Hi Jena

Our small club (Akaroa) doesn't pay the playing director, not even waiving the table fee !   We take turns.

cheers, Giles

I've just concluded directing a long, all-winter, series. The club wanted to try and accommodate singles, which meant I also played 1/4 - 1/3 of the sessions. I am a brand-new Director ... we have not even received our exam results back yet ... so was not confident of being able to play and direct effectively. I only agreed to also play when I had other more experienced directors in the room, which was usually the case given the number of open-level players competing.

I was being paid to direct. When I also played I waived the table fee for the other Directors who helped me, waived my own table fee, and claimed a reduced director fee for the session. That approach was my decision, but no-one at the club complained. I suspect no-one would have complained even if I continued to claim the full director fee, but I figured the responsibility was being shared so I shared the money. Yesterday I had five other directors in the room with two helping me out. Between us no-one had to wait terribly long for director assistance.

As for when a non-playing director is necessary I think that's really a club-specific issue. Since the club was paying me I felt my priority was to direct and I only played when I had backup and when the club wanted me to (which was every time there was a single). With a small club and volunteer directors I'd expect you'd need to be juggling priorities a little more carefully and flexibly. Good luck with that.