Sealed product is simply much cheaper in the US than in Europe - so it makes sense for US judges to recieve more boxes for the same work; it's actually (close to) the same rate of pay.
(A Dragons of Tarkir booster pack costs about $3 in the US, and $4.50 (£3) in the UK)

We risk problems when judges or TOs read or hear about rates in dissimilar countries and then presume that they should be able to apply them in theirs.

Edited James Winward-Stuart (May 6, 2015 12:04:32 PM)

Which is why my rule of thumb is; If the TO doesn't offer the amount of
compensation you would be willing to accept, then don't apply to their
event.
You could of course start a normal conversation about it, but please don't
start the conversation after applying and/or being accepted. Because that's
just bad form.

-Richard Drijvers

2015-05-06 12:03 GMT+02:00 James Winward-Stuart <

Originally posted by Richard Drijvers:

please don't start the conversation after applying and/or being accepted. Because that's
just bad form.

In principle I agree, but one thing that's been happening more often due to the new system is stores with no experience of running Comp REL events organising their first PPTQ and relying on the Head Judge to guide them in how to organize such things - including what judge comp. should be. of course this needs to be one of the first things discussed, but we can't always expect stores to know what to offer without guidance.

Jim Shuman
None of the first paragraph has anything to do with your responsibility as a HJ. I believe details that should be discussed are format, venue capacity and expected attendance.

Relatedly, I think that the rise in stores new to Comp events has changed this - I've seen a lot of cases where stores have posted unrealistic schedules (that have then changed after advice from judges) because they were unfamiliar with this sort of event, and I've also seen places where the TOs approach to prizes has been “The prize pool is X boosters per player, here they all are, you take care of it.”

Originally posted by Richard Drijvers:

Which is why my rule of thumb is; If the TO doesn't offer the amount of
compensation you would be willing to accept, then don't apply to their
event.
You could of course start a normal conversation about it, but please don't
start the conversation after applying and/or being accepted. Because that's
just bad form.

This is true, however, even some of the more experienced TOs don't communicate about their compensation beforehand, unless you directly ask them. I had PTQs where I knew what I'd get the day it took plays - on the other hand, it was own fault for not asking earlier.

Originally posted by joshua quimby:

Great article expectially for someone that is going to a town where there is only a single shop in town. Now my question for you all is how would y'all handle the “Walking away” section of the article if, let's say, you are the only judge with in an hour of this shop because it's in a college town?

It may sound heartless, but I hope Judges will learn to be less selfless. When you sell yourself short, you affect the ability of future judges to negotiate a reasonable rate for them when they look for “a guy that will do it for less like last time.”

If they don't have much local support, that is a regional or area issue that can be addressed by identifying and mentoring judges local in that area. That community can be built over time, and it's something the store needs to be willing to support by providing opportunities. You can spin the conversation that establishing competitive events and getting an L2 in their store will help build their player and judge base. This will include paying the L2 what they're worth, and can be seen as an investment in a longer-term business relationship with the Judge program.

Many of us became Judges to help grow our communities and help players and stores out. The TO should share that vision, and be willing to give their fair compensation as you have given your time and efforts to reach L2.

Thanks to James for looking into numbers and putting perspective on why the numbers in the article were given. As a request in mediating this forum, please discuss the merits and education of articles by focusing on their purpose, not necessarily the fine details. Those can change with time, region, and culture.