—

having regard to Articles 6, 46, 151, 153, 157, 165, 167 and 225 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

—

having regard to Articles 11, 12, 13, 15, 27, 28, 30 and 31 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,

—

having regard to the European Pillar of Social Rights and its Action Plan,

—

having regard to the UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of the Artist of 27 October 1980, the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions and the Declaration adopted during the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development (MONDIACULT 2022),

—

having regard to the relevant ILO Conventions and Recommendations,

—

having regard to the Εuropean Council’s Stuttgart Declaration of 19 June 1983,

—

having regard to the Rome Declaration of 25 March 2017, endorsed by the leaders of 27 Member States and of the European Council, the European Parliament and the European Commission,

—

having regard to the Rome Declaration of the G20 Ministers of Culture of 30 July 2021,

—

having regard to the Cáceres Declaration (1) adopted at the informal meeting of EU Ministers of Culture on 25-26 September 2023,

—

having regard to the judgment of the Court of Justice of 30 March 2000 in Case C-178/97 (2),

—

having regard to relevant Union legal acts in the area of labour and social policy, such as Directive (EU) 2018/957 amending Directive 96/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 1996 concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services (3), Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the coordination of social security systems (4), Directive 2003/88/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 November 2003 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time (5), Directive (EU) 2019/1152 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on transparent and predictable working conditions in the European Union (6), and Directive (EU) 2022/2041 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on adequate minimum wages in the European Union (7),

—

having regard to relevant Union legal acts in the field of equal treatment, such as Directive 2006/54/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 July 2006 concerning equal treatment for men and women in employment and occupation (8) , which includes social security schemes, Directive 2010/41/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 July 2010 on the application of the principle of equal treatment between men and women engaged in an activity in a self-employed capacity and repealing Council Directive 86/613/EEC (9), Directive (EU) 2023/970 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women through pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms (10) and Directive (EU) 2022/2381 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 November 2022 on improving the gender balance among directors of listed companies and related measures (Women on Boards),

—

having regard to Directive (EU) 2019/1158 on Work life balance for parents and carers,

—

having regard to Directive 2010/13/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 March 2010 on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the provision of audiovisual media services (Audiovisual Media Services Directive) (11),

—

having regard to Directive (EU) 2019/790 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 April 2019 on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market (12) and of Directive (EU) 2019/789 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 April 2019 on the exercise of copyright and related rights applicable to certain online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and retransmissions of television and radio programmes,

—

having regard to Decision (EU) 2017/864 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2017 on a European Year of Cultural Heritage (2018) (13),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 22 May 2018 entitled ‘A New European Agenda for Culture’ (COM(2018)0267),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 22 May 2018 entitled ‘Building a Stronger Europe: the role of youth, education and culture policies’ (COM(2018)0268),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 30 September 2020 entitled ‘Digital Education Action Plan 2021-2027: Resetting education and training for the digital age’ (COM(2020)0624),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 3 December 2020 entitled ‘Europe’s Media in the Digital Decade: An Action Plan to Support Recovery and Transformation’ (COM(2020)0784),

—

having regard to the European Social Partners Framework Agreements on Telework (2002) and Digitalisation (2020),

—

having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/818 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2021 establishing the Creative Europe Programme (2021 to 2027) (14),

—

having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/1057 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 establishing the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1296/2013 (15),

—

having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/241 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 February 2021 establishing the Recovery and Resilience Facility (16),

—

having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/523 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 March 2021 establishing the InvestEU Programme and amending Regulation (EU) 2015/1017 (17),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 4 March 2021 entitled ‘The European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan’ (COM(2021)0102),

—

having regard to the Commission report of 29 June 2022 on the Work Plan for Culture 2019-2022 (COM(2022)0317),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 30 September 2022 entitled ‘Guidelines on the application of Union competition law to collective agreements regarding the working conditions of solo self-employed persons’ (2022/C 374/02),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 25 January 2023 entitled ‘Strengthening social dialogue in the European Union: harnessing its full potential for managing fair transitions’ (COM(2023)0040),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 6 September 2023 entitled ‘Digitalisation in social security coordination: facilitating free movement in the Single Market’ (COM(2023)0501),

