes, kit rental, and any meal penalties

You can run the same day through the [overtime calculator](https://storiara.com/tools/overtime-calculator) by entering $67.99, 11 hours, an 8-hour guarantee, and 8 as the time-and-a-half threshold. Set the double-time threshold to whatever your agreement says rather than leaving the California default in place.

Some roles show a prior year's rate beside the current one. Check the effective date against your shoot dates, because minimums step up on contract anniversaries, and the rate that applies is the one in effect when the work happens.

## Limits of a minimum-rate table

- Only verified rates. Roles appear once a rate has been confirmed on the source sheet, so the table is a subset of the [roles](https://storiara.com/roles) directory.
- Regions. Most listings are for Los Angeles-based locals and national agreements. A New York, Atlanta, or Vancouver local will have different numbers.
- Budget tiers. Low budget and new media agreements pay less than the basic agreement. A row's label says which one it is.
- Overtime, [golden time](https://storiara.com/glossary/golden-time), sixth and seventh day premiums, and night premiums aren't in the table.
- Fringes. Pension and health, vacation and holiday pay, and payroll taxes come on top. See [fringes](https://storiara.com/glossary/fringes).
- Negotiated rates. Scale is a floor. The number in a [crew deal memo](https://storiara.com/templates/crew-deal-memo) is often higher.
- Non-union work has no published minimum beyond state and local wage law.

## Using rates in a budget

Pull the minimums for your department heads and key crew, apply your agreement's overtime rules to a realistic day length, and then add fringes. [Film crew day rates](https://storiara.com/blog/film-crew-day-rates) covers how day rates get quoted on non-union jobs, [union scale](https://storiara.com/glossary/union-scale) explains how minimums work, and [understanding tier projects](https://storiara.com/blog/understanding-tier-projects-how-budget-size-affects-crew-rates) covers how budget size changes the rate. The [film budget estimator](https://storiara.com/tools/film-budget-estimator) takes a blended crew day rate if you want a quick total.

## Frequently asked questions

### Are these the rates crew actually get paid?

They're contract minimums. Many experienced crew negotiate above scale, and department heads often do. Use the minimum as the floor for a union budget.

### Why isn't every role listed?

A role only shows up after its rate was confirmed on a union or official rate sheet. Roles without a verified published minimum, and non-union roles with no scale, are left out.

### What does daily employee versus weekly mean?

Daily employees are hired by the day and paid hourly with a minimum call. Weekly employees get a weekly guarantee for a set number of hours. The Local 600 1st assistant photographer, for example, has an hourly daily rate and a separate weekly guarantee built on a 43.2-hour week.

### How do I turn an hourly minimum into a day's pay?

Apply the agreement's overtime rule. The Local 600 Western Region rate card shows time and a half after 8 hours for daily employees, so an 11-hour day at $67.99 is 8 hours straight plus 3 hours at $101.985, or about $849.88 before fringes.

## Sources

- [IATSE Local 600 Western Region rate card, 2026 to 2027](https://www.icg600.com/sites/default/files/2026-08/Western-Region-Rate-Card-%282026-2027%29.pdf)