De Venecia cites impact of COVID to freelance artists

Rep. Christopher VP De Venecia (Pangasinan, 4th District), has reiterated his call to help the freelance workers who have been overlooked for the longest time.

In a privilege speech in Congress last May 20, he called attention to the plight of freelance artists which has become more serious with the COVID19 pandemic, with many of them now jobless.

He said that freelancers and gig workers cannot rely on the existing labor laws for protection as these do not apply to them due to the nature of freelance work.

Long before the pandemic, De Venecia had filed House Bill 3951, the Freelance Protection Act that seeks to provide hazard pay and night-shift differential to freelancer artists.

“These freelancers, whether in music production, film, photography, visual arts, fashion, culinary arts, television, animation, literary arts, jewelry design, and many others, are work incredibly hard to perfect their craft, deliver on their commitments to their clients, and strive so hard to make ends meet for themselves and their families. They go from paycheck to paycheck and have managed to survive before the ECQ,” he said.

He highlighted the freelance artists contribution to the economy which a survey conducted last April 30 by the League of Event & Activation Agencies of the Philippines (LEAP) placed at about 197 billion to 1200 billion.”

He added:“The Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) also noted that the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) estimated that the income generated by creative industries is at P689 billion.”

“The cinema sector alone, according to FDCP Chairperson Liza Diño Seguerra, generated approximately P11.5 billion in gross box office revenues, while P3.65 billion was generated in audiovisual and related services in 2018.”

The National Live Events Coalition PH said that by the end of the year, over 1130 billion of gross revenue from the live events sector would have been lost due to COVID-19.

They project that the pandemic will affect more than 284,000 individuals in the country who earn their income from live events, including workers and talents from the music industry. This data excludes the TV and Film sector, which will also be adversely impacted by the “New Normal”.