New survey reveals the extent of unpaid work in the arts

First published on Mon, January 21, 2013.

IdeasTap was founded in 2008 to help young creatives find work during the recession. The organisation conducts an annual survey to measure how budget and funding cuts, rising youth unemployment levels and the increasing numbers of arts graduates have impacted on the job prospects of young people hoping to work in the arts.

The latest survey focuses in particular on the prevalence of unpaid work in an increasingly crowded and competitive job market.

Key Findings:

• Of the 2,167 members who responded, 91% said they had worked for free at some point in their career.

• Almost three-quarters indicated that they would be prepared to work for free again in the future.

• Only 28% indicated that working for free had led directly to paid work.

• 58% supplemented their income from creative work with work outside of the creative industries.

A breakdown of the figures as well as further debate surrounding the contentious issue of pay in the arts can be found on the IdeasTap website.

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