© Benh LIEU SONG (Flickr) — Louvre courtyard
According to a new UNESCO report, ten million jobs were lost in the creative industries during the coronavirus pandemic — and thousands more are still at risk. The report, which was released today, details an "unprecedented crisis in the cultural sector," which has been exacerbated by a decline in government spending on the arts in the years preceding the pandemic. "While many countries' social security systems were already inadequate for artists, the pandemic has revealed just how vulnerable workers in the cultural and creative sectors are," the report states. The report urged governments to strengthen labor protections for the creative sector, including by establishing a minimum wage for cultural workers and improving freelancers' pension and sick leave plans.
"Even in countries with social security systems specifically designed for freelancers or self-employed individuals (who make up a sizable portion of the workforce in the creative economy), a sizable proportion of such workers was frequently ineligible," UNESCO stated. In what the report refers to as a "fundamental paradox," the cultural sector is one of the world's fastest-growing economies, with global access to creative content only increasing as a result of the shift toward digital art exhibitions. However, it is a particularly vulnerable industry: arts funding is frequently cut by governments or ignored by private investors. Museums and galleries were particularly hard hit by the pandemic, with UNESCO reporting that 90 percent of venues were forced to close for months. By 2020, the global gross value of the creative industry will have decreased by $750 billion, despite several national and local governments' artist relief programs.
© Hugo Schneider - The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) - Entrance, Manhattan, New York City
Additionally, the report recommended that steps be taken to close the income gap between revenue-generating streaming services and creators of digital content. Digitization has become "more central to the creation, production, distribution, and access to cultural expressions" over the last two years. As a result, multinational online companies consolidated their positions, and disparities in internet access became more pronounced," the report stated. "We need to rethink how we create a sustainable and inclusive working environment for cultural and artistic professionals worldwide," Ernesto Ottone, UNESCO's assistant director-general for culture, added.
Meanwhile, cultural workers around the world have demonstrated against coronavirus restrictions that have forced museums and other arts venues to close. In January, the Netherlands reopened several dozen museums and concert halls as salons and gyms in a playful protest against the country's coronavirus protocols. The Dutch Prime Minister lifted the nationwide closure of gyms, hairdressers, and fitness centers, but cultural institutions such as theaters and galleries were required to remain closed for at least another week. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and the Mauritshuis gallery in The Hague, which houses Vermeer's iconic Girl with the Pearl Earring, were among the prestigious venues that took part in the day-long protest.
Tour operators gathered in front of Morocco's tourism ministry in Rabat, the country's capital, to protest strict international travel restrictions. Flights and ferry services into Morocco were suspended in November to assist in slowing the spread of the Omicron variant, wreaking havoc on the country's already struggling tourism industry.
Selena Mattei