Creative Workplaces Foundations
Fair, safe and respectful creative work — a practical framework for creative businesses and organisations
Why it matters
Creative work depends on people.
Every performance, exhibition, production, festival, workshop and creative project is built through relationships — between artists, arts workers, businesses, organisations, audiences and communities.
The quality of relationships shapes the quality of workplaces.
When workplaces are built on fairness, safety and respect, people are better able to contribute, collaborate and create. These shared values help create environments where people feel welcomed, valued and supported, strengthening professional relationships and enabling creativity to flourish.
The Creative Workplaces Foundations is built around these three values. It provides practical guidance to help creative businesses and organisations strengthen workplace practice over time, recognising that building positive workplace culture is an ongoing process and that every step contributes to a stronger, more sustainable creative sector.
The places where creative work happens matter.
Creative work is built through relationships — between artists, arts workers, organisations, audiences and communities.
For First Nations peoples, storytelling, performance, making, sharing knowledge and cultural expression are among the oldest continuing practices in the world. Creativity has long connected people to Country, kinship, language, memory and community. Stories have been shared across generations, songs have carried knowledges, and artistic practice has created pathways for connection, belonging and exchange.
Reciprocal, respectful and culturally safe relationships are built through trust, listening, accountability and shared benefit. They recognise that meaningful engagement takes time and that strong relationships contribute to stronger creative outcomes.
Because creative work happens through people, the places where creative work happens matter.
Workplaces shape who participates, whose voices are heard, how people are treated and what becomes possible. They influence whether people feel welcomed, safe and supported to contribute their ideas, skills and creativity. They also shape whether creative work can be sustained for individuals, organisations, communities and the sector as a whole.
At the centre of this framework are three shared values.
Fairness, safety and respect are more than workplace principles. They are the foundations of strong relationships, sustainable careers and thriving creative communities.
Fair workplaces create the conditions for equitable participation. Fairness means appropriate recognition, opportunity, clear expectations and access to work free from exploitation and harm.
Safe workplaces support physical, psychological and cultural wellbeing. They create environments where people feel included, supported and able to participate fully without fear of discrimination, racism, bullying, harassment or harm.
Respectful workplaces value creativity, cultural knowledge and lived experience. They recognise diversity, support inclusion and create environments where people are treated with dignity and respect.
Workplace laws exist to help create healthy environments.
While laws set minimum standards and responsibilities, their purpose is broader than compliance. Workplace laws exist to support participation, create fairness, reduce harm and help people contribute safely and confidently. At their best, they create the conditions for positive relationships, shared understanding and sustainable work.
This is especially important in the creative industries, where work is often dynamic. Projects evolve. Opportunities emerge unexpectedly. Funding changes. People move between different roles, collaborations and work arrangements over time. Clear expectations, good communication and shared responsibility help create confidence and trust in this environment.
Creative work is an exchange.
People bring skill, creativity, care, lived experience, cultural knowledge and community connection. In return, workplaces should create environments where contributions are recognised, people are treated fairly and benefits are shared in ways that support both individuals and communities.
Strong workplaces help create strong creative communities.
When people feel safe, respected and valued, participation grows. Organisations are better able to attract and retain artists and arts workers. Relationships deepen. Creativity flourishes. Communities benefit. Over time, this strengthens the sustainability, diversity and resilience of the creative sector.
This framework is designed to support that work.
It is not intended as a set of rules to follow perfectly. Rather, it offers practical guidance to help organisations and creative businesses build capability, strengthen relationships and create fair, safe and respectful workplaces over time.
No organisation starts in exactly the same place. Building fair, safe, respectful and culturally safe workplaces is ongoing work, and every step matters.
By working together to strengthen workplace practice across the sector, we can help create workplaces where more people feel welcomed, valued and supported to contribute, and where creativity, culture and community can continue to thrive for generations to come.
