Here's our November Newsletter from your Artists Union.

Professional Artists & Makers, please help us by filling out this short survey about the availability off affordable studios in Scotland. 

Please take part in our survey to help us to find out more about Artists and Makers Studio provision in Scotland. It will only take a few minutes. Thank you! 

Here's our April newsletter and we hope you are enjoying the more Spring like weather.

The Scottish Artists Union greatly welcomes the Scottish Government’s reversal of the 10% cut to Creative Scotland’s budget.

Here's our latest newsletter for SAU members; with information about new Learning Events, and links to Practical Support for our Members, and other relevant information.

SAU Executive member Shona Macnaughton recently attended an STUC (Scottish Trade Union Congress) Event 'Abortion Buffer Zone Roundtable'. Here's her report outlining what the event was about.

Here's our latest newsletter for SAU members; with information about our next Learning Events and Intersect Sub Group meeting, amongst other relevant information. All events are free to attend.

Here's our Members Newsletter for June 2022, with updates, links and information for you. 

What's Going On During COP26?? Contributions from the SAU Climate & Sustainability Sub Group Meeting on 27th October 2021

Earlier this year we surveyed our members to find out their attitudes to Climate Change and how it affects them, their working lives and their practice. 

Here's our June Members' Newsletter with information about our next Intersectional Discussion Group, some opportunities and surveys. 

We have used insight from surveys, learning events and workshops to develop three legally robust contract Contract Templates for artists to use in negotiating fairer work agreements. These have been developed in collaboration with Philip Hannay of Cloch Solicitors Limited, a leading expert in intellectual property rights for the creative industries. We have also developed guidelines and short films explaining how to use these templates.

We welcome your feedback with regard to all of these as they continue to be a work in progress. Please contact [email protected]

Here's a copy of our May Newsletter emailed to our members, containing information about our forthcoming Fair Work Contract Template Launch Event and a link to our Climate & Sustainability Survey amongst other important information.

The importance of Fair Work has become an increasingly central issue for artists and makers, and the Scottish Artists Union have been working to develop a series of artist orientated contracts that can be used and adapted to suit most work situations. We hope that by empowering artists to create their own contracts, that they will have the confidence to demand better working conditions as a default.

Join us for an online event on Thursday 3rd June, 11am -12.30pm, to launch our Fair Work Contracts with Philip Hannay, Managing Director of Cloch Solicitors. Philip will talk us through the contracts and be available for a Q & A session. 

Fair Work Contracts Event back to the original event page and Zoom registration.

Scottish Artist Union members can download the Contract templates from the Resources area. Non-members will receive a download link via email.

More information

Fair work is work that offers all individuals an effective voice, opportunity, security, fulfilment and respect. It balances the rights and responsibilities of employers and workers. It generates benefits for individuals, organisations and society.

Scottish Artists Union will campaign to embed Fair Work practices and raise awareness of Fair Work in the visual arts. The new Fair Work Contracts and guidance materials produced in collaboration with Philip Hannay, of Cloch Solicitors Ltd*, will be used to organise & support our membership around challenging unfair work in their professional lives, allowing individual artists the tools to set their own agendas when it comes to contracts.

We will apply the Fair Work framework to the workplace within the collaborative economy and/or precarious employment sectors where workers are unlikely to be covered by collective bargaining and non-traditional models of employment prevail.

• We have used insight from surveys, learning events and workshops to develop new pay guidance rates for artists in Scotland and created three legally robust contract guidelines/templates for artists to use in negotiating fairer work agreements.
• Launch of Fair Work Contracts: 3rd June 2021 – Online workshop for SAU members and also open to members of Scottish Contemporary Arts Network (SCAN) and Engage Scotland. 
• We are working to produce an ‘Artists Fair Work Contract’ badge to promote the contracts.
• We are working with the four main art schools and colleges across Scotland through our graduate membership scheme to raise awareness about fair Work issues, alongside working with the STUC Young Workers project to build union membership.
• We are taking part in relevant sector meetings like the National Partnership Group to promote Fair work practices for visual, applied artist and makers.

This campaign is supported by the Scottish Trades Union Congress Fair Work & Modernisation Fund. This campaign will:

• Raise awareness of unfair work practices for members
• Provide legally robust documentation for members when negotiating contracts and pay
• Deliver a means to protect workers’ rights and support fairer work practice
• Promote fair work practice throughout the sector in Scotland by promoting the Fair Work Contract as a standard for the whole visual arts sector

For more information on the Fair Work Framework and strategy in Scotland go to:

http://www.stuc.org.uk/fair-work-organising/fair-work

https://www.gov.scot/policies/employment-support/fair-work-and-pay/

https://www.fairworkconvention.scot/the-fair-work-framework/# 

For more information please contact our Projects & Campaigns Manager at

[email protected]

* Philip Hannay is Managing Director of Cloch Solicitors Limited, an award-winning boutique Scottish law firm which has a specialism in the exploitation and protection of creative and cultural property. Philip tutors post-graduate students business law and intellectual property law at the Universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde, is Honorary Secretary of Friends of Glasgow School of Art, and is a Member of the Scottish Government Creative Industry Advisory Group. Between 2011 and 2019 Philip was Specialist Business Advisor for the Culture Enterprise Office and delivered shy of 1,000 30-minute pro bono sessions for Scottish creatives. His day to day work includes advising clients over business start-up, intellectual property (e.g. copyright, designs, trade marks, patents, know-how), licensing & franchising, contracting, director compliance, dispute resolution, acquisitions and disposals, and succession legal matters.

Disclaimer 

Scottish Artists Union provides the contract templates on an ‘as is’ illustrative basis only. No representation or warranty is given as to their relevance or suitability. You are advised to consider seeking appropriate advice prior to use or reliance upon any aspect of the templates. The templates are made available for the exclusive purpose of artist fair pay awareness raising. Scottish Artists Union reserves the right to refuse any liability for any loss, damage or dispute arising as a result of the use of these contract templates or any material contained or accompanying them; for the ability or inability to use these contracts, or for any action or decision taken as a result of using these contract templates. Your access of the templates is deemed to acknowledge and accept the foregoing.

Here's our April Newsletter containing information we hope you find useful, and a survey for our Climate & Sustainability Sub group that will inform future campaigning.

This is a Members Newsletter including information about a new Mental Health event from SAU Learning; information about Brexit; information from the report submitted to the Scottish Government based on our workforce survey with SCAN: and a Template Letter for writing to your MSP.

This is our Final Members Update of this difficult year, with info about our closing times for the festive period, our joint Survey with SCAN, a reminder to sign up for new Learning events in January.

We've teamed up with SCAN to gather vital information from the Visual and Applied Arts workforce on Covid-19 and its impacts.