Audio - A Dying Profession

I have been working as an audio engineer (or sound designer) for the last 10 years. I have done many things in regards to the profession; live events, studio production, album production, electronic news gathering, film post production, you name it. The only thing I haven't done by myself is film mixing. Having graduated from SAE and trained by the BBC in broadcast, I pretty much know all the ins and outs of audio.

Recently, I was offered a job with a local production house, where I believe to be one of the best, if not the best, in the country. The prospect is good; I'll get to work with experienced people and hone my skills. The people seem nice, and they seem to be happy working there; having worked there for at least 5 years.

Here's the catch. The initial salary offer is paltry with no room for negotiation. No benefits to speak of and work is hell. I've been told there's plenty of work, which, in production terms, no free time for yourself, not even weekends. Hell, I got paid better 7 years ago!

Then a second offer came. It is slightly better, but it's the exact same pay I got when I left Astro 7 years ago. More recently, I did work for a lower pay at another production house but, I do get a percentage for each project that I worked on, which worked out very well indeed.

I am still undecided about this, and I have to give my answer tomorrow. On one hand, this will be an excellent opportunity for me to complete my audio skill set, so to speak, but on the other hand, I will be giving up the one thing I treasure most; my time. As the old saying goes, time is money, and I don't see the balance in the offer they're giving me.

Now which flaming idiot set the bar for audio engineers so low, and which flaming idiot accepted such a low bar? I call for all audio engineers in this country to stop accepting such lousy offers, and value yourself! Just because people who do not have an audio engineering background are undercutting you, doesn't mean that you should!

I'm also disappointed at how audio is valued in this country. Apart from the rare audiophiles, everyone else seems to be content to just having it "there". Quality doesn't matter, as long as it's "there". Everyone buys RM20 speakers for their computers, and they're happy with it. Everyone buys a cheap television and they're happy with it. Gone are the days when people would actually buy speakers and amplifiers to get a good sound.

Oh well, that's what I think anyway.