Media Work: Employment and Labor Issues in Media and Entertainment

Media and entertainment businesses have a unique set of opportunities and challenges when it comes to staffing, labor, and talent engagement, all of which have become increasingly complex in the changing economy. The operational realities of media and entertainment ventures can at times be as dynamic and nuanced as the stories, chronicles, and culture they produce.

Established industry staples strive to grow shrewdly into the ever-changing media landscape by harnessing the promise of gig culture, remote work, and the "human cloud." At the same time, a new wave of entrepreneurialism, direct access opportunities, and collaboration culture has thrust an unprecedented number of green, resource-poor, visionaries into the complex maze that is media and entertainment business, disrupting age-old ideas about how - and with whom - business is done.

Successfully navigating the legal considerations of media and entertainment industry work is no easy task given the ubiquity of multi-business ventures, contract-based engagements, and multi-jurisdictional employments. Matters of ego, celebrity, and public opinion often hinder positive outcomes. Additionally, the marred history of worker and talent exploitation in media and entertainment has resulted in not only a strong culture of organized labor, but also a growing number of federal, state, and local laws and regulations affecting industry workers.

Join Alexis Scott Berkowitz of Bowles Liberman & Newman LLP for a discussion about employment and labor law in media and entertainment business. Taking heed of special considerations around industry work paves the way for industry professionals to increase predictability, manage risk, and foster the kind of optimal structuring and resource allocation that will set the stage for success.

1. Identify employment and labor compliance issues commonly affecting media ventures and media workers
2. Grasp relevant federal and state laws and regulatory activity
3. Assess how these laws apply to different types of activities
4. Provide practical guidance to reduce legal risk