Christopher BarrettMajor US live events companies, including Live Nation and AEG Presents, have joined forces under the banner #SaveLiveEventsNow to call on Congress to provide financial support for the 12 million live industry workers and musicians impacted by the closure of live events.
Campaign participants include key agencies CAA, UTA, and WME along with venue operator Oak View Group, Universal Music and Upstaging. They want Congress to expand the $10 billion (£7.57bn) grant programme that was green lit earlier this month with the passing of the Save Our Stages Act.
The collective claims that around 80% of live events workers have seen all of their income wiped out during the Covid-19 crisis, with 90% of those workers being employed by venues or businesses that do not qualify for support under the Save Our Stages Act.
Among its objectives is to get Save Our Stages expanded to include support for small venues under 5,000 seats, a healthcare subsidy to ensure that no one loses their benefits, employer retention tax credits and $600 (£454) a week in compensation for affected employees for the duration of the shutdown.