Hiring a Crew for a One Day Event

Three jobs, not one

Setup is a scheduled block with a hard finish, because doors open when they open. Event hours are mostly waiting punctuated by lifting. Teardown is the one that runs long, late, and tired.

Staff them separately. A crew booked for all three at once is a crew that is worn out by the part where the truck has to be loaded.

Rough numbers for setup

Planning figures, for a crew that has done it before, with everything on site.

• Tables and chairs for 100 guests, two people, two to three hours.
• A tent, staging, or anything with a lift, at least four people.
• Load in from a truck at a loading dock, two to three hours for a small event.
• A venue with stairs or no dock, add half again.

Teardown is faster and worse

Teardown usually takes about two thirds of setup, and it happens at eleven at night when everybody is done. Book it as its own shift with its own people wherever you can.

Say the finish time in the post. Somebody who agreed to a midnight finish shows up ready for it. Somebody who thought they were done at nine leaves at nine.

What to put in the post

Event work is specific, so the post should be too.

• The date, the call time, and the expected finish.
• How many people, and for which shift.
• The dress code, if there is one, because a lot of venues have one.
• Whether there is a dock, an elevator, or stairs.
• The rate, and whether the late shift pays more.

Overstaff by one, always

An event has a hard deadline that does not move, which is exactly the case where being one person short costs you far more than the extra day rate.

Send a confirmation the day before with the address, the call time, the parking, and who to ask for. Events are the jobs where people get lost in a parking garage.

Name one person in charge

On a busy load in, a crew with nobody running it stands around waiting to be told. Give them a name and a phone number, and show the whole crew the finished picture once at the start.

Then pay at the end of the night by the method you agreed, and take the numbers of the ones who worked out. Event work repeats, and a crew that already knows your venue is worth keeping.