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Artists are workers too
Ahead of a motion to Congress on self-employment, ZITA HOLBOURNE explains why workers in the arts are so often overlooked, the problems this causes — and why we as movement must change this for good
"The role that creative self-employed workers play is crucial to the world, to our collective and individual self-care, raising awareness and education on important issues, challenging discrimination and injustice, bringing joy and healing, enhancing businesses and making the world a better place."
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THE majority of our members are self-employed. Working as an artist is precarious work, with people working on a freelance basis, on temporary projects, commissions and contracts.
Self-employed arts and culture workers have already been hard hit by over 10 years of austerity and then we were hit hard by the pandemic — work cancelled with immediate effect and for the foreseeable future — and also found themselves falling between the gaps when it came to government measures to support self-employed people.
Because of the nature of their work, they may not encounter unions and local reps in the way some other workers do, but union organisation is much-needed for these workers. Self-employed workers make up a substantial number of British workers — over 4 million — and in turn make a significant contribution to the economy.
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