Signing away copyright to radio sketches

[RadioWriter]

Hi! I work for a radio show that features sketch comedy. We've been working on the show for a while now and are being asked to sign a contract that gives the organization the copyright on all our previous and future work for the company (with "work for hire" language).

We have two concerns: 1) we weren't being paid a standard professional rate when we initially wrote the works - we were all looking at it as a sort of investment in the future of the show.

Secondly, we can't ask the show to pay us residuals on usage of our work as their lawyer has told us they're a non-profit and it's therefore illegal for them to pay royalties or residuals.

I have two questions:
1) Is it true that a non-profit can't legally pay us residuals?
2) Is it standard language for a writer's contract in which the writers are NOT employees of the organization to say that the organization owns everything they wrote (regardless of how much they were paid to write it)?

That's all! Thanks in advance for any advice you can give us!

 

[Michael Wechsler]

You really need to understand your relationship. Basically, the company is hoping to own everything you do. This means that if you leave the show or the show decides to dump you, there is no right you have in any part of the work you've contributed to the show. All of what you are trying to do may be completely legitimate - yes, it is standard for consultants who are hired to sign the rights to the work they perform because, by nature, only an employer-employee relationship assumes that work created by employees are owned in their entirety by the company.

The challenges with relationships like yours is that frequently the money paid for the artists to work in no way compensates them for their inspiration and original ideas. It's all wrapped up into "the good intentions all of us have in creating something great." The problem is that you may own nothing in what you are creating and not realize it until later. You need to sit and think about your efforts. Once you sign them away, the show might be able to drop you and you will own nothing - in fact, if you create a new show that is similar to the one you created, the rights owner of the show could sue you as an infringer. Good luck...