March for the Arts call for arts sector workers to help develop a Freelance Working Agreement

March for the Arts is asking for help from freelance arts sector workers to create a Freelance Working Agreement, to support arts sector workers in the Liverpool City Region. 

Artists, musicians, writers, designers, producers, project managers and other freelance workers in  the arts can apply to be part of the Freelance Working Agreement Committee, who will help create  a document to promote a fair working environment for freelance workers when hired.  

Caitlin Clough, March for the Arts said: 

“What we are trying to do is have one standard document that has been written by the people  who need it and that organisations can check their own processes against in the future”. 

Applications for individual committee places are open until Friday 19th February 2021.  Application forms and further information is available through the March for the Arts website. 

March for the Arts formed in June 2020 and is a collective dedicated to raising awareness of the  importance of the arts. The company hopes that the agreement, which includes the launch of a  free to use Freelance Directory, will standardise working practices for freelance arts workers. 

Over the next few months, March for the Arts will also gather the stories and experiences of the  wider freelance community in order to shape and inform the work of the committee and help  shape the agreement. 

Freelance Arts workers will be encouraged to share their stories and opinions via call outs on  March for the Arts social media pages and website. 

“One of the things we’ll do is a bit of a call out to the Freelance community to say ‘give us an  example of a situation that you’ve been put in as a freelancer, which wasn’t ideal’. It might be something with pay, or hours. The committee can look at those examples and see what should go  in the agreement, to stop those kind of things from happening, said Caitlin. 

“We need everybody to contribute to get a full picture, so that the agreement can be fully  representative”.

To get involved visit https://www.marchforthearts.com/get-involved

For updates, follow their Facebook or Twitter page.

Sarah O’ Hara