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Arts Pay 2025, produced by Arts Professional and Baker Richards, drew on the experiences of over 1,200 arts workers across the UK. It found a sector sustained by commitment but undermined by systemic inequity: 67% have done unpaid work throughout their careers. 70% of full-time workers regularly exceed their contracted hours. Only 16% understand their career progression path. And when asked what would make them stay, the top answer was simple – fair pay.
But the report also revealed something else: a workforce that already knows what needs to change. Five clear transformation areas emerged – from economic restructuring and democratic culture to accessibility, community accountability, and work-life integration.
The structural pressures shaping the arts workforce aren’t unique to culture. They’re part of a wider crisis in public infrastructure, where decades of deferred investment have displaced costs onto the people who can least refuse them – workers, freelancers, and the communities they serve.
This 90-minute panel brings together six leaders who are already working to change how the sector operates. They’ll respond to the Arts Pay findings and share what they’re implementing, experimenting with, and wrestling with – including the messy, unfinished parts.
When is it: Thursday 19th March 10.30am-12pm
How much is it: It is free to join
Who should attend: Arts workers, freelancers, organisational leaders, HR and people managers, funders, policymakers, and anyone who read the Arts Pay 2025 report and thought “so what do we actually do about this?” |
