On Tuesday, 4 July, a European Commission group of experts published recommendations for improving the working conditions of professionals in the cultural and creative sectors (CCS).
In fact, their report notes that these workers face precarious employment arrangements with a high rate of self-employment, low and irregular incomes, and a lack of legal structures.
Encouraging EU countries
The experts thus recommend creating a European framework to encourage Member States to adopt specific measures for the sector. They suggest that this framework could provide guidelines and minimum standards by means of a recommendation or conclusions by the EU Council.
In addition, they believe that public funders at the European, national, and regional levels should make the use of funding subject to conditions on fair employment practices.
The report: https://aeur.eu/f/7xx
The European Parliament addresses the issue
CCS working conditions also kept the European Parliament’s culture (CULT) and employment (EMPL) committees busy, with a draft report put forward by Antonius Manders (EPP, Dutch) and Domènec Ruiz Devesa (S&D, Spanish) on 29 June.
In particular, the rapporteurs call on Member States to create a specific status for artists, to ensure that they have access to decent remuneration, to put an end to situations of bogus self-employment, and to devote 2% of national public spending to the CCS.
They also ask the EU to propose “a targeted legal act” to ensure that CCS workers have access to social security, including when they move between EU countries. Furthermore, they suggest that the allocation of funding, such as Creative Europe [funding], should be subject to fair employment criteria.
Finally, MEPs address other areas, such as educational opportunities, harassment and discrimination in the workplace, and even artistic freedom and digital challenges.
The text: https://aeur.eu/f/7xw (Original version in French by Hélène Seynaeve)