The first study visit of the EU project “Building Social Dialogue in a Changing Labour Market: Peer-learning and Capacity building for Central and Eastern European Workers’ Organisations Representing Performers” took place in Denmark, on the 27th and 28th of June 2019.
This two-year project aims to allow tailored capacity building of performers’ unions in Central and Eastern European countries (CEE) through study visits and thematic exchanges. 5 two-days study visits to host unions in Denmark, UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden will be organised during the life time of the project.
Dansk Skuespillerforbund (DSF) was the first union to host the participants from the CEE countries. Eleven delegates from Croatia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Poland, Romania and Slovenia were warmly welcomed by Anna-Katrine, DSF General Secretary, Kim Hansen, Deputy General Secretary and other members of DSF staff. The two-day meeting has been very interesting and intense.
On the first day, Anna-Katrine and Kim made a general presentation of the union and its functioning, with a special focus on member involvement. The rest of the day was dedicated first, to the presentation of DSF studio – workshops, courses, master classes and weekly drop in classes offered all year long to DSF members – and then, to the association’s agreements and legal advice. On the second day, members of DSF staff introduced the work of Filmex – the collecting society founded by DSF in 1995 – and later presented the brilliant “Handbook”, DSF special online catalogue of all Danish actors, singers and dancers. DSF Handbook is the reference for casting directors in Denmark. Finally, the last afternoon was dedicated to questions. The participants from the CEE countries were very impressed with DSF work and had many questions regarding the work of the organisation.
Thanks to the information, examples and good practices gathered during the different study visits, the participants from the CEE countries will prepare national strategic plans for their unions in the short, medium and long term.
The next study visit of the project will take place in London, on the 23rd and 24th of September 2019.