In the past few years, the Philippine creative economy has consistently shown promise, as indicated by the modest increases in the gross domestic product generated by creative and cultural industries. Various government agencies craft policies and programs to support these, with the intent of building up the country’s competitiveness in the field. However, with the present work conditions of our creatives and artists, can it be said that they are truly cared for as part of the enablers and assets of the Philippine economy?
From a recent study I conducted, the present employment and income situation of the Filipino creative workforce shows both promise and cause for concern. On the positive side, the creatives’ high levels of commitment exhibit much potential in the sector. There’s an increasing involvement of the youth and well-educated individuals in the creative industries. These suggest the potential for the new breed of creatives to infuse new ideas and increase the sector’s productivity, and for well-educated creatives to supply the need for various forms of education to the young creatives. The work situation in the creative industry has shown stability with hints of growth since the past year, particularly in terms of job opportunities, supply of skilled manpower, and income.
Unfortunately, the existence of precarious work in the creative industries, characterized by multiple job holding, periods of underemployment or unemployment, short-term contracts, high mobility, part-time employment, and inadequate access to benefits and protection are also present here, much like in other countries.
This issue might already be difficult to confront as the practice has become inherent in the industry. “Boundaried work” in creative MSMEs cannot be helped since they still have apprehensions about investing in full-time employees. With the stricter implementation of the Labor Code regarding contractualization, discussions among industry players should commence soon to fully assess the implications of the law on the entire creative sector, considering the uniqueness of the industry and the systems currently in place.
Creative workers also realize that in order to improve their careers, they should engage in learning experiences, keep up with industry trends, and expand their skill sets and networks. However, due to the current practice of freelance work, the burden of career development lies on each creative worker. Thus, training and education has taken a backseat among the Filipino creatives. For those who have undergone additional training, it appears those related to artistic development and culture/art/heritage pedagogies are already being provided by academic institutions, arts organizations and government agencies (via formal and non-formal education); but training related to managing creative businesses or finances and other technological know-how seem uncommon, leaving most creatives feeling unprepared for work in their chosen industry.
Regularly offering these professional learning courses and mentorships through formal and non-formal modes in higher educational institutions, local governments, other creative-based organizations, and even online, will be of great value, especially to the young creatives across socio-economic classes in different regions. Academe-industry linkages through job placements and internships will also be beneficial to new entrants in the field.
There’s still room for improvement on the benefits and protection for creatives, particularly on creating more awareness for the groundbreaking Artist Welfare Protection and Information Act of 2015. This bill promises to provide creative workers with social security, an artist village, medical/dental assistance, provision of secondary/alternative careers, audience development, culture and art education of the market, employment in local communities, taxation assistance, and possible discounts for those earning below minimum wage.
Passing this bill into a law is critical because our creatives’ and artists’ welfare are not yet given much priority by employers or clients, mainly due to the nature of precarious work. Experts say that compliance grows weaker with the lack of workers’ awareness of these laws, fueled by the labor market’s vulnerability and challenges in policy enforcement such as identifying non-compliant businesses in the multi-job setting.
On the side of creative entrepreneurs, their main concern in terms of stability and protection is their cash flow and liquidity in maintaining their businesses, an area where the government may be of assistance.
These are only a few issues that need be resolved within the creative sector. The creative workforce serves as valuable assets to our communities and the country, with their ingenious vision, spirit, imagination and economic contribution. A collective responsibility from employers, clients, government, audiences, and the creative themselves, is needed to ensure that they are provided a conducive environment where they can peacefully thrive, together with their creations, as lasting reminders of our humanity.
Glorife Samodio is a Doctor of Business Administration student in De La Salle University, where she also serves as a director at the Culture and Arts Office. She recently presented her paper, “Assessing the Needs of the Creative Economy Workforce” at the 2018 International Conference on Cultural Statistics and Creative Economy”. For comments or reactions, she may be reached at glorife_samodio@dlsu.edu.ph. The views expressed above are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official position of DLSU, its faculty and its administrators.