'Swift Action Is Needed Now': JobKeeper Arts & Entertainment Sector Amendments Snubbed

Despite attempts at amendments by both Labor in the House Of Representatives and The Greens in the Senate to support the arts and entertainment industry, the $130 billion JobKeeper package was passed by Parliament without changes.

After the Bill was passed through the House Of Representatives, the last shot in Parliament was amendments proposed by Greens Spokesperson for the Arts, Media & Communication, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, and moved by Senator Peter Whish-Wilson in the Senate.

Wording in here had references specific to the arts and entertainment sector such as that the Senate "is of the opinion that the arts, entertainment, creative and events industries, and hospitality and tourism industries have been severely hit by this crisis and are not getting adequate support from this package".

It also called on the Treasurer to include categories of businesses and workers that are able to access JobKeeper including "freelancer performers, content creators, and crew who are engaged as direct employees on short term contracts on a project by project basis but are not registered as a business".

The Government and Pauline Hanson's One Nation however voted them down.

But despite these amendments not getting through Parliament, there is a sliver of hope for the industry still - the unlikely support of the Treasurer.

“The Morrison Government has so far failed to save the multi-billion dollar arts and entertainment sector from collapse and swift action is needed now before it’s too late," Hanson-Young said.

"The fact remains the Treasurer does have the power under the legislation to allow workers in the arts, entertainment and events industries to access the JobKeeper program and he should act to do that now.

"The longer the Treasurer delays exercising his discretion, the more jobs are lost and the harder the recovery when this crisis is over."

Hanson-Young continued, "Even the Minister responsible for the portfolio has only been able to find $27m to go towards the sector, and only today after weeks of suffering and when the industry has been screaming out for a tailored package in the vicinity of $1billion.

“The Greens have been backing the industry’s call for a specific and tailored package of $1 billion. The Government has stepped in to support other sectors of the economy and they need to do the same here.

"Once again the Morrison Government is failing the arts, yet it could turn this around with the stroke of a pen today. I urge the Treasurer to do the right thing and ensure no worker is left behind in this crisis."

Even though the Federal Government did give the music industry some support, with Support Act receiving $10 million of the aforementioned $27 million in funding in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, it is obviously nowhere near enough.

The latest tally from I Lost My Gig Australia, set up in the wake of restrictions on public gatherings to tally lost income due to the cancellation and postponement of concerts, conferences, events and festivals, stands at $330 million at the time of writing. 

That's on top of the live performance industry being valued at billions, according to a statement issued by Live Performance Australia Chief Executive Evelyn Richardson, who has repeatedly called for more support from the Government since the coronavirus crisis caused many events to be cancelled.

“Our industry will need much, much more in the form of direct assistance from all levels of government if we are to have a live performance industry of any scale following the pandemic crisis,” Ms Richardson said.

“Restrictions on public gatherings were important to slow the spread of the virus, but they stopped our industry dead in its tracks.”

Like Senator Hanson-Young, Ms Richardson has pointed out that although the $27 million from the was helpful, more was needed to get the industry through the pandemic.

“Governments still haven’t come to grips with the scale of the devastation that has been wreaked across our world class $4 billion live performance industry. We were the first impacted and will be the last to come out. We stand ready to work with government now and during the recovery. Additional targeted measures are urgently required and a ‘Bounce back’ plan is going to be vital.

“Much more must be done, and time is running out,” Ms Richardson said.

It comes after Shadow Minister for the Arts Tony Burke delivered an impassioned speech in Parliament on Thursday, when pushing for the arts and entertainment sector to be included in the Federal Government's wage subsidy scheme.

"We've been saying from day one ever since the rule came in, restricting gatherings of more than 500 people, that this sector was the first to be shut down and will be one of the last to get back on its feet," Burke said.