Scottish petition is the latest in drive for fair pay in the arts

Creative unions are seeking support for regulating pay rates.A petition organised by the Scottish Artists Union (SAU) is demanding that Creative Scotland establishes measures to make sure artists are paid at union-approved levels and that its grant offers require organisations to use appropriate contracts. It is also calling for the payment of exhibition fees, in addition to any other relevant commissions, fees and expenses, to be mandatory for all organisations in receipt of grants and investments. Union Vice-President Joyce Macfarlane said: “We are looking for Creative Scotland to step up to the mark and be active advocates of best practice for artists' conditions”. The Union, one of the largest membership organisations for Visual and Applied Artists in Scotland, is also calling for greater transparency and more artist involvement in decision making on funding, with clearer feedback on all decisions. The petition resonates with evidence from a-n The Artists Information Company, showing that only 30% of opportunities offered to visual artists in the first six months of 2012 were paid, compared with 57% in 2008, the first year of recession. a-n also has anecdotal evidence that arts organisations and local authorities are starting to pass more exhibition costs onto artists, and that remuneration is failing to take account of artists’ costs and levels of experience. a-n’s Susan Jones is concerned also that: “By publishing only minimum rates, there’s a danger that these are what artists will be offered. Publicly funded arts organisations needed to be fully acquainted with artists’ production costs and to take these into account. a-n publishes guidelines that encourage employers to consider factors like experience and overheads when setting pay rates for artists.” The SAU is not the only Union to be calling for measures to tackle unfair pay. The Broadcasting Entertainment Cinematograph and Theatre Union (BECTU) has submitted information to inform a report due to be published by the Government’s Low Pay Commission in early 2013, in which they support more stringent minimum wage laws, advocating a ‘naming and shaming’ policy on those who don’t comply. Their Motion on Vulnerable Workers, backed by delegates at Trade Union Congress (TUC) conference states: “unacceptable risks around training and career development are being shifted onto workers to the long-term detriment of the economy.” The conference also saw the Musicians’ Union (MU) gain TUC support over fair pay, having recently condemned LOCOG for not ensuring proper payment in a series of Olympics related gigs, as well as Café Rouge for not paying performers during charity evenings where the business still pocketed a significant proportion of the takings. John Smith, MU General Secretary, said: “It is extremely unfair to put professional musicians into a situation where they are emotionally blackmailed into working for no fee and are asked to give their services to a good cause. This is particularly unjust when others associated with the event, such as venue staff, are being paid.” The MU is due to publish a report on the issue of non-payment in November. Arts Council England’s (ACE) response to unpaid work in the arts has been to tackle it at entry level, by implementing its Creative Jobs Scheme, which is designed to fund 6,500 new apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeships and paid internships across the sector, and to publish guidelines for the paid employment of interns. Although ACE ‘heavily encourages’ applicants for funding to adhere to best practice, as yet it has no formal measures in place to stamp out unfair payment terms.