EFLORIN. TE FERATIVE E. ON.

IMY

CASE STORY SMART

HELPING FREELANCERS THROUGH THE COVID CRISIS

Founded in Belgium in 1998 for artists, Smart today is (2020 specifies, cultural employment is precarious by
a cooperative of freelancers active in different fields. nature, and the pandemic worsened this situation: the
Based on the idea of
offering these workers the solu- individual artists, due to safety measures and restric-
tions to overcome bureaucratic obstacles and mutual- tions, have been among the first being put in lockdown
ise means and risks, the
cooperative is now operating in many parts of the continent and have suffered severe
in 9
European countries and currently counts 35,00o economiIc consequences. In France, where many offices
members. More precisely. Smart takes charge of all of Smart are located, "arts and leisure" have been the
the administrative, financial, and accounting aspects hardest hit sectors of the economy (Barrot et al. 2020
linked to work, while ensuring a double solidarity: the while an 0ECD study (2020) shows a dramatic drop in
one linked to the status of workers Isalaried worker spending on recreation and culture in the UK, Germany.
and to the mutualization of means. This is crucial to France and Italy. Similarly. Smart observed a drop in the
the Smart model, especially enabling freelancers to be- activities of its members between 10 and 90%, equiva-
come salaried workers. To do this, other than a yearly lent to the loss of more than 90,000 working days, since
30 euro share, the cooperative gets a fair and fixed per- the start of the crisis.
handled As a response, the cooperative launched the Plan Coro-
centage (that varies by country) on every euro
for its members in various contractual arrangements to na, a comprehensive 5 million euro plan of action that

COver costs and invest in mutualized services aims to offer both support measures, as a response to
managing
the cancellation of several activities, and recovery stim-
advance on payment, adapted insurances, training.
cO-working space, tailor-made advice, and workshops|. ulus, to help growth in the post-COVID world. The sol-
In this way, the freelancer only has to focus on his/her idarity plan consists of a strategy regarding cancelled

knowhovw, leaving the administrative aspect of running performances, support m e a s u r e s , solidarity mecha-
The ini-
business nisms and promotion of a dynamic recovery
a business to Srnart. This straightforward
model is further reinforced by the policy of transparen tiative was firstly promoted by the cooperat1ves oper-
France with a press conference
cy and participatory governance. For this reas0n, Smart ating in Belgium and
The hrst dratt of the plan was then
on the 1st of April
considers itself a shared enterprise. it had been one
oftice Milan s1nce
developed by the
in
While the cooperative is open to all fields of activity, half
of the nost affected
areasduring the first wave of the
of its members work in the cultural and creative sector, in Belgium and

Pandemic in Europe. The plan designed

one that has been thoroughly inpacted by the COVID-19 measures consisting
France, Is to implement Support
crisis, especially in Europe. As the European Parliament

t
 PEPOR

of a compensation method for all the members that are
victim of cancellations caused by the emergency and
temporary unemployment programs for salaried en-
trepreneurs with permanent contracts as well as, when
possible, for those with short contracts. Furthermore,
according to its aim of promoting sound economic ac-
tivity,the cooperative plans anticipate financing
to
artists that are trying to reopen their activities by in-
change mechanism to monitor the impact and to keep
its members updated about support measures tromm
governments and public institutions.
To implement these solutions, Smart is working with
other organizations, cooperatives and stakeholders.
and has structured the plan in a way that will allow it
to to be reinforced by other actors interested in doing so,
from public institutions to private individuals. An exam-

vesting. for exarnple, in equipnent or marketing. At the ple of this willingness to join forces can be seen in the
same time, Smart has called for the sane measures activities conducted within Bigre!, an association that

internationally and is focused on preserving the assets enables intercooperation between cooperatives espe-
international Smart entities established in the EU Cially in the fields of traning and knowledge and with
ofthe
by confirming the commitment to finance the develop whorn 'Le Fl Cooperatif was established, a helpline to
ment of Smart and the continuation of activities. Smart provide a listening service for those who need it during

has also established a regular COVID information ex- quarantine. Moreover, a platform specifically dedicat-
ENPLORIN THE COOPERATIVE ECONOMY
ed to informing
the Smart community has been creat-
ed (Kronik), in which whoever desires to contribute can
do and where Smart offers
so
training and information
sessions.
The common denominators to all these initiatives are
the principles of solidarity and mutualism, so that the
freelance community can continue to resist to the cri-
sis and thrive even more once it passes. Given that Eu-
rope is in the midst of a second wave, it is still too early
to assess the precise quantitative impact of the Corona
Plan. However, in September, Smart confirmed that,
despite turnovers still falling by 26.5% in Belgium
34% in France, the trend is indeed toward a gradual
improvement and is following the forecasted curve
which Smart attributes in part to the cross-sector
solidarity. They also announced additional measures,
activities of
mainly focused on boosting economic
an economic
members. like a training program with
focus and a 0% internal credit system until the end
thanks to support from public au
of 2021 (negotiated
thorities). Smart also keeps updating its
stakeholders
in each
about the m e a s u r e s adopted by governments
country. Finally. the cooperative is also working at a
more central level, as it recently met with the Euro-
pean Commission to discuss about improvements of
the conditions and tutelage of freelancers. From this
analysis, it is possible to see that, although lacking lfor
nowl precise figures, the Plan is indeed contributing to
the alleviation of the economic and psychological toll
on its stakeholders and society in general. Concerning
future developments and perspectives, Smart has yet
to release an official statement about the changes in
the Corona Plan, but it guarantees the total dedication
and to the support of the community, as the recent lob-
bying actions and set of suggestions to protect work-
ers directed at the
Belgian government proves. The
recognized limitations of the Plan, the pervasiveness
of the crisis and the uncertainty about the future are
the most prominent obstacles to the of the
success
initiative, but Smart continues to strive to extend the
coverage of the plan, so as to protect as much as pos
sible vulnerable stakeholders from falling through the
cracks of a shattered economy.