The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced that it will inspect whether the obligation to prepare written contracts is properly fulfilled in the cultural and artistic fields by the end of next month.
In the cultural and artistic sectors, it has been common for artists to suffer damages due to the failure to prepare written contracts or to include key matters such as revenue sharing in the contracts. This is because there are many freelancers (independent workers) and a high proportion of intermittent contracts that start and stop frequently.
In 2016, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism amended the 'Artist Welfare Act' to mandate the conclusion of written contracts for cultural and artistic services. In June of this year, the ministry also established investigative authority and corrective order authority for violations.
The ministry prioritizes inspections of workplaces where issues have been raised or reported by the arts community. It investigates compliance with relevant laws and regulations and takes corrective measures if violations are found. For workplaces where labor contracts and service contracts are mixed, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Ministry of Employment and Labor will conduct joint inspections to enhance effectiveness. Failure to prepare or retain written contracts may result in fines of up to 5 million KRW.
A ministry official stated, "With the implementation of the artist employment insurance system starting from the 10th of next month, the importance of concluding written contracts has increased," and added, "We will continuously and regularly inspect workplaces to protect the rights of artists."
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