EKG line
Working Conditions and Inequalities in the Cultural Industries
WEEK 10

Red bar
Work in the Cultural Industries
▪What can one expect
▪Insecure, irregular, unequal
▪High risk, low $ return
▪Trying to “make it”
▪Internships as the norm
▪Permanent oversupply of artistic/creative/interested labor
▪Social class implications of the internship
▪Self-exploitation/”entrepreneurial”
▪
▪Why do it?
▪Labor of Love – a calling
▪Love of the challenge/risk (naive arrogance?)
▪Work is more than the pay (psychological rewards/better quality of life)
▪Flashing Brightly, Keep the Lights On or Burn Out to Fade Away.

Red bar
Inequality
▪Class
▪Networks, Connections, & the Composition of the Cultural Industries
▪Gender
▪Occupational Designations
▪Glass Ceilings and Remuneration Disparities
▪Ethnicity
▪Underrepresentation
▪

Red bar
Terms and Conditions of Cultural Work
▪Unskilled Workers
▪On the periphery
▪Technical Workers
▪Outsourcing
▪Unions
▪Creative Managers
▪Entrepreneurs
▪Symbol Creators
▪For the stories you can tell
▪How the deal goes down
▪Contracts and greater modes of exploitation – the 360* contract
▪“Middlemen” in developing creative work

Red bar
Activism and Policy Efforts towards Reform
▪Work in the cultural industries is characterized by particularly high levels of job insecurity,
freelancing and risk, with lots of project-based work, a high reliance on social networks that
often reinforce class, gender and ethnic hierarchies, and irregular and often asocial work
opportunities/hours
▪Livelihood Security
▪Protection/professional standards
▪MeToo/OscarsSoWhite