Source: ANN via Ameba News
There are about 1,600 people who work as seiyū in Japan. Of that number, about 10% work full-time as freelancing seiyū. However, 80% cannot make ends meet with their voice-acting assignments alone
Talk about admiring our favorite seiyuu when 80% of them are having tough times making ends meet.
The industry, according to Shirogane Shomu, President of Winner Entertainment Voice Acting Agency that becoming a seiyuu is difficult with little chance of success. True, we don’t really get to see unique voices that often
An industry that is well sought and admired by the otaku fans but it appears to be one of the toughest industries out there.
Have you guys ever thought of being a seiyuu before ? What do you guys think should be done to help them ?
The man who started The Banzai! Effect and Anime Banzai! (discontinued), took an avid interest in blogging and also photography. Integrating his interests with the likes of Japanese pop culture, he starts out his path on the blogging world 
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figma Nakano Azusa / 2,266 yen / Max Factory
Misaka Mikoto / 4,695 yen / Good Smile Company
Vivio / 6,630 yen / Alter
This is hardly surprising, if one has kept tabs on the seiyuu world long enough, one would know that seiyuu usually do not earn much and have to depend on other side careers or jobs. I just find it surprising it took them so long to get the news out.
Helping seiyuu is difficult though. Maybe by showing them you actually read their blogs (for those who do have blogs) and showing that you care, it helps a lot in the sense that they feel they are not being seiyuu just for the sake of voice acting.
Can do it the old fashion way:
1) Establish a union
2) Make a collective demand for better pay, fairer work oppotunities and hours.
3) Of which the many companies will of course refuse
4) Launch industrial action (and use their popularity amongst the fan-dom to garner more support)
Otherwise, what they are doing now (part-time jobs etc) is the best thing to do for income especially seeing how badly Japan handles rising unemployment and decreasing productivity.
Here
http://www.riuva.com/?p=111
Was surprised at first, but after reading the above article, I finally knew that ’seiyuus’ are no superstars, and not just because of the pays alone..
They have to do more work, such as taking different roles at the same time to make a living..