Professional resources

Inquiry into the National Cultural Policy 2025

Late last year Ausdance made a submission on behalf of the national Ausdance network in support of Australia’s dance ecosystem—artists, educators, Cultural dance leaders, companies, studios, festivals, community organisations and allied health partners across metropolitan, regional and remote Australia.

We welcomed the Committee’s targeted interest in (a) tax reform and productivity, and (b) emerging technologies including artificial intelligence (AI).

Our positions are grounded in prior Ausdance submissions (national, state and territory), sector research on valuing the arts, First Nations consultations, and lived experiences of dance professionals, workers, practitioners and small businesses.

The Ausdance national network also applauds and supports ANA’s (A New Approach) “Imagine 2035” call for a National Arts, Culture & Creativity Plan and urges its adoption alongside the National Cultural Policy. Such a plan should include a Strategy-on-a-Page, clear outcomes and measurements, and be underpinned by ongoing collaborations across all levels of government (federal, state, territory, local) and with First Nations leadership.

In recognising culture’s role in addressing major societal challenges we recommend policy settings and funding programs that explicitly allow for arts responses with social / environmental purpose, not only economic outputs.

Read the submission.

Prepared for Australian Dance Council, Ausdance Inc (National)
Email Julie Englefield: Tel. 0426296050

WITH
Australian Dance Council, Ausdance (ACT) Inc
Australian Dance Council, Ausdance (QLD) Inc
Australian Dance Council, Ausdance (SA) Inc
Australian Dance Council, Ausdance (VIC) Inc
Australian Dance Council, Ausdance (WA) Inc

Ausdance identifies improved standards in the workplace and increased sector knowledge of employee rights and employer obligations.

Another identified priority is increased professional development/training and support for small businesses and organisations to improve child safety, safer workplaces, safer spaces, safer bodies and minds in the whole dance community.

This article was prepared by Ausdance Qld, and is designed to provide clarification about the status of Award pay rates for dance teachers.

Fair Work Commission

The Fair Work Commission is Australia’s workplace relations tribunal and registered organisations regulator. It makes awards, approves enterprise agreements and helps resolve issues at work.

It has a ‘small business hub’ which specifically answers questions about current issues such as fixed term contracts, ‘right to disconnect’ , family and domestic violence provisions and more.

Employees/ Contractors

The difference between an Employee and a Contractor can be complicated; it is an area of the law that is not set in stone and the definitions used have recently changed.

A contractor is sometimes also called an ‘independent contractor’ or a ‘sub-contractor’, however these terms all have the same meaning. The critical differences between an employee and independent contractor are:

• an employee serves in your business, and performs their work as a representative of your business;
• a contractor provides services to your business and performs work to further their own business.

As a general rule of thumb:

• a person is an Employee if the employer determines where/when the worker (dance teacher) works, and if the employee is required to perform work as a representative of the employer’s business, is paid by the hour or has their pay determined by the employer, and cannot delegate their work to someone else;
• a person is a Contractor if the worker chooses when/where and how the work is done, performs work to further their own business, is generally contracted to achieve a specific result, and is able to subcontract to another person of their choosing.

The awards cover employees and are governed by the Fair Work Commission.

The Dancers Australia Industry Code of Practice covers both employees and contractors, and is governed by the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA).

All workers must be paid superannuation on top of their fee or wage (i.e. not taken out of their wage), regardless of whether they are an Employee or a Contractor.

The ‘Modern Award System’

The Modern Award System was created in 2009, to provide all Employees in each industry a standard set of minimum wages and conditions. These include:

• common entitlements that included in all awards – eg. a 25% casual loading, a minimum engagement (usually 3 hours), and, from this year, new entitlements, such as the right to change from casual to full time or part time employment, and the ‘right to disconnect’; and,
• specific entitlements that only apply to that industry.

Live Performance Award

The Live Performance Award covers Employers in the live performance industry and their employees who fit within the classifications of the Award.

Regardless of whether the performance, rehearsal, workshop, presentation, or concert takes place in front of an audience or is recorded, the ‘live performance industry’ means:

• producing (pre and post production), staging, lighting, audio and audio/visual, presenting, performing, administrating, programming, workshopping, set and prop manufacturing; or,
• undertaking live theatre, performance art, operatic, orchestral, dance, erotic, variety, revue, comedy, multi-media, choral, or musical performances, productions, presentations, rehearsals, or concerts;

An important feature of this Award is the ‘definition’ of a performance: “Performance means a performance given by Employees before an audience for which the Employer receives a payment or other benefit.”

This Award also includes specific scheduling and rostering clauses, allowances and per diems, rehearsal rates, penalty rates, and other entitlements that are unique to the live performance industry.

Currently dance teachers (employees) are not covered by this award. Choreographers are also not covered by this Award.

Fitness Industry Award

Historically, the dance teaching industry has accepted that dance teacher Employees are covered by the Fitness Industry Award. The current minimum pay rates range from $12.90 for a junior casual teacher to $32.18 and do not provide for specific skills, dance teaching experience or criteria.

Since 2020, dance teacher and studio owner members have regularly informed Ausdance QLD (in consultations) that the rates and associated requirements/provisions are not appropriate for dance teachers. The Union has taken the position that the Fitness Industry Award is not appropriate for dance teachers, and that applying this Award can result in underpayments.

The Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA / the Union)

This is the Union for workers across the media, entertainment, and arts industries, including all dance professionals, actors, musicians, technical crew in theatres, film, and television, journalists, and more.

MEAA was registered on May 18, 1992 as the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance, formed from the merger of three unions: the Australian Journalists Association, Actors Equity of Australia, and the Australian Theatrical and Amusement Employees Association. The history of these three unions goes back to the early 1910s, and the current structure of MEAA reflects those origins.

In 2006, a fourth section was created when the Symphony Orchestra Musicians Association joined the Alliance. In 2021, MEAA added another group, Dancers Australia, in recognition of dance-specific workplace issues which impact the working lives, health and careers of dance professionals.

Dancers Australia

Dancers Australia is the union for dancers, dance teachers, and choreographers in Australia. It is led by the Dancers Australia National Committee – a group of dancers, dance teachers, and choreographers from across the country who are pushing for fair wages and safe workplaces for all workers in the dance industry. Dancers Australia is part of MEAA.

The Committee’s first Strategic Plan encompasses four critical components:

• 2022 – undertake research into dancer and choreographer rates;
• 2023 – approve and commence enforcement of an Industry Code of Practice;
• 2024 – undertake research into dance teacher rates; and,
• 2025 – approve a specific Dance Teachers section as an addition to the Code.

Dancers Australia – Dance Industry Code of Practice 2024-2025

This is a voluntary Code of Practice, similar to those in media and advertising. If you are a member of MEAA, or you are a company who is a signatory to the Code of Practice, you are legally bound to comply with this Code.

A new Code is released on 1 July each year, which includes an annual wage increase and any new or updated entitlements.

The Code currently includes rates and workplace conditions for:

• dancers – with the lower range of rates mirroring the Award, and higher range of rates mirroring what is actually paid by reputable companies in the industry; and,
• choreographers – a rate for a choreographer’s time, plus a ‘fee’ for the choreographic product they create.

In 2025, MEAA will add a new Schedule of Dance Teacher Rates. This will include:

• A low tier of rates that need to fit within the rates already in the Award – a minimum of $25.41 per hour, a maximum of $39.69 per hour, for dance teachers with 7 years’ or less experience;
• A high tier of rates that need to reflect what is actually paid in the industry – starting at $40 per hour for dance teachers with more than 7 years’ experience; and,
• A set of workplace conditions – such as penalty rates, overtime, payment for supervising children, allowances/per diems, sick/injury leave, safety protections, etc. – that adequately remunerate for skills and experience, cover the expenses that dance teachers have, match the cost of living, and ensure dance teachers are provided with a safe workplace.

Current situation and next steps

The Fair Work Commission regularly reviews awards as part of the Modern Award Review to ensure they’re fit for purpose and to update rates and conditions. In 2023/4 a targeted review has been undertaken to look at which awards cover workers and the minimum standards in the arts and culture sector.

The final report for the public part of this review was released in July. The Fair Work Commission elected to make minimal changes to the Live Performance Award based on the consensus of ‘interested parties’.  Another priority of the Modern Awards Review is to ensure no-one ‘falls through the gaps’ as Employees.

MEAA, led by Dancers Australia, identified to the Commission that choreographers and dance teachers are falling through the gaps in the awards. They have identified this through member consultation and industry surveys. Ausdance QLD and the Ausdance National network have also provided data, and will continue to seek input from our members to inform any changes.

As part of the Modern Award Review process, MEAA proposed that the Live Performance Award be updated to cover these two Employee categories. In the Commission’s report published in July 2024, this change was not adopted. There are no current proposals being considered by the Fair Work Commission.

If there were to be any change to the Award to include dance teachers, MEAA’s current draft proposal is:

• Minimum wages would need to fit within the rates already in the Award – a minimum of $25.41 per hour, a maximum of $39.69 per hour, for dance teachers with 7 years’ or less experience; and,
• Choreographer rates would need to be completely separate, and would not apply to a person who is engaged as a dance teacher (even if that person undertook creating choreography as part of their role).

These proposed changes are substantially similar to what MEAA will be adding to the Code of Practice in 2025.

This draft proposal to the Fair Work Commission is a very long way from being formally submitted, and if submitted would be through the process of lodging a case to the Fair Work Commission, requesting a decision or order, and undergoing tribunal hearings before any decision is made.

Any decisions by the Commission, and information gathered as evidence to support any change, are substantial and rigorous. This is to ensure any changes work for the Australian community as a whole, including small businesses or industry groups.

In response to huge demand from dance teachers, dancers, independent artists and dance companies across Australia, Ausdance, the peak body for dance, has today released Return To Dance: Principles and framework for restarting dance activities post-Covid-19.