—

having regard to Decision (EU) 2023/936 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 on a European Year of Skills (18),

—

having regard to the European Commission’s European Media Industry Outlook, published on 17 May 2023 (SWD(2023)0150),

—

having regard to the European Qualification Framework for lifelong learning,

—

having regard to the EU strategic framework on health and safety at work 2021-2027 and the Parliament Report on a new EU strategic framework on health and safety at work post 2020 (including a better protection of workers from exposure to harmful substances, stress at work and repetitive motion injuries) (2021/2165(INI)),

—

having regard to the Council recommendation of 22 May 2018 on key competences for lifelong learning (2018/C 189/01),

—

having regard to the Council recommendation of 26 November 2018 on promoting automatic mutual recognition of higher education and upper secondary education and training qualifications and the outcomes of learning periods abroad,

—

having regard to the Council recommendation of 8 November 2019 on access to social protection for workers and the self-employed (2019/C 387/01),

—

having regard to the Council conclusions of 18 May 2021 on the recovery, resilience and sustainability of the cultural and creative sectors,

—

having regard to the Council Recommendation of 16 June 2022 on a European approach to micro-credentials for lifelong learning and employability,

—

having regard to the Council Recommendation of 16 June 2022 on individual learning accounts,

—

having regard to the Council Resolution of 7 December 2022 on the EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-2026 (2022/C 466/01),

—

having regard to the Council Recommendation of 30 January 2023 on adequate minimum income ensuring active inclusion,

—

having regard to the Council Recommendation of 12 June 2023 on strengthening social dialogue in the European Union,

—

having regard to its resolutions of 7 June 2007 on the social status of artists (2006/2249(INI)) and of 20 October 2021 on the situation of artists and the cultural recovery in the EU (2020/2261(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 13 December 2016 on a coherent EU policy for cultural and creative industries (19),

—

having regard to its resolutions of 11 December 2018 on the New European Agenda for Culture (2018/2091(INI)) and of 14 December 2022 on the Implementation of the New European Agenda for Culture and the EU Strategy for International Cultural Relations (2022/2047(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 17 September 2020 on the cultural recovery of Europe (2020/2708(RSP)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 19 May 2021 on artificial intelligence in education, culture and the audiovisual sector (2020/2017(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 24 June 2021 on the Commission’s 2020 Rule of Law Report (2021/2025(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 20 October 2021 on Europe’s Media in the Digital Decade: an action plan to support recovery and transformation (2021/2017(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 11 November 2021 on an intellectual property action plan to support the EU’s recovery and resilience (2021/2007(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 11 November 2021 on the European Education Area: a shared holistic approach (2020/2243(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 24 November 2021 on the revision of the Financial Regulation in view of the entry into force of the 2021-2027 multiannual financial framework (2021/2162(INI)) and the BUDG-CONT report, as a mandate confirmed by the plenary on 10 May 2023, on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (recast) (2022/0162(COD)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 25 November 2021 on the introduction of an European Social Security number with a personal labour card (2021/2620(RSP)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 15 December 2022 on upscaling the 2021-2027 multiannual financial framework: a resilient EU budget fit for new challenges (2022/2046(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 15 March 2023 on the European Semester for economic policy coordination: Employment and social priorities for 2023 (2022/2151(INI)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 1 June 2023 on strengthening social dialogue (2023/2536(RSP)),

—

having regard to its resolution of 14 June 2023 with recommendations to the Commission on quality traineeships in the Union (2020/2005(INL),

—

having regard to its resolution of 23 November 2021entitled ‘on EU sports policy: assessment and possible ways forward’ (2021/2058(INI)),

—

having regard to the study conducted for the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Culture and Education by the European Parliamentary Research Service of November 2023, entitled ‘EU framework for the social and professional situation of artists and workers in the cultural and creative sectors - European added value assessment’  (20) (the ‘EPRS EAVA Study’), and the report of May 2021, commissioned by the European Parliament, entitled ‘The Situation of Artists and Cultural Workers and the post-COVID-19 Cultural Recovery in the European Union: Policy Recommendations’  (21) ,

