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Here is the summary of the debate - which was informative, challenging, provocative and entertaining! Comments on the proposed ways forward, or any of the points raised are welcome.<P><BR>Deborah Bull (dancer, writer and broadcaster). Chair for the debate. Deborah described the wide-ranging importance of the issue, and this opportunity to think differently about it.<P>Evan Davies (Economics Editor, BBC), offered three economic causes of low pay:<BR> Supply - is robust and healthy because the job provides rewards other than money. The fact that you want to do the job can be a real disadvantage in the labour market. <BR> Demand - There is not enough money in the profession to pay adequately. Staff shortages would mean more money to pay the rest, but low salaries will arrange that - people will leave the profession, just as people have left nursing.<BR> Distribution - there is growing inequality in pay between and within professions, with a few being very highly paid and most receiving very little. This is unlikely to be the case in dance.<BR>The solution has to lie in increasing revenues. Dance is cool, there is a basic appreciation of the profession and there is money available. It may need dance to tap into outputs other than the traditional performance. <P>Gerard Lemos (social researcher, partner Lemos and Crane), began by looking at changing definitions of work. Dance is physically taxing, poorly remunerated and reliant on public subsidy because of high overheads. We need to increase arts funding - the benefits of quite small increases are enormous. The arts impact on the national mood, but they cannot be defined as a process to improve education and promote social inclusion.<P>The arts funding system promotes financial adolescence: if you ever actually make any money you're taxed at 100%. Other streams of government funding need to be explored, as well as opportunities in the corporate and commercial sector. Information on the internet about sources and how to tap into them would help. A range of funders would also encourage greater assertiveness with the arts funding system. Artists act as witnesses to social change. Proper remuneration will need to role of 'witness' to be turned into 'work'.<P>Emma Gladstone (Producer and programmer for The Place and freelance), had spoken to a number of dance artists. On average, their maximum income from all sources was £14,000, including those at the top of the independent dance profession. The positive attributes include the love of dancing, the power to move audiences and social relationships with fellow dancers. Minor benefits include earning so little that you don't need to worry about savings accounts, ISAs, or mortgage rates, getting the car serviced or the dishwasher fixed. The initiative, courage, optimism and self-reliance needed are invaluable ‘transferable skills’. <P>It is a cumulative sacrifice. Years without pension payments mount up, and for many women it is a stark financial choice between dancing and having a family. There is no recognition of experience in pay levels, beyond the few large-scale companies. Undoubtedly, the longer you stay the more you pay.<P>Talent and experience is being lost, and the social and cultural range of people entering and staying in the profession is restricted. Dance is a volatile, ever changing medium that reflects the age in which we live. We need all sorts of people to give an honest reflection.<P>Emma made a number of practical suggestions for ways forward. Some of these were developed in discussion and the key points are summarised below.<P>Ways forward<BR>We need to work together to achieve two main objectives: to raise the minimum acceptable level of pay and to bring more money into the profession. Specifically we should:<P> Cost the 'dance deficit', which is probably not as great as funders fear. Quantifying the extent of the problem, and considering the relative priority we should give to salaries over, say, the number of new productions, could offer a way forward.<P> Lobby funders, boards and managers to stop using minimum rates as maximums, to reward experience and excellence, to encourage holiday pay and pension contributions.<P> Develop guidance on rates for freelance people, based on those established by the Year of the Artist. Raise pay rates in a planned and managed way over time.<P> Change attitudes that allow and promote exploitation. Break the cycle that perpetuates low expectation. Encourage dancers to be more assertive, and change our interaction with funders and employers.<P> Work to promote artist-friendly changes to the social security system. These would be beneficial to all freelance workers. Examples would include flexibility to encourage part-time and occasional employment without loss of disproportionate benefits, and possibly special artist status as in Belgium.<P> Tap into different dance outputs to maximise revenues. Increase the possibility of choice for all those working in dance - to compromise a little or remain pure and poor.<P> Find ways of translating the essential attributes of dance for a wider range of customers. Examples might include taking dance to where people are rather than expecting them to come to us. <P> Develop resources to encourage greater use of other government funding and commercial sources.<P> Consider issues of distribution and the sharing of resources. Better funded organisations may be able to diversify their income sources, but don't feel the need to do so.<P> Encourage increased political awareness among students and dancers. <P> Increase enthusiasm for dance across society generally. <P>For the full report, visit <A HREF="http://www.danceuk.org" TARGET=_blank>www.danceuk.org</A> <BR>
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Jeanette
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