Cultural Labour and Canadian Cultural Policy

COUNTING CANUCKS COUNTING CANUCKS: CULTURAL LABOUR AND CANADIAN CULTURAL POLICY By Amanda Coles, B.A., M.A. A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy McMaster University © Copyright by Amanda Coles, September 2012 ii McMaster University DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (2012), Hamilton, Ontario TITLE: Counting Canucks: cultural labour and Canadian cultural policy AUTHOR: Amanda Coles, B.A. (York University), M.A. (Ryerson University and York University) SUPERVISOR: Charlotte A.B. Yates NUMBER OF PAGES: xii, 180 iii Abstract My research examines the political role of unions, as the collective voice of Canadian cultural workers, in connection to the cultural policies that shape their memberships’ personal and professional lives. I use a labour-based analysis that foregrounds the interests and experiences of cultural workers in my case studies to understand how cultural policy shapes the quantity and quality of work in the independent film and television production sector. I examine the policy advocacy strategies of Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists; the Directors Guild of Canada; the Writers Guild of Canada; the Communication, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada; and the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees IATSE, as members of federal and provincial cultural policy networks. I argue that changes in cultural policy influence the level of participation and the political strategies of the unions and guilds in federal and provincial cultural policy networks. Shifts in organizational and political strategies affect the ways that unions articulate their interests as policy problems; this, in turn, affects the ways in which issues and problems are understood and acted upon by decision-makers in policy reforms. While most of the unions and guilds, particularly at the federal level, have been active in cultural policy networks for several decades, unions at both federal and provincial levels are increasingly partnering with the employers – the independent producers – in their policy interventions. Analysis of my case studies leads me to conclude that this strategy is paradoxical for unions. While a partnership approach from a “production industry” standpoint arguably increases union access to and credibility with policy decision-makers, it can compromise or obscure how unions articulate cultural policy problems as labour problems. When unions engage in policy advocacy either independently or as a labour coalition, the direct relationship between cultural policy and its specific impact on labour markets and working conditions is most evident. iv ACKNOWLEGEMENTS Though only my name appears on the cover of this dissertation, a great many people have contributed to its production. I owe the deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Charlotte Yates. Charlotte has encouraged me throughout this project to make it my own, with a firm, guiding hand and an inspiring enthusiasm for my work. She connected me with ideas, concepts, and people that have allowed me to combine complex and distinct subjects into one body of work. Her patience, support, understanding, and engagement with her students, as scholars and as people, are a benchmark to which I aspire. This dissertation simply would not have been possible without her. I owe an equal amount of gratitude to my mentor, Dr. Joyce Zemans. Joyce’s seemingly endless time for me blends sage advice with an expectation of the highest standards of research, analysis and writing. Working with Joyce on my Master’s thesis allowed me to see a broader political context through which I was able to make sense of my experiences in the film and television production industry, and which inspired this research. She is endlessly generous in spirit and knowledge. I hope to honour her tremendous contribution to the study of Canadian cultural policy with my offering here. Dr. Peter Graefe has deeply shaped my dissertation through his thoughtful comments and persistent support of this project. In particular, I would like to thank him for asking me to put more of myself in the dissertation, and for his advice to stay connected with the story I’m trying to tell. The labour-based analysis that I use to explain my case studies is a direct result of Peter’s thoughtful feedback on, in particular, the theoretical aspects of my narrative. My dissertation is substantially more coherent thanks to Peter. This study would not have been possible without the support of the unions. Union leaders and staff are often underappreciated for their genuine commitment to representing their members. I would like to thank the following people, in particular, for their generosity in time and wisdom, with my probing questions and endless emails asking for clarification, additional backup, follow up interviews, etc.: Brian Anthony, Kelly-Lynne Ashton, Joanne Deer, Nadine Dunsmore, Richard Hadley, Ron Haney, David Hardy, John Lewis, Rick Perotto, Tim Storey, Brian Topp, Gary Vermier, and Mimi Wolch. I would like to thank the financial and scholarly support of Centre de recherche interuniversitaire sur la mondialisation et le travail (CRIMT). Participation in CRIMT is a v formative experience for doctoral scholars, and I am incredibly fortunate to have benefitted from the richness of your collective wisdom and vision. Thanks also go to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada for their financial support. Dr. Heather Johnson deserves credit for helping me find my sense of humour on more than one occasion throughout this challenging journey. I am privileged to call her both a colleague and a dear friend. Most importantly, I would like to thank George for his unflagging support of my academic career. Remember when you said, George, about 10 years ago, after a long day on a show, that one day I’d be doing my PhD? I just looked at you and laughed. Turns out that sometimes you are right. Dedication My passion for Canadian politics is inspired by two women in whose impressive footsteps I have walked since the day I was born. I dedicate this as a personal project (which, as they taught me, is always political) to the enduring legacy of Lorraine Joyce Coles, and Joyce Scott Barber. My analysis is deeply informed by my past and present relationships with industry workers who face gruelling and intense 13+ hour work days, five, six or seven days a week, sometimes for months on end, yet often with long gaps in between shows, and who struggle with chronic economic and employment insecurity, family breakdown, addiction, and physical and mental illness. It is to the crews, and the families and friends who love them, that I dedicate this as a political project. vi Contents List of Figures and Tables ................................................................................................ iii List of Acronyms ............................................................................................................. iii Chapter 1: Why we need to account for cultural workers in Canadian cultural policy ......1 Research framework ................................................................................................3 Methodology, key concepts & limitations ................................................................4 Outline .....................................................................................................................7 Chapter 2: Creative class politics: Theories of work and workers in the creative economy ......................................................................................................................................11 The instrumentalization of creativity......................................................................13 Creative class dismissed: cue the cultural worker...................................................20 The politics of cultural production .........................................................................25 Two sides of the same loonie: cultural and industrial policy objectives ..................27 Cultural labour and cultural policy .........................................................................29 Locating labour in Canadian cultural policy: a labour-based analysis of cultural policy networks ......................................................................................................32 Chapter 3: Representing Canucks: unions and labour markets in the Canadian independent film and television production sector ........................................................36 Independent film and television production in Canada ..........................................37 Feature film ...........................................................................................................38 Television ...............................................................................................................39 Looking under the red carpet – working in independent the film and television production industry ...............................................................................................42 Profile: Unions & Guilds in the Canadian Film and Television Production Sector ....45 Unions and the politics of cultural policy ................................................................49 The basics: collective bargaining in the independent film and television production sector.....................................................................................................................51 Challenges

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