Several freelance artists who worked for the University of Melbourne say the lengths they have had to go to get paid have been "distressing and unfair".
Filmmaker and director Leticia Cáceres, whose work includes streaming TV show Bump, was contracted to run a mock interview session with graduate masters students on November 8.
A week later she submitted an invoice for $450 for four hours' work.
She told ABC Radio Melbourne she was finally contacted by the university a few days before Christmas and was asked to fill out an "unreasonable" amount of paperwork.
"They asked for a memorandum of understanding, certified proof of identity and I had to provide my own insurance up to $5 million," she said.
"I've gone through about five different emails, trying to submit my paperwork. It keeps bouncing back."
Almost four months later Cáceres still hasn't been paid.
"This is a significant amount of money for me," she said.
"I've spent days chasing it, I've cried over it – it's really distressing and unfair."
In a statement, a University of Melbourne spokesperson said "we are aware of this matter and are working with the independent contractor to resolve it as soon as possible".
"The independent contractor submitted their final documentation on Wednesday 22 February 2023, and will be paid in full very shortly," the spokesperson said.
When Cáceres posted about her experience on social media earlier this week she was overwhelmed with other artists saying they'd had similar experiences with the university's bureaucracy.
Cáceres is calling for the university to "streamline" the way contractors are paid.
"It shouldn't be such an administrative ordeal and artists shouldn't be waiting months on end for their money," she said.
University of Melbourne did not say whether they would simplify their payment system.
'Ridiculous' payment system deters artists
Musician and actor Eddie Perfect has backed calls for the University of Melbourne to make it easier for freelance artists to be paid.
Perfect said he was employed by the university to mentor Victorian College of the Arts (VCA) students during the COVID pandemic.
He had been warned the university's payment system was "a little archaic and outdated", but was shocked at just how onerous the process was.
He said he was sent a lengthy document that directed him to a portal, where he was required to fill in details including proof of working rights, superannuation and more, before he could receive payment.
"That's a lot of stuff for a freelance gig," he said.
"It drove me bonkers."
Perfect did the work in October and was expecting the payment before Christmas but it didn't come until February.
For similar work, Perfect said freelancers would usually send an invoice and then receive payment.
The experience put him off doing future work for the VCA.
"I am calling on the university to ditch the ridiculous payment system and understand that freelancers work from paycheck-to-paycheck," he said.
"Being paid on time is just as important as being paid at all."
System not set up for occasional work
Award-winning theatre director and former associate director at the Melbourne Theatre Company, Sarah Goodes, said she had also had trouble receiving payment for contract work at the University of Melbourne.
"The last time I went to get paid for a two-hour lecture I had to go to the post office prove my identity and get a whole heap of things signed," she said.
"In the end, it took me three to four hours to try and get paid for two hours' work."
She says while the lecturers and tutors who invite artists in are "wonderful", the university's payment systems are designed for regular employees and do not have the flexibility to accommodate the needs of very casual workers.
"I love teaching at the VCA and I think students benefit from people from industry coming in," Goodes said.
"Unfortunately many artists are put off because it's too difficult to get paid."
