Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ)
On Friday, the Fair Work Commission made a provisional decision to include the arts in the modern award system, by adding the word “arts” to its Amusement, Recreation, Events and Arts Award (AREA) 2020 award.
In the Fair Work context, “awards” are legal documents that contain details on minimum pay rates and conditions of employment (including allowances, overtime and penalty rates). So this decision is a significant milestone for arts workers and their advocates.
What will the addition of this one word mean for arts workers and their rights?
Arts work is precarious and low-paid
The majority of Australians engage in the arts on a daily basis and more than 260,000 people work in the sector.
Yet, there have historically been few legislated minimum standards for professional working artists and arts workers in Australia.
Although everyone who works in Australia is covered by National Employment Standards, not everyone is covered by Fair Work awards, which build on these standards to establish stronger working conditions. Until this recent change, arts workers had been largely excluded from Fair Work’s award coverage.
Arts work is highly precarious. And the largely unregulated nature of the sector results in some employers illegally offering below minimum wage conditions, or using contractual arrangements to exclude workers from basic entitlements.
This can leave workers with limited opportunity for negotiation, or locked out of entitlements such as superannuation.
The push for broader recognition
Arts work has frequently been shoehorned into awards not designed for the sector.
In 2022, the National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) launched the Recognise Artists as Workers campaign, garnering significant industry support. Not long after, the federal government launched its national cultural policy, Revive. This was the first time since 2002 that issues of work in the sector were explicitly addressed by the federal government.
In 2025, NAVA, the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) and the Australian Museums and Galleries Association made submissions to Fair Work Australia to expand the coverage of the previous amusements award.
The proposed amendments to the amusements award will cover workplaces such as public and commercial galleries, museums, artist-run spaces, community arts organisations, arts festivals and touring companies.
It will impact a range of arts workers, from those in front-of-house roles to studio technicians, to arts administrators and marketing staff.
In its statement, NAVA said:
Having the arts named in a federal modern award, with visual arts workers and workplaces more clearly recognised, is a significant achievement. It gives arts workers and employers greater clarity about minimum pay and conditions, and provides a stronger legal safety net for people working across the sector.
The changes are still provisional, however. This means we are yet to find out exactly how they will translate to better pay and conditions for those covered.
Who is excluded?
The amended award may assist employers and employees who have struggled to find appropriate industrial coverage. However, it is important to note that awards set minimum standards. More skilled arts roles involve specialised knowledge and public-facing responsibilities, which award baselines may not adequately compensate.
Importantly, the award will primarily cover arts workers, which means professional artists will generally not be included.
The Fair Work Commission’s discussion paper, which referred to historical research into the sector, highlighted about 80% of practising artists are non-employees. Instead, they operate as contractors, freelancers or sole traders.
The commission has struggled to define the boundary between artists and arts workers or “employees”. Because many artists work in a variety of ways – freelancing, short projects, grants or part-time jobs – and have special intellectual property rights over their work, deciding if they are an “employee” can be complex.
NAVA has expressed concern that “many artists are still working under precarious conditions and earning less than they deserve”. They say they will “continue to advocate for more comprehensive protections and adequate remuneration for artists”.
What to know if you work in the arts
Once the expanded amusements award is finalised, understanding your rights and whether you are covered will be vital. It is important to keep records, check your classification with NAVA, MEAA or the relevant union, and review material provided by Creative Workplaces.
Arts organisations may also need to review and update job descriptions, classifications and payroll systems, and be ready for reclassification or pay-rate implications.
This provisional decision is an important step towards recognising arts work within Australia’s industrial framework, but it is only the beginning of a longer campaign to secure wages and conditions that reflect the arts sector’s valued labour.
Madeleine Thornton-Smith receives a Research Stipend Scholarship for her PhD (Art) studies at RMIT University. She is a member of the National Association for the Visual Arts and presented at the Modern Awards Review 2023–2024 as an independent artist and arts worker in consultation with the Fair Work Commission.
Kim Goodwin is affiliated with Save Our Arts, an organisation aiming to strengthen government support for the arts and arts workers.
Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/08/20/australias-arts-workers-are-finally-being-recognised-by-the-fair-work-commission-what-changes-now/