—

having regard to the report by the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) Working Group of Member States’ experts of June 2023 entitled ‘The status and working conditions of artists and cultural and creative professionals’  (22),

—

having regard to the report by the OMC Working Group of Member States’ Experts of 4 June 2021 entitled ‘Towards gender equality in the cultural and creative sectors’,

—

having regard to the Voices of Culture report of June 2021 entitled ‘Status and Working Conditions for Artists, Cultural and Creative Professionals’  (23),

—

having regard to the study commissioned by the Commission entitled ‘Status and working conditions of artists and cultural and creative professionals ’, European Expert Network on Culture and Audiovisual (EENCA) (2020) (24),

—

having regard to UNESCO’s study entitled ‘Culture and working conditions for artists: implementing the 1980 Recommendation concerning the Status of the Artist’ (2019),

—

having regard to Rules 47 and 54 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the joint deliberations of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Culture and Education under Rule 58 of the Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Culture and Education (A9-0304/2023),

A.

whereas the cultural and creative sectors (‘CCS’) play an essential role in ensuring the delivery of culture as a public good and the cultural rights of European citizens; whereas culture, arts, cultural heritage, and cultural diversity are of great value to European society from a cultural, educational, democratic, environmental, social, human rights, economic and innovation point of view and represent strategic sectors for the European integration process, and should therefore be supported by sufficient funding and ambitious policy frameworks, taking into account synergies with other sectoral policies;

B.

whereas artists, authors, performers and all cultural creators are the creative source of our European culture that our societies and democracies are built upon; whereas cultural and creative expressions and works are often the result of the essential contributions of persons working in the cultural and creative sectors (‘CCS professionals’) in different functions, roles and capacities, ranging from creating works to technical and project management support including programming, research and curatorial activities, communication and audience development, among others; whereas the existence of such expressions and works depends, thus, on whether all CCS professionals receive adequate recognition and support;

C.

whereas artistic activities can be pursued as an amateur or as a professional, increasing competition in an already highly competitive environment; whereas the legal distinction between them is not always clearly established and can differ in national legislations and national practices; whereas there is a need to develop comprehensive policies to ensure that CCS professionals can live of their practice;

D.

whereas 7,7 million people were in cultural employment across the Member States in 2022, amounting to 3,8% of total employment (25); whereas the relevant economic impact of the CCS, representing 4,2 % of EU GDP and 1,0 % of all general government expenditure (26), also acts as a sustainable growth enabler in different sectors and for local and regional development;

E.

whereas, regardless of their role or status as a worker or self-employed person, the living and working conditions of CCS professionals can be characterised by precariousness, instability and the intermittent nature of their work, with unpredictable incomes, weaker bargaining power in relations with their contractual counterparts, short-term contracts, weak or no social security coverage, and a lack of access to unemployment support; whereas the extent of social security coverage of CCS professionals varies within and between countries, due to differences in sectors and types of work within the sectors, and may lead to differences in living and working conditions; whereas social and working conditions in the CCS need to be improved drastically, as highlighted by the Rome G20 Leaders Declaration of October 2021 (27);

F.

whereas the CCS are composed mostly of individuals as well as micro, small and medium sized organisations and enterprises, self-managed organisations and cultural cooperatives; whereas more than double the number of CCS professionals is self-employed than in the general population (32 % compared to 14 %) and CCS professionals are often engaged in forms of employment that deviate from traditional working arrangements and are less likely than the average working person to have a permanent job, to be employed, work full time or have one job, often combining employment and self-employment, including solo self-employment, within the CCS and in other sectors such as services or education; whereas having multiple jobs can severely affect work-life balance; whereas CCS professionals tend to have project-based careers and a high degree of mobility;

G.

whereas the absence of a specific employment framework for CCS professionals under national law in some Member States and these atypical working arrangements, often interrupted by or in parallel with significant periods of non-remunerated time spent on artistic research, the creation of works or rehearsing, in combination with irregular incomes, lead to irregular payments and discontinuous contribution periods that severely limit CCS professionals’ contributory capacity and effective access to social protection; whereas, as a consequence, their access to relevant benefits, in particular unemployment benefit regimes, benefit levels during retirement, annual and sick leave, family and care leaves, as well as their access to childcare, is often limited; whereas, even when coverage is available on a voluntary basis, self-employed CCS professionals have a low coverage rate; whereas this situation may be aggravated by the incorrect determination of the employment status of CCS professionals;

H.

whereas career progression and career sustainability in the CCS are often dependent on socio-economic characteristics and conditioned by age, gender, ethnic origin, disability and class; whereas mid-career CCS workers, workers with disabilities, workers from minorities, ethnic groups and from working-class backgrounds may face worse job quality conditions; whereas career progress and sustainability in the cultural and creative sectors are challenging and career prospects tend to worsen with age; whereas specifically a higher rate of self-employment is evident for workers of older age in the CCS, putting them at higher risk of precariousness;

I.

whereas CCS professionals have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has exposed their precarious living and working conditions; whereas UNESCO estimated that globally more than 10 million workers in the CCS lost their jobs in 2020 (28); whereas anti-crisis mechanisms have played a key role during and after the COVID-19 pandemic in tackling the challenges in the CCS; whereas, although the CCS have undergone a significant transition as a result of the pandemic, digitalisation and the green transition, making lifelong learning, reskilling and upskilling essential, the sectors have not fully recovered from losses incurred during the pandemic, with an enduring impact on the livelihoods of the persons working in the sectors; whereas the COVID-19 crisis underlined the fragility of pre-existing organisational structures and working practices, in particular for vulnerable professionals with precarious employment status, such as those working on the basis of atypical or project-based employment contracts;

J.

whereas CCS professionals tend to have low retirement entitlements as a result of the atypical and frequently precarious nature of their work, which can impact the level of contributions or other eligibility criteria required; whereas artists may continue practicing beyond the official retirement age;

K.

whereas a well-functioning sectoral social dialogue, at national and EU level, and high levels of collective bargaining coverage play an essential role in building professional and sustainable sectors by facilitating an inclusive labour market that fosters decent working conditions, including fair and adequate wages; whereas limited levels of collective bargaining coverage in the cultural and creative sectors (29) in several Member States contribute to poor job quality, low wages, unfavourable contracts and limited access to social protection; whereas trade unions face challenges in organising CCS professionals due to intermittent work patterns, changing work places, the combination of professional activities and in view of the higher number of self-employed professionals in the sector; whereas a number of organisations do not participate in collective bargaining, and many occupational groups still remain unrepresented; whereas the new challenges faced by the sectors, such as digitalisation, AI and new skills development, should be reflected in modern and effective collective bargaining systems;

L.

whereas undeclared work undermines human rights and, in particular decent working and living conditions, obstructs sustainable growth oriented policies, creating serious risks for the sustainability of the European social model, and fosters unfair competition; whereas the prevalence of partially or fully undeclared work that excludes professionals from the protection of labour law and social security coverage is an issue of strong concern in the CCS; whereas the European Labour Authority (ELA) plays a crucial role in carrying out concerted and joint inspections in order to improve Member State capabilities for ensuring the protection of persons exercising their right to free movement and for combatting fraud and abuses of a cross-border nature;

M.

whereas the gender pay, pension and care gaps are also present in the CCS; whereas women are in a minority when it comes to holding managerial and leadership positions (30); whereas women on average earn less than their male counterparts in the same occupation (31) and in types of contracts that can severely affect the work-life balance, including through unconventional and irregular working hours, the need to travel for work and intense networking, as well as the lack of care infrastructure; whereas, as a consequence, women often have comparatively shorter careers, especially in the audiovisual sector;

N.

