Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1697751202804.pdf (Ireland)
Submission to the Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media The Delivery of a Safe and Respectful Working Environment in the Arts 1 of  6  1.

We thank the Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media for inviting us to make a submission on this topic.

2.

The Music & Entertainment Association of Ireland was founded in June 2020 to give a voice to the core workers in the music & entertainment industry.
The Covid-19 pandemic decimated the industry which was under restrictions for 680 days and was in effective lockdown for over 600 of those days.

Workers were simply unable to perform or earn a living during this time.

The pandemic exposed the many failings within the industry.

Failings and bad practices that have existed for years and which for many years have been ‘acceptable’ and customary to a career within the sector.

3.
3.

Ireland is synonymous with music, entertainment and the arts throughout the world.

For a small nation we punch above our weight.

Our culture has influenced the arts of many countries and contributed so much to global culture.

This has been done in subtle ways through our diaspora, and in more visible ways by our internationally recognised artists and performers.
Over the past two years especially we have been told and reminded time and time again of the great value the government puts on the arts and artists, and the huge respect and regard in which arts and artists are held.

But despite this respect and regard it is a precarious career with little or no security, no legal status, and no effective regulation.

4.
4.

The statistics contained in the “Speak Up: A Call For Change” report from the Irish Theatre Institute are chilling and they reflect the ‘failings and bad practices’ mentioned earlier which have existed for years.

Failings and bad practices which were allowed and still allowed to happen due to a lack of regulation and lack of accountability.
It is likely that the majority or workers in music & entertainment are deemed to be or seen to be self- employed (bogus self-employment is rife in the sector) and therefore do not have the same protection or accountability to employment legislation that exists.

5.

MEAI can only guess at the employment status because no-one really knows - in fact over the past two years we have learned that no one really knows how many people work in the arts.
Estimates can be as high as 55,000 and as low as 702 for music & entertainment and approx 1600 for the arts in general.

MEAI has previously requested a full census of the sector.

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This lack of regulation and lack of accountability, which has led to those chilling statistic, is a failure of the State and its bodies.

It is of course also a failure of the industry to not speak up and not demand change, but the industry cannot create the legislation necessary to protect workers.
Self-regulation does not work and the ITI report proves this.

It is time for legislation and regulation to protect workers, the sector, and ensure a sustainable, renewable and professional sector and career for workers and the public.

Speak Up: A Call for Change Report and subsequent Joint Committee Hearings 7.

MEAI acknowledges and pays tribute to the work the Irish Theatre Institute has done in compiling their report in October 2021 and for highlighting and bringing this issue to national debate.
We also recognise the continuing, invaluable work and advocacy from groups such as FairPlé, Mise Fosta and Safe Arts of Ireland who have all contributed so much to this Joint committee previously.

8.

These groups have been instrumental in highlighting these issues and MEAI supports their call for change in correcting the problems.

The particular areas that these groups have highlighted have been done so comprehensively and MEAI recognises their expertise and knowledge in representing those issues.
Therefore we would like to raise some other areas that need addressing which contribute to a safe and respectful working environment in the arts.

We raise these issues not to detract from previously highlighted issues, but to present the true scale of the problems being experienced by workers.

9.

As was mentioned previously in paragraph 4 bogus self-employment is common in the music & entertainment sector.
A worker who is misclassified as self-employed does not enjoy the protections offered to an employee and does therefore not receive sick pay, holiday pay, proper terms and conditions, job security and all of the other benefits employees are entitled to under legislation.

Incidents where individuals have been sacked with instant effect and without any valid reason happen too often.

10.
10.

Workers are often underpaid or do not have the bargaining power to negotiate better pay or conditions because of the fear of losing work and income.

Workers often sacrifice those rights in order to have regular work, which can be taken from them at any moment by the whim of their employer.

This precarity is well known but still remains.


Even after the past two years, workers in false self-employed positions are being paid the same rate they were pre-Covid, despite the fact their costs have increased significantly.

They 3 of  6  cannot negotiate and they are in a position of ‘take it or leave it.’ It must be pointed out that some state funded organisations engage in bogus self-employment and are undermining the state and the rights of the worker also.

11.
11.

Previous governments promised to legislate for bogus self-employment but this did not happen.

In fact, employment legislation which doesn’t recognise the unique nature of working conditions in this sector could be detrimental to the sector.

12.

