Various countries are developing codes of fair practice, recommendations on compensation, rules for the provision of public support, and practical tools for artists, cultural workers, and organizations.
In cooperation with the Swedish Arts Grants Committee (Konstnärsnämnden), we present a selection of international initiatives that may also serve as inspiration for the Czech cultural sector.
What do international approaches have in common?
While individual countries choose different tools, four approaches in particular recur:
International experience shows that fair practices do not have to rely on a single tool. Most often, they arise from a combination of clearly formulated principles, awareness, industry standards, responsible public funding, and practical support for the people and organizations tasked with implementing them in everyday practice.
Australia
Creative Workplaces promotes fair, safe, and respectful workplaces in the arts and culture sector. It offers practical information and tools related to contracts and compensation, self-employment, labor relations, workplace safety, discrimination, harassment, and unpaid invoices. It is intended for individuals, employers, and cultural organizations.
Belgium
The Belgian initiative Juist is Juist (“What’s Right Is Right”) establishes principles for fair collaboration in the arts sector across all artistic disciplines. In addition to these core principles, it also offers practical tools—such as guides on negotiation, contracts, exhibitions, and residencies.
The Irish Arts Council has developed the “Paying the Artist” policy, which aims to promote fair and transparent compensation and contractual terms for artists. These principles are also reflected in the requirements and recommendations related to public funding for artistic projects.
Finland has a program aimed at improving working conditions for artists. It supports job opportunities, fair compensation, professional networks, and well-being at work, and offers assistance with, for example, pricing, sales, and commissioning of artistic work.
Development Programme for the Working Conditions of Artists
In Luxembourg, the Charter of Ethics for Organizations in the Cultural Sector was developed in collaboration with the cultural sector. The charter sets out rules and recommendations for cultural organizations and applies not only to their relationships with artists, but also with employees, audiences, suppliers, and partners. Its core values include professionalism, respect, fair compensation, integrity, equal opportunity, cultural diversity, transparency, and environmental responsibility.
Charter of Ethics for Organisations in the Cultural Sector
Arts Council Malta develops measures related to the status of artists and the working conditions of people in the cultural and creative sectors. Practical materials, tools, and templates designed for artists and cultural professionals are also available.
Arts Council Malta – Resources and Toolkits
The Dutch Fair Practice Code is one of the best-known European examples of a systematic approach to fair working conditions in the cultural sector. It sets forth principles for fair collaboration among artists, cultural workers, organizations, and public institutions. Adherence to the principles of fair practice is also reflected in the system of public funding for culture. Alongside it is the Governance Code Culture, which focuses on the responsible and transparent management of cultural organizations.
fairPACCT: Guidelines for fair payment in the creative sector
The German Commission for UNESCO participates in the international Fair Culture initiative, which strives for fairer working conditions for artists, creative professionals, and others working in the cultural sector.
One of its main tools is the Fair Culture Charter, which sets out common principles for fair treatment and dignified conditions in the cultural and creative sectors in an international context.
Creative New Zealand has developed a remuneration policy for artists and other arts professionals. Its goal is to support sustainable artistic careers and to promote the principle that artistic work is professional work that should be appropriately compensated.
Remuneration Policy for Artists and Arts Practitioners
The Austrian Ministry of Culture, together with professional organizations and the federal states, is developing the “Fairness and Fair Pay” initiative. It focuses on fair working conditions and appropriate compensation in the arts and culture and links dialogue with the cultural sector to concrete measures at the level of cultural policy and funding.
Fairness and Fair Pay in Austria
Creative Scotland links the issue of fair work to public funding for culture. For example, it offers “Rates of Pay Guidance,” which compiles industry standards, union rates, and recommendations from professional organizations. Practical resources for employers and freelancers, as well as guidelines for fair hiring, are also available. For certain forms of public funding, applicants must explain the standards they use to determine the compensation for people involved in the project.
Arts Council of Northern Ireland publishes recommended rates for artists’ compensation, designed to help organizations and applicants for public funding create budgets based on appropriate valuation of artistic work.
Swedish Arts Grants Committee (Konstnärsnämnden) is a Swedish government agency dedicated to supporting professional artists and improving their economic and social conditions. In addition to grant support and international programs, it also addresses working conditions in the cultural sector, compensation, contractual relationships, social security, and other issues related to sustainable artistic careers.