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Digitalisation and globalisation are profoundly changing the entertainment industry across the world in many ways. During last week’s meeting of the UNI MEI Executive Committee in Edinburgh, union leaders focussed on the consequences for job opportunities, remuneration and conditions against the background of deregulation, a surge in outsourcing and the rise of freelance including self-employment in a consolidating industry. Whereas economic, social and regulatory uncertainty currently determine the working environment, trade unions are working towards sustainable growth and quality jobs in the future world of work.

Among the many issues related to the future of work, the central single common challenge for workers and trade unions in the media and entertainment is the fragmentation of labour relations. As a result, workers face new barriers to freedom of association. Many workers are denied access to a union, because employer actively undermine unionization efforts of their workers. Further, authorities proscribe unionization and/or collective bargaining of freelance, in particular self-employed workers. UNI MEI is working very closely with its sister organization of actors, musicians and journalists to empower workers and unions in their fight for freedom of association within the framework of the ILO and wants to continue this cooperation.  

Concluding the discussion, UNI MEI President and BECTU General Secretary, Gerry Morrissey stressed that every worker, whatever her or is legal status is, deserves the support of a union and should enjoy the rights of collective bargaining and social protection. Morrissey said “UNI MEI member unions are reaching out to all workers. Whatever employers say, whatever the secondary law says, freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining are universal human rights and enshrined in the ILO conventions. Our common endeavor is to enforce these rights for all entertainment workers nationally, regionally, globally in the companies and across the sector.”

Addressing the Committee, UNI Deputy General Secretary Christy Hoffman said “a worker is a worker, is a worker, is a worker !” stressing UNI Global Union’s resolution is to fight for social justice of all workers in the gig economy and to give unions a strong global voice. UNI’s focus on growing union power is translated in concrete action through the global organising fund and campaigns, which support trade union organising and capacity building. In the MEI sector, successful projects are currently implemented in Colombia, West Africa and Malaysia as well as in the Americas and Europe targeting national and multinational companies. UNI’s push for core labour rights in multinational companies by negotiating global framework agreements is a powerful tool of turning international solidarity in concrete trade union cooperation.

Looking forward, the UNI MEI leadership adopted its priorities for action in 2017 and beyond. UNI’s Breaking Through Agenda and in particular its organising and capacity building objectives remain priorities of the work globally and in the regions. UNI MEI committed to advocate for regulatory approaches that put those who create and those who help to bring works to life at the centre of a holistic industrial policy to build a culturally diverse digital economy in a global marketplace. Stepping-up cooperation across borders and regions to work together through UNI towards sustainable and dignified conditions and for the inclusion of workers with atypical or new type of employment relationships in collective bargaining and social protection. This agenda acknowledges that in the global digital economy, coordination among unions and guilds at national, regional and global level grows more important to bring about change. This need for cooperation concerns many different areas such as issues related to common employers, supranational or intergovernmental coordination of regulatory approaches.

Download her UNI MEI’s Action Plan 2020: