Industry bullying and harassment helpline launched
A new helpline that supports those suffering bullying and harassment within the UK music industry has been launched by charity Help Musicians.
The move, which is backed by organisations including UK Music, The Musicians’ Union (MU), the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM), and the BPI, follows a number of high-profile musicians speaking out on the need for more to be done to support those experiencing difficulties.
The service will be offered to everyone working within the music industry, with callers able to immediately speak with a specialist bullying and harassment counsellor. The new helpline aims to fill a gap in support provision, ensuring that those working in the music industry, including freelancers, have a place to turn for advice and practical help.
“Bullying and harassment requires a collaborative response across the music industry,” says James Ainscough, CEO of Help Musicians. “The creation of the helpline is a vital next step and Help Musicians is well placed to provide this service, as an independent charity.
“We hope in time that musicians and all those who work in music will feel better emotionally supported”
“Anyone who is concerned about a bullying and harassment situation can call the helpline, share their concerns confidentially and receive advice on how to navigate the issue they are facing. We hope in time that musicians and all those who work in music will feel better emotionally supported as well as gaining practical advice on how to resolve any problems.
“The anonymous insight we will gather through this service will shed more light on the issues being experienced and help to target the collaborative efforts for positive and permanent change across the music industry. This is a vital service, and we ask for everybody’s help in promoting awareness of it, to ensure that individuals who need it will know that they can call for support at any time.”
As well as helping those impacted by bullying and harassment, the new helpline aims to shed more light on the extent of the issue across the industry and inform collaborative, industry-wide efforts for a positive and permanent change to help stamp out bullying and harassment.
Help Musicians will ensure full anonymity for all callers and the service will work alongside The MU’s SafeSpace service and the ISM-MU Code of Conduct. Anyone within the UK music industry experiencing bullying and harassment can call the helpline on 0800 088 2045.
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Canadian music orgs sign creative sector conduct code
A coalition of Canadian music organisations has signed the country’s Creative Industries Code of Conduct, an industry-wide initiative dedicated to preventing and reducing harassment, discrimination, bullying and violence.
Canada’s creative industries launched the code of conduct in 2018, following the widespread bullying, harassment and discrimination allegations made in the wake of the #metoo movement.
On Saturday 16 March, it was announced that 42 music community groups are now signatories of the code at the Allies in Action event, hosted by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) in London, Ontario.
The newly rebranded Canadian Live Music Association says it is “proud to join our allies in the music community” in signing the behaviour code, which commits signatories to improving and implementing policies to enhance safety and wellbeing within the music community.
It was also announced that Unison Benevolent Fund has committed to hosting education and training resources on its website free of charge. The resources are intended to enable community members to identify, confront and prevent harassment, bullying and violence in any workplace.
“Signing the Code is a way for Canadian music community groups to affirm our dedication to our shared values, and to reinforce those values with action”
“Signing the Code is a way for Canadian music community groups to affirm our dedication to our shared values, and to reinforce those values with action,” says Jackie Dean, chief operating officer of CARAS. “Through the work of the Education, Training and Safe Support Committee, I’m very pleased that we will be able to offer all members of the Canadian music community the resources to help make all of our workplaces safer.”
“Canada’s live music industry is doing its part to ensure that every live music space is a safe place through our recently launched Raising the Bar program,” comments Erin Benjamin, president and chief executive of the Canadian Live Music Association.
“Raising the Bar addresses safer spaces, harm reduction and event safety at live music events, and will work to complement both the ethos and practical implications of the Canadian Creative Industries Code of Conduct. We are all in this together, and we are vigorously working to supplant systemic issues with positive change.”
Terms of the code of conduct in both French and English, as well as additional resources, can be found on the readthecode.ca website, launched in June 2018. More information regarding names of signatories and how to sign up to the code is available here.
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New platform launched to track bias in music industry
Genevieve O’Neil, former director of diversity and inclusion at Live Nation, has joined the team behind InChorus, a third-party platform used to track incidents of bias and harassment in the workplace.
O’Neil joins London and New York-based InChorus Group as chief marketing officer. The company’s platform aims to de-escalate reporting for employees, allowing users to anonymously tag and measure incidents in the workplace.
The platform also provides companies with the data needed to build a more inclusive workplace.
“I, like many, am frustrated by the pace of change, but our industry is unfortunately one playing catch up,” comments O’Neil, who says she is “thrilled” to join the InChorus team.
According to InChorus Group, the online tool acts as the ‘missing middle’ when reporting microaggressions, giving employees a safe and informal way to tag “previously hard-to-voice problem-behaviours”.
“We are in desperate need of a user friendly, data-led tool such as this to get things moving in the right direction”
The platform offers on-demand professional support to employees and provides companies access to anonymised data, allowing employers to identify problems at an earlier stage and attempt to avoid more serious misconduct.
“We are in desperate need of a user friendly, data-led tool such as this to get things moving in the right direction. This online tool is ideal for all companies, those already on the path to an inclusive workplace, and those just starting out,” says O’Neil.
“Diversity and inclusion leadership starts at the top, and so I ask industry leaders to stop just thinking about it and start acting.”
Rosie Turner, co-chief executive of InChorus Group says that she, along with fellow co-chief executive Raj Ramanandi, is “passionate about giving employees a voice and allowing them to flag issues sooner before they escalate.”
“This data has the power to drive effective change for both employees and the business, and to create a baseline for the music industry as a whole,” states Turner.
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Festicket teams up with Good Night Out to tackle harassment
Festicket, the world’s largest online community for music festivals, has announced it is teaming up with campaign group Good Night Out in a bid to tackle harassment at music festivals. By working together, the two hope to raise awareness of, and give practical advice on, how to stay safe at music festivals.
The news of the collaboration comes after figures last month revealed one in five UK festivalgoers generally, and almost a third of women more specifically, have experienced unwanted sexual behaviour, harassment or assault at a music festival. After hearing this news, the teams behind Festicket and Good Night Out decided to use their platforms to educate this summer’s revellers on festival safety best practice.
Co-founder and CEO of Festicket, Zack Sabban, says: “We are big festival fans and we always look at ways to help make the festival experience a positive and fun one.
“Unfortunately there are a few individuals that can ruin the festival experience and we want to help eliminate that.”
“[The figures] are shocking, but to us it’s not surprising, and we believe it has to change”
As part of the initiative, Festicket have published a series of guidelines for fans to consider whilst planning their festival experience. The guide includes advice on ensuring you know where your overnight accommodation is and agreeing meeting points with friends and family to ensure you aren’t left alone and feeling vulnerable.
The guide also encourages festivalgoers to become ‘active bystanders’. It says: “Being an active bystander means not standing by or pretending to ignore harmful behaviour when you see it.” The hope is that by being aware of surroundings, bystanders can be ready to check in with neighbours and respond to harassment in an appropriate way, should the occasion arise.
“[The figures] are shocking, but to us it’s not surprising, and we believe it has to change,” explains Bryony Beynon, co-founder and co-director of Good Night Out.
“We are very excited to be working with Festicket to spread our message that planning your festival experience should be simple and hassle-free, and should never involve worrying about sexual harassment or assault.”
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