Cinema managers say they cannot afford to raise staff wages

Staff at the Ritzy Cinema in Brixton have demanded a better deal after rejecting a pay offer of �5.41 - six pence above the minimum wage.

They said that while ticket prices have increased from just over �5 to about �8 per film in the past few years, that has not been reflected in wages.

Cinema managers said tight profit margins prevented them offering the pay rise demanded by staff.

This is the second strike by workers at the venue after staff staged a walkout last week.

Poverty line

Jackie Brett-Holt, the Bectu union representative for staff at the cinema, said: "If you're going to own and run a business in London you have to aware that the poverty line is �6.25 and that the living wage is �7.20."

"Now we're not asking for this overnight. We're asking for a three to five year settlement that City Screen (cinema managers) can work into their budget and they've refused to do that."

In a statement City Screen said that from each �8 ticket sold, only �2.56 went to the cinema as profit.

"We are disappointed that our staff are taking action to disrupt screenings at the Ritzy but the economics of an independent cinema make it impossible to meet their demand for a 35% pay rise.