The Greens election pledge to deliver an Artists Wage

The Greens election pledge to deliver an Artists Wage
Image: Johann

Australian Greens Spokesperson for the Arts Senator Sarah Hanson-Young joined NSW senate candidate David Shoebridge at the TAP Gallery in Surry Hills yesterday to announce an artists funding pilot program called The Artists Wage.

The creative funding initiative will provide 10,000 established or emerging artists and arts workers with the ability to be free to create while they are paid $772.60 per week for one year.

Senator Hanson-Young said it’s critical that we don’t lose a generation of creatives due to the pandemic.

“Ensuring artists receive a living wage will bring stability to a sector that has been left behind by the Morrison Government. The arts are a core part of Australian culture and contribute so much to our economy. We must do everything we can to make sure our artists can continue creating.”

The Artists Wage program is part of a broader election campaign & policy by the Greens which they believe will  help revive the creative sector.

“The arts sector contributes around $15 billion annually to our GDP, that’s about the same contribution to the economy as the sport sector but it provides about 70,000 more jobs,” NSW Senate candidate David Shoebridge said. “Almost 200 000 people work in the arts, that’s four times the number of jobs of the coal mining industry… Imagine a pub without music, galleries without artwork, cinemas without films, bookstores without fiction.”

All 10,000 artists receiving the wage will be subject to a standard national criteria and receive one year of the taxable income.

The policy will cost $277.5 million. An open and transparent selection process will be available for councils in early 2023 to bid to be nominated as an Artists Council.

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