This document provides guidelines for practising dance safely whilst meeting the required health and safety guidelines in a new post-Covid environment. It applies to all members of the dance community: dancers, teachers, studio owners, companies and organisations.

The guidelines directly reference the Framework for Rebooting Sport in a COVID-19 Environment developed by the Australian Institute of Sport. The Ausdance guidelines have received the endorsement of Dr David Hughes, Chief Medical Officer, Australian Institute of Sport Medical Director, Australian Olympic Team, Tokyo 2020.

We recognise that our sector has been decimated by this pandemic, but COVID-19 has also provided an extraordinary opportunity for individuals, companies, small and medium businesses and communities to work together as never before to ensure a safe and productive future as soon as possible.

We also recognise that all dance in Australia sits within the context of 100,000 years of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance continuum. This is a powerful and extraordinary fact, and protection of First Nations Elders as the source of First Nations storytelling and knowledge in Australia is the first principle of this framework.

Teachers, parents, students, organisers and administrators can use the ‘Return to dance’ document to inform dance practice in classes, rehearsals and performances.

It’s important to remember that these are guidelines for operating within State or Territory directives: they are not an exemption from these directives. If necessary, the Ausdance network may seek exemptions to specific directives supported by ‘Return to dance’, alongside Workplace Health and Safety documentation through the COVID-19 Taskforce.

The Australian dance community has been united in its support for these guidelines which were developed by Ausdance Queensland in collaboration with BlakDance, and with the support of Arts Queensland and the guidance of many vital members of the dance and arts community.

All media enquiries: Julie Englefield, ph 0426296050

Ausdance National is pleased to announce the continued support of Harlequin Floors as Principal Sponsor of the Australian Dance Awards (ADAs).

World leaders in advanced flooring technology for dance and the performing arts, Harlequin Floors supports (literally) thousands of Ausdance members on a daily basis.

The Safe Dance Report IV: Investigating injuries in Australia’s professional dancers, published today on the Ausdance National website, examines the Australian context and occurrence of injury in professional dancers and makes recommendations to support sustainable, healthy, and productive dancing careers.

A collaboration between The University of Sydney and Ausdance National, Safe Dance IV is the fourth in a series of Safe Dance research projects. It continues the important work started by Ausdance National almost 30 years ago.

The survey of 195 Australian professional dancers found 97% experienced at least one significant injury in their dance career, compared with 89% in 1999. And 73% of dancers reported experiencing a dance-related injury in the past 12 months.

Author and lead researcher Amy Jo Vassallo, a PhD candidate at the Faculty of Health Sciences at The University of Sydney, said the consequences of these injuries can be quite substantial and include missed performance opportunities and income, ongoing pain and disability, and expensive treatment including surgery. Serious injuries can even lead to early retirement from dance careers and lifelong disability.

‘The proportion of dancers reporting fatigue as a contributing factor to their injury has increased from 26% in 1990 and 33% in 1999 to 48% in 2017’ she said.

‘However, compared with previous Safe Dance survey results, fewer dancers reported poor technique or environment as a contributor to their injury. This demonstrates the benefits of education, policies and interventions regarding safe dancing practice for dancers and teachers at all stages of a dance career, including early teaching and pre-professional training’.

Ausdance National President, Professor Gene Moyle, said the Safe Dance Report IV continues an important lineage for the Australian dance community. Hearing the words “safe dance practice” being so much a part of our language and approach within the dance sector today is a testament to the impact and contribution of the collective Safe Dance reports within our industry.

Recommendations have outlined that access to dance-educated or dance-specialised healthcare services is essential; addressing the cultural aspects of injury reporting is critical; and that a better acknowledgement of the psychological and psychosocial aspects of injury is required.

Key findings

Survey respondents’ employment as a dance performer was most commonly with a dance company (66%) or as an independent dance artist (38%).

Injuries remain common in professional dance, with 73% of professional dancers reporting experiencing an injury in the past 12 months. The most common site of injury was the ankle (26%), followed by the knee (11%) and hip (10%).

The most common injury type was a strain (25%), followed by chronic inflammation (19%) and a sprain (18%).

There was one accidental or traumatic injury for every two overuse or gradual injuries. The most common responses regarding the self-reported contributor to injury were fatigue (48%), followed by new or difficult choreography (39%) and ignoring early warning signs (31%).

Despite 62% of respondents reporting belief that there is still stigma associated with sustaining injuries as a professional dancer, 75% of dancers did say they would seek professional opinion if they suspected an injury. However, only 50% stated they would tell someone within their dance employment and 49% said they would also take their own preventative steps to manage their injury.

Despite seeing a clinician for treatment of their injury, 40% of dancers whose injury was currently unresolved were unsure if their injury would resolve in the foreseeable future. This indicates that many dancers need to be provided with improved and realistic expectations of their injury, capacity to dance during their injury and likely return to full dance ability.

For interview contact:

Amy Vassallo | PhD Candidate
Faculty of Health Sciences
The University of Sydney
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 02 9351 9010 and 02 9351 9108

Ausdance National Council – Ausdance Inc.
Email: [email protected]

Download Safe Dance Report IV media release