The recruitment guidelines for the music industry outline the principles of equal recruitment
Actors within the music industry have supplemented the principles of equal music industry with a separate recruitment guideline. The aim of the equal recruitment guideline is to increase diversity and reduce perceived inequality in recruitment processes.
A comprehensive survey released in March 2023 revealed that there’s still much work to be done regarding gender equality in the music industry: 70 percent of female composers and lyricists perceive the music industry as unequal. Women face belittlement and difficulty in securing job opportunities within the music industry. Nearly half of the female respondents felt that their gender had a negative impact on finding appropriate partners and networks. Three-quarters perceived the concentration of decision-making power as a problem. According to a 2022 equality study in the music industry, nearly half had experienced unequal pay.
The recently released equal recruitment guideline aims to ensure that, during recruitment or when seeking members for workgroups and committees, considerations for equality are better integrated. The underlying idea is that this aspect might not necessarily be considered, allowing personal networks and sometimes unconscious biases to influence the process.
“We wanted a simple one-pager that highlights essential points before initiating recruitment or searching for a new team member. The list is applicable to both employment and positions of trust,” says Vappu Aura, Communications and Public Affairs Director at Teosto.
The guideline comprises five points, each briefly explaining what should be considered in the recruitment process. The second page of the guideline contains additional tips for background information on equal practices.
1. Define the task and selection criteria clearly in advance. Clearly defined competency and experience criteria help in recruiting equitably. Requirements should exclude any personal attributes such as age, gender, or background.
2. Avoid industry-specific jargon in language usage. Understandable language increases the accessibility of recruitment and ensures that everyone can comprehend the job requirements.
3. Publicly advertise the job opening across different channels. If an organization lacks diversity, its networks and platforms often lack diversity as well. Hence, it’s advisable to seek new public channels for job postings whenever possible.
4. Focus on task requirements and skills during evaluation. Once criteria are set in advance, the selection and evaluation of candidates should also align with these. Anonymous recruitment is a good method to eliminate factors unrelated to skills.
5. Avoid the influence of attitudes and preconceptions during interviews and selection. We all have unconscious biases and stereotypes. Being aware of these and involving multiple individuals in the process improves equality.
The hope is that the equal recruitment guideline will be widely adopted in music industry recruitments.
The Finnish Jazz Federation is committed to the principles of equal music industry and participates in the “Achieving a More Equitable Gender Distribution in the Music Industry” project. The Federation promotes equality not only within its operations but also by disseminating related information.