All you creative types out there – including freelancers and umbrella company contractors – will be glad to know that you now have your own trade industry body.
What’s this, you say? You didn’t know there was one in the works for the UK creative sector? Well you obviously weren’t one of the 200 innovators involved in forging the new Creative Industries Federation, yet another industry body to represent the interests of a particular trade. This time around, it’s all about members of what the new federation is calling the “creative community” in the UK; the new body says it will give the entire sector a “single and independent” voice for those who feel that they’re not represented enough at the bargaining table. You know, like not being invited to the inaugural meeting of of the trade industry body supposedly representing you. Or even knowing that one was being formed.
Regardless, the new organisation is here! Aren’t you just chuffed to bits? It’s supposed to look out for the interests of professional creative types like design houses and employees, but the new group also paid lip service to the self-employed too, obviously wanting to include them in the fold. The federation says that it’s welcoming every sector of the creative industries, including but not limited to digital media, music, design and performing arts – in other words, all those people that you couldn’t stand back in uni who thought they would end up rich and famous artists and musicians but now just hang about Charing Cross begging for a few quid whilst playing their out-of-tune guitar or promising “humourous” caricature sketches to tourists.
But it’s not like that now! Oh, no – most of those blokes likely won’t even be allowed in, judging by the newest members of the federation. Sure, it says that it wants to see self-employed Brits and small business owners joining up, but right now it has members like the BFI, News UK, UK Music, Facebook, Virgin Media, the BBC and Google. I’m sure that Mark Zuckerberg, Sergey Brin and Sir Richard Branson will all be happy to make some room at the table for you when it comes to representing your interests, right?
Bollocks, I say. If I wanted to be left out of an incredibly important community that says it has my best interests at heart I would just vote.
