Equiflash Archive

Equity applauds the launch of the Canada Performing Arts Workers Resilience Fund (CPAWRF), a temporary emergency relief funding program that will provide $60 million to support workers in the live performance sector.

Unlike the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB), the new fund will not be administered as direct income replacement, but instead, will only be accessible by organizations representing the interest of cultural workers, such as artist unions and associations, as well as service organizations, and benevolent foundations like The AFC. The fund will accept applications from these organizations for projects and services that provide relief for financial hardship and support the resiliency of live performance industry workers across Canada.

“Our workers in the live performance sector are not only critical to the Canadian economy, but more importantly they bring stories and musical performances that we all love to see on stages across the country,“ said The Honourable Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Canadian Heritage. “The Canada Live Performance Workers Resilience Fund will help support our artists and skilled technicians, so they are ready and able to bring our stages back to life when the time comes, giving Canadians and visitors the amazing cultural experiences they are craving and miss so much right now.”

The announcement of the CPAWRF comes after months of lobbying by Equity and its live performance coalition partners, IATSE, the Canadian Federation of Musicians (CFM) and the Associated Designers of Canada (ADC), for additional support since the CRB ended on October 23, 2021.

“I want to thank the Canadian government for hearing us and recognizing the unique needs of our members,” said Equity Executive Director, Arden R. Ryshpan. “Now we need to examine what support services Equity could provide based on the eligibility requirements and continue to consult with The AFC and a number of other benevolent foundations to determine how this money could be of greatest benefit to our members who need it most.”

We will continue to update members as more information becomes available.

Canadian Heritage news release on the CPAWRF
Government of Canada details on the CPAWRF