Precarity and Possibility: a forum on labour, the arts, and collective organising.

9 July 2019 | 5-7pm

Precarity is a defining feature of contemporary labour. From casualisation to the gig economy, from the erosion of workers rights to the neoliberal drive to transform individuals into entrepreneurs, work is increasingly defined by the absence of safeguards and employee rights. Precarity is, as Judith Butler writes, “not as a passing or episodic condition, but a new form of regulation that distinguishes this historical time.” An instrument of contemporary governmentality, precarisation describes a process that produces a subject defined by vulnerability, one that establishes security as the ultimate political ideal. Alongside the increasingly instability of work, we have governments and workplaces deploy a range of measures to make collective organising, bargaining, and action more difficult for workers.

This forum brings the many different workers (students, casuals, academics, professional staff, and more) that comprise the UNSW Art & Design community together to consider how we might share our various labour struggles and build solidarity with each other.

All are welcome to join for this series of short talks, which will be followed by an open discussion focusing on how we can begin to build a collective movement that supports us all. Tea, beverages, and snacks will be provided.