Performers’ rights which are protected under the Copyright Act 2000 and also the Performers’ Protection Act 1968 are frequently ignored and/or are not upheld in accordance with both Acts.
Moral Rights which are also legislated for in the Copyright Act 2000 are also frequently ignored.

13.

Similar to the bogus self-employment issue, a performer shies away from defending their legal rights in the fear they will lose the work or future work.

The employer/contractor knows this and again the performer is in a take it or leave it situation.
A recording sold or broadcast without the consent of a performer is deemed to be an illicit recording and is a punishable offence by either a fine or imprisonment.

However, since performers are in fear of losing future work, or because they can’t afford to pursue the case in courts, this is a crime which is allowed to happen every day.
This is an issue which already has legislation in place to protect performers, and is a punishable offence and still workers’ rights are being failed even with legislation in place.

14.

It must also be pointed out that some state funded organisations do not always fully comply with performers’ rights under the Copyright Act 2000.

15.

The Music & Entertainment Association of Ireland has recently proposed the idea of a professional performers’ licence for the music & entertainment industry.
This may seem like a bold move but it would be an elegant solution which would result in better compliance throughout the sector, funded and non-funded.

Policies and Codes of Conduct on a voluntary subscription basis are commendable but when there is a breach will a consequence exist?

It’s been already pointed out that Performers’ rights which are protected by legislation are breached without consequence.

16.
16.

If we want to be serious about the protection of workers in music & entertainment and the wider arts then we must regulate and legislate and not procrastinate any further.

4 of  6  Other sectors and industries have been regulated in recent decades.

Workers in those industries work within regulations and if they are breached then there are consequences and repercussions.

17.

The introduction of a licence in order to run a commercial business in the entertainment sector already exists in France.
The “Live Performance Entrepreneur Licence” was established to; • protect the artist and other live performance employees by ensuring compliance with labor law and their social rights; • ensure compliance with the rules relating to the remuneration of authors; • guarantee the sustainable development of the performing arts economic sector; • create conditions conducive to artistic creation.
https://www.culture.gouv.fr/Thematiques/Theatre-spectacles/Pour-les-professionnels/ Plateforme-des-entrepreneurs-de-spectacles-vivants-PLATESV#trois 18.

France has long been seen as the world leader and paragon in recognising and protecting artists and arts workers.

Their Intermittent du Spectacle is a payment to artists and arts workers during lean periods of work but which is based on certain targets being met.
The Live Performance Entrepreneur Licence can also be temporarily or permanently suspended if a holder is in breach of labor law, social law, intellectual property law and health and safety law.

19.

France also has very detailed and comprehensive employment agreements in place for the music & entertainment sector and the arts which sets out minimum terms, conditions and payment which can be expected by every worker in the public and private sector.

20.
20.

With the many problems that exist in this sector it is difficult to argue against regulation.

The amount of regulation that needs to be introduced could be difficult to agree on.

However, MEAI believes that licensing would introduce a basic but necessary foundation upon which other regulations and agreements could be built.
Licensing could also create a scenario where further regulation might not be necessary as it would introduce the consequence of licence removal if the holder was in breach of the existing laws of the State.

The French system of licensing does not apply to individual performers and crew, 5 of  6  but MEAI recommends that this would be the case in Ireland.

Accountability should apply to everyone involved in the industry.

21.
21.

There are also other benefits and reasons for introducing licensing but the reasons we are outlining here are relevant to the subject at hand.

We have also included in our correspondence, separately from this submission, a draft proposal we have created on licensing.

We would like to point out that it is a first draft and is a fluid document which will no doubt change over time, but it is a starting point for discussion.

22.
22.

A safe and respectful working environment in the arts should exist for all and that needs to happen imminently.

Workplaces and spaces in other industries have all been afforded regulation and legislation which protects workers and ensures a safe and respectful environment.

This should be a priority for Government to give artists and arts workers that same statutory right that applies to other workers.

23.
23.

The pandemic proved how much people needed music & entertainment in our lives, especially live performances.

It showed us how much we value people; our friends and family from whom we had to distance and had to learn to socialise through windows or online.

Music, entertainment and art is created by people; if we don’t value the people who create it then we won’t have it anymore.
It’s all very well for our leaders to say they value the arts, but without valuing the people that create it, then it is a hollow recognition.

It is time to legislate and regulate, not procrastinate.

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