Basic Income Guarantee for Artists
The Edmonton Arts Council has joined the leaders of Canada’s largest municipal arts councils to call on the Federal Government to institute a Basic Income Guarantee for artists. The opinion piece was published in The Globe and Mail, on March 20, 2021. A PDF of the article is available here.
The letter is signed by Claire Hopkinson, Director & CEO of the Toronto Arts Council; Nathalie Maillé, Executive Director of the Conseil des Arts de Montréal; Carol Phillips, Executive Director of the Winnipeg Arts Council; Patti Pon, President & CEO of Calgary Arts Development; and Sanjay Shahani, Executive Director of the Edmonton Arts Council.
Statistics illustrate the devastating economic impact of the pandemic on the arts sector in 2020:
The GDP of Canada’s arts sector has dropped by 62% in the last year.
The number of hours of worked in arts, entertainment and recreation dropped by 36.6%.
The performing arts was most negatively affected with a 60% reduction in activity.
Despite the devastating financial impact on the arts sector this past year, artists have responded to the needs of Canadians across the country. They have taken their creative skills, imaginations and talents to digital platforms, and presented performances outdoors in strict observance of public health restrictions. Their artistic works have reminded us that better times will come again, and that joy can be found in unexpected places.
The letter from the nation’s largest municipal arts councils underscores that the time for a federal Basic Income Guarantee is now. The Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) and Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) have demonstrated that it is possible to provide meaningful financial support to individuals facing income precarity. Both programs have generated widespread public support for a permanent solution to address income security.
“The City of Edmonton’s Connections & Exchanges plan contains a foundational principle to achieve “Economic Security for the Arts,” a key value embedded in EAC’s mandate. We wanted to ensure that Edmonton artists and arts professionals were included in the national dialogue to build income security for workers in Canada’s creative economy,” says Sanjay Shahani.
Photo: Ryan Parker Photography.












