• Working conditions of artists

Navigating the Path to Fair Practice. A complete overview of the findings of ECSA's survey on fair practice

This document presents a detailed overview of the results of the European Composer and Songwriter Alliance’s (ECSA) survey on fair practice, which was launched in September 2022. Gathering over 200 responses from all across Europe, the survey shed light on the post-pandemic economic, social, and working conditions of European music creators.

Referring to the 2019 Dutch Fair Practice Code, we decided to approach the notion of fair practice as the protection of a “fair, sustainable and transparent operational management” which guarantees that all stakeholders’ interests are equally acknowledged and considered “with respect, solidarity and trust, in the service of a strong sector that fully utilises and makes profitable the potential and opportunities of creative professionals and artists.”¹ Building upon these principles, we further defined the notion of fair practice based on the core values of Solidarity, Transparency, Sustainability, Diversity, and Trust (as identified in the Dutch Fair Practice Code). This online survey targeted individuals both within and outside the ECSA network and aimed to gather data on a broad spectrum of issues impacting music creators, including fair remuneration, harmful or unfair contractual practices, working and employment conditions, social protection, funding opportunities, and the potential for collective actions and agreements in the music industry. The term “music creators” is used here as an umbrella term that encompasses composers, songwriters, performers, music producers, and conductors.

This companion document constitutes an expansion of the ECSA Report 'Navigating the Path to Fair Practice', which outlined the key findings of the survey and was published in November 2023