Modern Award Review Arts and Culture Discussion Paper 

In January 2023 the Federal Government’s National Cultural Policy, Revive, included an action item to consider modem award coverage and minimum standards for the arts and culture sector. Pillar 3 of Revive recognises the ‘Centrality of the Artist’ and the importance of supporting the artist as worker and celebrating artists as creators.  

‘The Government Recognises that artistic and cultural work is a professional activity and that fair pay and conditions for arts and cultural workers are essential… As part of this package, the Government has announced a Review of Modern Awards. Award coverage and minimum standards in the arts sector will be considered through this process.’ Revive, p53  

In September 2023 the Fair Work Commission launched a review of modern awards in relation to a number of key issues, including award coverage and minimum standards for the arts and culture sector. Information and guidance about the Modern Awards Review process is available on the Fair Work Commission website.  

The Moden Awards Review Arts and Culture Sector Discussion Paper has been specifically prepared by the Fair Work Commission to promote discussion in relation to modern award coverage and minimum standards in the arts and culture sector.

The Discussion Paper includes information about the:  

  • industry profile of the arts and culture sector; 
  • modern award coverage and awards with possible coverage in the arts and culture sector;  
  • potential gaps in award coverage of the arts and culture sector; 
  • changing modern award coverage; and 
  • minimum entitlements in awards. 

The Discussion Paper raises some of the following questions: 

  • Are there particular industries or occupations that should form the focus of the Fair Work Commission’s consideration of the arts and culture sector in this Review? If so, why? 
  • Are there any industries or occupations that should be added to or removed from consideration of the arts and culture sector for the purpose of the Review more broadly? 
  • If advocating for a new award to address coverage gaps in the arts and culture sector, how is it proposed that such an award defines its coverage? For example, would the award be expressed to cover employers or employees in an industry or employees in particular occupations and their employers, or both? 
  • Are there employees working in the arts and culture sector that may be covered by an award that has not been included in the Discussion Paper? 
  • Are there employees performing work of a similar nature to the work performed in the arts and culture sector that are not currently covered by an award but should be? 
  • Are there any other occupations in the arts and culture sector not covered by a modern award? 
  • Are there any industrial contexts in which occupations, such as a painter, are engaged that fall outside current award coverage? 
  • Do parties agree that the Miscellaneous Award may not cover certain workers, such as artistic directors or media producers? The Miscellaneous Award is a “catch-all” award commenced operation on 1 January 2010 and is not confined to a particular industry, however it is limited to employees falling within the award’s classification structure and only includes levels for employees not required to have qualifications; employees who are trade-qualified or equivalent; or — at the highest level — for advance trade qualified or sub-professional employees.  
  • To what extent are workers in the sector who are not currently covered by an award likely to be employees capable of being covered by modern awards? 
  • Do the parties have a view about the potential impact of the Closing Loopholes Bill on the arts and culture sector? 
  • Is digital platform work common within the arts and culture sector? 
  • Are there any relevant occupations that were covered by pre-reform awards that are not currently covered by a modern award? 
  • Are any of the occupations identified as possible gaps in award coverage in this paper, or by the parties, occupations that could not be covered by awards because of section 143(7) of the Miscellaneous Award Act 2020? Section 143(7) prohibits modern awards from covering employees who have not been traditionally covered by awards because of the nature or seniority of their role. 
  • For the occupations identified as gaps in award coverage in the Discussion Paper, or by the parties, which awards could be varied to close the gap? 
  • Are there any other legislative provisions or significant decisions pertinent to the Fair Work Commission’s consideration of the arts and culture sector in this Review? 
  • Are there any responsive views addressing the content in chapter 7 covering minimum entitlements in awards? 

Submissions in response to the Discussion Paper close on Monday 4 December 2023, and can be submitted via [email protected]. The Fair Work Commission has released a document explaining the various Review processes, which includes a submission cover sheet.  

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