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UNI MEI Global Union calls for more for social justice in the creative industries and recognition of creators’ rights on World Day of Intellectual Property



The economic, social and intellectual property rights of creators and a sustainable growth of the creative industries face a series of challenges that need to be addressed by legislative and policy measures nationally and internationally.



Freelance creators are often denied freedom of association and collective bargaining by either employers’ pressure or governments’ policies or both. Governments need to grant and enforce freedom of association including collective bargaining rights for all creators and other workers in the media and entertainment regardless of their employment status. In many countries the practice of buy-out-contracts denies creators and other rights holders a fair share in the success of the creative content they create.



To build a fair and just global digital economy, creators need to be rewarded in a fair manner and for each use of their works. Where unfair contractual relations persist resulting from of abuse of power by employers, legislation needs to be introduced that obliges employers to negotiate agreements on intellectual property remuneration. Buy out contracts are to be forbidden as they constitute an abuse of the freedom of contract principle.



Recognition of intellectual property rights, as the fundament and pillars for creative expressions, growth and employment in the global digital economy, is the basis for a regulatory environment that encourages investment in new creative content. Protection of creative content against counterfeiting and piracy is a condition for a robust digital global economy in which creative expressions can flourish artistically and economically.