UVW Culture and Design Workers Union Meeting #1

Thursday 10 October 2019 7:00PM

If you work in art, graphic design, fashion design, filmmaking, curation, editing or writing or any type of creative and cultural work, including arts administration and technician work, please join us to discuss how we can fight against:

Unfair wages in our sector/s
Illegal unpaid internships
Unpaid overtime
Work-related stress and burnout
Rampant exploitation by institutions and bosses
Precariousness of freelance or temporary work in our sector/s

We are intentionally keeping our definition of creative employment as loose as possible, and recognise that art workers might have multiple jobs.

All are welcome to plan our next steps. Click here for more information and how to join.

The venue is wheelchair accessible. Please let us know if you have specific access requirements or would like to reserve a seat.

Please register your attendance here, so we can have an idea of numbers.

FAQs

WHAT DOES A UNION DO?
A union represents you in a dispute using experienced legal case workers. In the UK, you may be able to receive back-payment of unpaid wages (i.e. if you did an unpaid internship), unpaid sick pay, or unpaid holiday pay for up to 6 years. A union can offer other types of support such as advice, training, and education.

WHAT IS UNITED VOICES OF THE WORLD?
United Voices of the World (UVW) is “a members-led, campaigning trade union of mainly migrant & precarious workers.” Unions like UVW are addressing current changes in employment–including the rise of zero-hours contracts and precarious work–head-on. Working with historically ‘hard to organise’ people, perhaps working alone in geographically dispersed locations, they respond quickly to fight injustices, and are actively shaped by the needs of their membership as they develop. It is an English and Spanish speaking union. It recently became non-hierarchically organised, with members electing to do away with executive roles.

WHY NOW?
As a working group within Evening Class, the event organisers have been having conversations about unhealthy working practices that we observe within the graphic design ‘industry’. Creative work is routinely dissociated from labour, often through employers and clients misunderstanding what constitutes ideation and production. All of which contributes to what we view as worsening conditions. Unionising now offers a much needed opportunity to amplify our shared grievances and articulate cooperative demands.

HOW DO I JOIN THE GROUP?
Join UVW, come to our next meeting, and join our discord online chat (members only).
Membership of the union is £6 to £10 a month depending on income.

WHAT IF I DON’T LIVE IN LONDON OR THE UK?
We can still keep you up to date with our plans when you sign up to our mailing list. We are keen to connect to other individuals and groups organising cultural workers in the UK, including international collaborators, as well as to spread awareness of similar schemes worldwide.