Plan to Pay Struggling Australian Artists $772.60 a Week So They Can ‘Focus on Their Craft’

May 11, 2022

Greens argue that artists should always have a financial safety net.

The Greens’ proposed pilot scheme would pay up to 10,000 artists $772.60 per week for a year.

The Artist’s Wage, as proposed by the party, would give creatives an income to focus on their work after two years of cancellations and cuts to government arts funding due to the pandemic.

“The arts are a core part of Australian culture and contribute so much to our economy. We must do everything we can to make sure our artists can continue creating,” Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young told reporters.

“The arts helped us all get through lockdowns and now it’s time we are there for them.”

According to Greens Senate candidate David Shoebridge, the arts sector employs around 200,000 people, four times the coal mining workforce, and contributes $15 billion to Australia’s GDP each year.

“Imagine a pub without music, galleries without artwork, cinemas without films, bookstores without fiction,” he added.