Career optimism at a low for minorities in the creative industries: Creative Access report

Leading diversity and inclusion social enterprise Creative Access has published its 2024 Thrive report, outlining the pressing need for creative industry employers to expand diversity efforts beyond entry level roles.

The report found that 66% of employers admitted to focusing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts predominantly at entry level, with DEI efforts and practices at a more senior level often being neglected.

The research also revealed poor levels of DEI reporting in the sector, with 41% of organisations admitting to unsatisfactory practices – just one in three sector employers have increased their DEI spending over the last year.

Career optimism has therefore shifted, with just 32% of workers feeling positive about their future in the industry. Stagnant spending on DEI initiatives and a lack of focus on the importance of DEI reporting practices have resulted in a steady decline of optimism year on year, dropping from 51 to 45% overall. Levels of optimism amongst disabled workers are at just 30%, significantly lower than average.

The last twelve months have been tumultuous for the creative industries, with the ongoing impact of last year’s industrial action in the US, a cost-of-living crisis, and precarious working conditions continuing to hit the workforce hard. The report showed how freelancers, despite making up a third of the workforce, are particularly vulnerable to these challenges, with 48% reporting a decrease in work volume this year.

Bectu research has demonstrated that precarious working conditions and poor levels of industry diversity often go hand in hand. A Bectu survey from February 2024 showed that the film and TV production slowdown has hit minority groups the hardest, with BAME respondents less likely to have worked over the preceding three months than their white counterparts. Global majority respondents were also more likely to consider leaving the industry – 37% of white respondents saw themselves leaving the industry in the next five years, while half of Black respondents said the same.

Disabled respondents also spoke about accessibility issues and how both uncertainty and the short contract nature of work, where it could be found, made this even more difficult.

As Head of Bectu Philippa Childs outlined earlier this year, sustainable progress on DEI in the creative industries remains painfully slow, the employers’ energies often focused on target setting. Childs was clear that: “Change will come when people from the global majority, when women, where those from lower socio-economic backgrounds, when disabled workers, are in positions of real power and influence…committed to making long-term change and who are passionate about supporting others to succeed.”

You can read the Creative Access report here.

Commenting on the report, Head of Bectu Philippa Childs said:

“The results of Creative Access’ report make for sobering but unfortunately not surprising reading. Employers must prioritise DEI strategies at all career stages, and limiting efforts solely for entry level workers is simply not good enough if real and lasting progress is to be made.

“When considering the challenges that continue to plague many workers across the creative industries, poor levels of optimism amongst the workforce come as no shock – key issues such as unsustainable working hours, the ‘feast or famine’ nature of freelance employment, and bullying and harassment continue to affect Bectu members. When coupled with a culture that often makes it difficult for diverse talent to get ahead, it’s no wonder that morale is so low.

“There is now reams of evidence demonstrating that progress on DEI in the creative industries is far too slow. DEI efforts must be rigorously applied to all roles and at every career stage, across every sector, to mark a path for meaningful change.”