A Finnish music industry working group has compiled a set of theses promoting equality and diversity in the sector.

The bases for the theses for promoting equality and diversity in the Finnish music sector were created during Music & Media conference in October 2017. A project group consisting of Finnish music industry professionals wrote the theses into their final form. The project was coordinated by Music Finland.

The six theses, named Equal music sector, aim to advance the shared, equal future of the Finnish music industry.

The Finnish companies and organisations signing the theses undertake to draw up an equality and non-discrimination plan and to apply it in practice. They also undertake to promote and observe the principles of equality and non-discrimination proactively in communications, recruitment and hiring, administration and management as well as artistic decision-making. Also children and adolescents are vowed the right to choose their musical path without prejudice and irrespective of their background and gender. 

"In the light of statistics, these seemingly self-evident theses are unfortunately not commonplace in all companies and organisations, so I find it important to sign them and engage them in everyday activities. Equality and diversity have always been the leading values of Tiketti, "says Mirva Merimaa, CEO of Tiketti Oy, and also a member in the project group. 

In autumn 2017 Music Finland commissioned a preliminary report on gender distribution in jobs and elected posts in the Finnish music sector, for background material to this project. The report shows that in the Finnish music sector the majority of board members and senior managers in enterprises and NGOs are men. The survey covered 1,914 jobs and elected posts in NGOs, enterprises, orchestras, festival organisations and institutions of higher education in the music sector. Freelancers and small enterprises were excluded from the survey.