Collective Bargaining Benefits Creative Industries: ILO

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is calling for stronger collective bargaining mechanisms to promote fair pay, safety, and social protection in the arts and entertainment sector, which continues to face persistent challenges such as informality and unstable working conditions.

“Collective bargaining allows workers and employers to design solutions that reflect the realities of the sector, whether concerning employment conditions or emerging issues linked to digitalization,” says Frank Hagemann, Director of the Sectoral Policies Department, ILO. He adds that such frameworks can also address the implications of AI and strengthen protection for self-employed artists.

The Achieving Decent Work in the Arts and Entertainment Sector: The Role of Collective Bargaining policy brief examines over 50 agreements across 20 countries, showing how unions and employers can use social dialogue to improve labor standards in creative industries ranging from film and music to theater, broadcasting, and digital media.

The report highlights examples from Germany, Belgium, Senegal, and the United States. In Germany, a 2024 agreement in the film industry shortened workweeks and raised overtime pay. In Belgium, minimum fees were established for freelancers in publicly funded productions. Senegal’s first collective music industry agreement introduced social security coverage, while a US union agreement extended benefits to social media influencers.

The ILO notes that these cases underscore the value of social dialogue in adapting to technological and structural change. While collective bargaining is well established in the European Union and North America, coverage remains fragmented in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, particularly among self-employed and informal workers. The organization urges governments and industry players to strengthen legal frameworks to ensure creative professionals can fully exercise their right to collective negotiation.

The release of this guidance follows other recent ILO initiatives to strengthen data accessibility and labor governance. In October, the organization launched redesigned interactive country profiles on its ILOSTAT platform, providing real-time, continuously updated labor market statistics for all member states. According to Rafael Diez de Medina, Chief Statistician, ILO  the tool enhances evidence-based policymaking by offering visual overviews of employment, wages, informality, and social protection indicators.

Recent ILOSTAT data for Mexico illustrates the ongoing need for such policy coordination. The country’s labor force participation rate stands at 61.1%, with 59.5% of the working population employed, many in informal conditions. The ILO identifies underemployment and uneven social protection coverage as key challenges, alongside gender gaps and youth unemployment. These indicators reinforce the importance of collective approaches to address inequality and improve job quality.

Efforts to promote social economy models are also expanding at the local level. In September, Mexico City’s Ministry of Labor and Employment Promotion announced its Social Economy Program 2025, allocating MX$140 million (US$7.6 million) to support 860 cooperatives involving more than 5,000 people. The initiative seeks to consolidate collective enterprises that generate employment, strengthen community ties, and promote sustainable development through financial support and technical assistance.

The federal government has likewise advanced its labor oversight modernization. The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare (STPS) recently reported that its new Labor Complaints and Accidents System (SIQAL) received over 11,800 reports within two months of launch. The platform enables citizens to anonymously report violations and workplace accidents, replacing older manual systems. The STPS said the digital platform has improved transparency, response tracking, and accountability, reflecting broader efforts to strengthen enforcement of labor rights.

At the same time, industry leaders emphasize that technology’s growing role in the workplace must be accompanied by a renewed focus on skills development. Julio Velázquez, Managing Director, Google Cloud Mexico, says that while 79% of executives in the country already report returns on investment from generative AI, the main vulnerability remains talent preparedness. “The challenge is no longer the technology itself but human capital,” he noted.

To address this, Google Cloud will launch Capacita+AI in Practice on Dec. 6, a regional initiative that aims to train 200,000 people in Mexico and other Latin American countries in the use of generative AI. The program focuses on prompt engineering and no-code tools to make AI accessible beyond technical fields. “We are democratizing access to its creative power,” Velázquez says.

While the ILO underscores the importance of collective bargaining for protecting cultural workers, the intersection of labor, technology, and education remains central to shaping the future of work. Both public and private actors agree that sustainable progress will depend on policies that bridge technological innovation with inclusive labor frameworks, ensuring that digital and creative economies contribute to decent work for all.