whereas sexual harassment in the cultural and creative sectors is three times higher (32) than in the average workforce; whereas women suffer disproportionally from harassment and abuse, also online, as exemplified by the MeToo movement; whereas this could entail the risk of self-censorship, which negatively impacts the type of artistic expressions women produce, curtails their freedom of expression and their career progression; whereas gender-based violence and harassment in the CCS reinforce gender inequalities (33); whereas such systemic barriers will require an integrated approach for its prevention and elimination; whereas the ILO’s Violence and Harassment Convention (No 190) and Recommendation (No 206) are the first international labour standards to provide a common framework to prevent, remedy and eliminate violence and harassment in the world of work;

O.

whereas some Member States have adopted incentivising measures to encourage companies, on a voluntary basis, to participate in labour market reintegration of victims of gender-based violence and harassment, by granting them a possible reduction of employers' contribution to social security systems when hiring them with an open-ended contract, that could serve as an example of good practice;

P.

whereas CCS professionals from disadvantaged groups, including people from ethnic and geographic minorities or those with different residency status, people with disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds, persons with disabilities and LGBTIQ+ people, as well as women and young people, have less access to artistic and cultural careers and fewer opportunities to develop long-term careers in the sectors, increasing the risk of a lack of a generational replacement in the CCS;

Q.

whereas there is no specific legal framework in a number of Member States for any categories of CCS professionals; whereas a number of Member States are in the process of updating their legal framework in order to protect the rights of CCS professionals by taking into account the specificities of the cultural and creative sectors; whereas several Member States have included in their Recovery and Resilience Plans legislative reforms to improve the working conditions of CCS professionals;

R.

whereas mobility is an important element of professional artistic activity and career development and contributes to increasing income and long-term financial predictability; whereas many artists frequently move between Member States; whereas mobility is important for students and young professionals in the CCS to broaden their education, obtain diversified skills sets and recognise a wider range of attractive career prospects; whereas, on the other hand, artistic mobility entails specific challenges, in particular in relation to social protection and taxation, which require specific measures; whereas the high level of mobility may also be conducive to undeclared work (34); whereas the current funding instruments supporting mobility should be better adapted to the specific features of the sectors; whereas artistic productions frequently involve not only European but also third-country CCS professionals whose mobility can be restricted by difficulties in obtaining medium-term visas;

S.

whereas access to artistic education promotes social inclusion and the fight against inequalities; whereas the Erasmus+ programme has been the Union's most visible success in achieving the objectives of quality and inclusive education; whereas the current lack of automatic mutual recognition of artistic competences and creative skills and qualifications are hampering the cross-border mobility of CCS professionals;

T.

whereas the CCS are undergoing significant changes, which require an assessment of the skills needed in the sectors and the development of policies to address current skills gaps; whereas the 2020 Pact for Skills and the 2023 European Year of Skills have further highlighted the need for integrating skills, especially transversal, soft and digital skills, into educational systems with a view to developing talent and career transition, including through technical and vocational training through large-scale skills partnerships within the wider CCS ecosystem, in cooperation with social partners;

U.

whereas the fast pace of digital transformation, accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) is creating new opportunities and jobs, facilitating new business models and forms of production and diversifying work arrangements, as well as enhancing the access to culture for larger audiences, thus contributing to the dynamism of the sectors and their transformation; whereas this has, however, brought along certain challenges and uncertainties resulting in job losses, the displacement of workers and a loss of control over their work, including challenges related to the authorship and ownership of creations and to diversity; whereas digitalisation has facilitated the delivery of cultural services across borders; whereas this trend has gone hand in hand with the increasing use of abusive and coercive contractual practices by large media platforms, threatening the fair and adequate remuneration and working conditions of European creators;

V.

whereas fair remuneration for the use of their creative work is central to authors’ and composers’ working conditions, as this is the basis of their earnings as professional creators; whereas the collective management organisations and their global system play an important role in enabling creators to be remunerated fairly, including through the negotiation of tariffs with users, and in contributing to the promotion of cultural diversity and expression;

W.

whereas the Stuttgart Declaration reflects a united European vision, whereby leaders expressed their will to work together towards a common destiny and the wish to affirm European identity and to progress towards an ever closer union among its peoples; whereas the Declaration sees the role of culture as an important component to achieve this goal;