January 2021 / Gig Worker Research
Arts Workers in California
Creating a more inclusive social contract to meet arts workers’ and other independent contractors’ needs
Jenny R. Yang, Amanda Briggs, Jessica Shakesprere, Natalie Spievack, Shayne Spaulding, Steven Brown
The Urban Institute is a nonprofit research organization that provides data and evidence to help advance upward mobility and equity. They are a trusted source for changemakers who seek to strengthen decision making, create inclusive economic growth, and improve the well-being of families and communities. For more than 50 years, Urban has delivered facts that inspire solutions—and this remains its charge today.
This report outlines the working arrangements of California’s arts workers and sheds new light on the challenges and issues they face, particularly when working as independent contractors.
The Center for Cultural Innovation, with support from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, commissioned the Arts Workers in California report to help arts advocates, labor advocates, and policy makers create more inclusive systems that expand protections and benefits for all types of workers.
The report outlines the working arrangements of California’s arts workers and sheds new light on the challenges and issues they face, particularly when working as independent contractors. It also identifies policy shifts to update systems, for those in California or nationally, that could be more inclusive of artists and those who similarly operate outside the traditional bounds of employment. Such protections include collective bargaining power for all types of workers, access to health insurance, family leave, anti-discrimination, and savings toward retirement.
In many ways, this report is the founding document that underpins Sol Center’s work. It’s worth a read!
