NDAs must be banned to curb track business ‘culture of misogyny’, says new executive record

The misuse of non-disclosure and confidentiality agreements within the track business to silence sufferers of harassment and abuse is a “major concern”, which must be banned in an instant so as to take on the sphere’s “culture of misogyny”, a brand new executive record recommends.

Misogyny in Music: On Repeat is the 0.33 such record by means of the ladies and equalities committee. Its predecessor, printed in January 2024, discovered that ladies running within the sector confronted misogyny and discrimination, with rife sexual harassment and abuse, to which the business’s many self-employed practitioners have been extra prone.

Despite track business reinforce for the record, the former Conservative executive declined to enforce any of its suggestions. In September 2024, the Labour celebration convention handed a movement calling at the executive to enforce the committee’s record in complete.

On newsletter of the newest record, a central authority spokesperson instructed the Guardian: “The music industry must be free of misogyny and discrimination and NDAs should not be misused to silence victims. We are actively looking at all options for further reform of NDAs.”

In the 12 months for the reason that earlier record, the committee, led by means of Labour MP Sarah Owen, stated that little had modified from its earlier characterisation of the tradition of the British track business as a “boys’ club”.

Hearing proof from pop-soul artist Celeste and the classical soprano Lucy Cox, along side representatives from the organisations Black Lives in Music and the Musicians’ Union, it discovered boundaries together with unequal pay, ageism and unequal duty for childcare tasks; harassment, specifically for LGBTQ+ girls, girls of color and disabled girls.

It established that ladies reported mistreatment at low charges on account of concern of retaliation. Musicians’ Union knowledge confirmed that in spite of 51% of ladies within the sector experiencing gender discrimination and 47% of ladies of color experiencing racism, handiest 11% and 8% respectively reported their allegations.

Secretary Naomi Pohl instructed the committee that even projects designed to give protection to girls inside the sector “still exist within a system that doesn’t prioritise women’s safety and none of the organisations have the power to change that culture”.

“The need for government intervention is clear,” the committee stated. “There remains an overwhelming case for the government to implement the measures set out in our predecessors’ report, and the updated recommendations set out in this report.” It stressed out that their suggestions would additionally get advantages girls running throughout all sectors.

The committee as soon as once more sponsored the proposed Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority (CIISA), a non-statutory requirements authority designed “to improve standards of behaviour across the creative industries and to prevent and tackle all forms of bullying and harassment”.

CIISA chair Jen Smith stated that the authority would receive advantages sufferers in addition to smaller employers in the hunt for recommendation on find out how to care for problems comparable to imposing investigations procedures.

Additionally it stressed out that feminine and gender non-conforming freelancers inside the track business have been moreover prone, and no longer sufficiently safe by means of the employment rights invoice in spite of proposing more potent protections from third-party harassment. The committee referred to as at the executive to amend the Equality Act and the Employment Rights invoice to make sure their protection.

The committee stressed out that folks and carers additionally confronted distinctive demanding situations, particularly when the ones tasks intersected with freelance employment and past due and unpredictable running hours, and referred to as for the federal government to align maternity allowance with statutory maternity pay to facilitate higher flexibility right through depart.

Soprano Lucy Cox instructed the committee: “In the very first audition I did, I was told that I would need to wait for somebody to become pregnant or die in order to start getting any work as a classical singer.”

She described “a feeling that you have ended your job by having a child”: after having a toddler, longer excursions become unviable owing to the price of travelling together with her husband, but committing to the excursions remained very important to “maintain my foothold because … if you do not do the work then somebody else might well do it, and then you might not get invited back.”

Dr Charisse Beaumont, CEO of Black Lives in Music, expressed her impatience with a loss of decisive development at the problems. “We need the government to get involved,” she instructed the committee. “We do not need any more reports. We need the [previous committee’s] report to be actioned.”

After the newsletter of the record, Deborah Annetts, leader government of the Independent Society of Musicians who gave proof within the hearings, also referred to as for motion. “It’s to the previous government’s shame that it rejected all the recommendations of the first report,” she stated. “This government must not make the same mistake … [and must] make the sector safer.”