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Recognising that art and culture are of benefit to all
Artists are frequently first in line when it comes to cuts, but society as a whole is left all the poorer – it’s time they were properly valued, says ZITA HOLBOURNE of Artists Union England
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ARTISTS Union England (AUE) has tabled a motion on the value of arts for this year’s TUC Congress. Creative arts benefit society every day, whether bringing joy, exploring history, promoting social justice, equality, healing and well-being, lifting spirits or providing education and therapy. But all too often these things are taken for granted and that includes the artist workers who create art and deliver art programmes.
Artists experience low pay, unequal pay and as most are freelance, a lack of terms, conditions and benefits that other workers have.
When cuts occur, funding for public arts programmes are the first to disappear, with governments disregarding the benefit to society, communities and the economy, (the creative industries contributed £109 billion to the UK economy in 2021, according to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport) as well as the livelihoods of artists.
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Joint national chair of the Artists Union England ZITA HOLBOURNE argues that artists are systematically neglected when it comes to paying them for their labour
As well as paying tribute to those who arrived in Britain from the Caribbean, African and Asian regions to work and to build a better future for themselves, we must recall the ongoing injustices they and their families still face, says ZITA HOLBOURNE
ZITA HOLBOURNE introduces some of the practical, political and legal challenges to racism that black and brown-led movements are making in Britain and globally
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
