The Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) 2026 took place at Caird Hall in Dundee from Monday 20 to Wednesday 22 April 2026. The annual congress brings together representatives from Scotland’s trade unions to coordinate, develop, and articulate the views of the trade union movement. The event includes workshops and discussions on key labour and social issues, providing a space for debate and collective decision-making.
This year the MU supported three key motions at STUC Congress. We seconded a ‘Fair Work for Freelancers’ composite and moved motions on ‘Music as a Human Right’ and international solidarity. All were carried.
MU delegates Giles Perring, Calum Baird, Ankna Arockiam and Ben Lunn also contributed to a range of wider debates.
We're in Dundee for @scottishtuc.bsky.social's Annual Congress! Our motions focus on music as a human right, international solidarity, and how Fair Work applies to creative freelancers #STUC26
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— Musicians' Union (MU) (@wearethemu.bsky.social) 20 April 2026 at 11:20
Fair Work for freelancers
The MU seconded a composite motion on Fair Work for freelancers which was based on the 2025 Freelance and Forgotten report and exposed widespread exploitation across Scotland’s creative industries. Drawing on research with hundreds of workers, the motion highlighted issues including late and unpaid work, insecure contracts, bullying and harassment, and a lack of basic protections for freelancers.
It also pointed to wider evidence from industry surveys showing high levels of precarity, poor wellbeing and income instability, and raised concerns that current employment legislation still leaves many freelancers without essential rights. While welcoming increased cultural funding, the motion stressed that this must be tied to enforceable Fair Work standards.
Speaking in support, MU delegate Calum Baird said the scale of the problem is now undeniable, describing a sector where insecurity, unpaid labour and income instability are “not anecdotal, it’s structural". Drawing on his experience as a working musician, he highlighted how much essential labour — from rehearsing and writing to travel and promotion — goes unpaid, adding that “when we talk about in-work poverty, we are talking about people who are working constantly, but not being paid for the full extent of their labour".
The motion called for stronger action from government and public bodies to ensure fair pay, proper contracts and improved protections for freelancers, alongside support for union organising and long-term reforms to improve conditions across the sector.
Music as a human right
The MU also moved a motion at STUC Congress affirming music-making as a fundamental human right, not a luxury or commodity. The motion highlighted the vital role of making music together in building skills like cooperation, empathy and shared purpose — values at the heart of trade unionism.
It also raised concerns that commercial and institutional approaches to music can exclude many people from participating, particularly in education. In response, the motion called for action to break down these barriers and to ensure free, universal access to music-making in schools and communities, including recognition of this right in Scottish Government policy.
First time delegate Giles Perring told Congress that music is not a “fluffy extra,” arguing instead that it is a fundamental part of being human and central to how we learn, connect and cooperate as social beings. He highlighted that making music together builds essential skills such as teamwork, tolerance and mutual understanding, and should be recognised as a basic right, not a luxury.
Giles also raised concerns about long-term underfunding of music education in Scotland, particularly the Youth Music Initiative, warning that freelance tutors are under-resourced despite their key role in delivering whole-class music making opportunities for young people.
He added, “Music is a right, it is part of being a human, and as a display of the power and the meaning of the group, the collective, it is something our movement should protect and preserve with the utmost care”.
AI, workplace protection and cultural infrastructure
The impact of new technologies on creative work was also raised during Congress. Speaking in support of a motion on AI and workplace protection, MU delegate Ankna Arockiam warned that the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence is already reshaping the sector, with falling incomes and increasing insecurity for creative workers.
She called for urgent legal safeguards, fair compensation and stronger consent frameworks, arguing that without intervention “we risk a society where original thought is outsourced to algorithms trained on stolen labour".
Ankna also spoke in support of an emergency motion on protecting cultural infrastructure, highlighting the loss of venues and community spaces across Glasgow. She warned that the closure of spaces such as the CCA represents not just job losses but the erosion of vital “third places” that sustain communities, adding that “digital connection cannot replace physical presence".
Why ferries serving the Scottish islands are vital to cultural workers and the economy
On day three, Giles Perring also spoke in support of a composite motion on investing in Scotland’s ferries. His speech focused on life on Jura and the vital importance of ferry services to island communities, describing them as essential lifelines rather than just transport links.
He paid tribute to ferry workers for their commitment and highlighted how services like the Jura–Islay route and CalMac connections underpin daily life, access to services, and community sustainability.
Giles told Congress, “as a worker in the creative sector, I know the ferry also affects cultural participation and the next months will be critical to the boosts our islands get from the annual Feis and the festivals that employ the creative workers who contribute to the continuing cultures of our communities. The boat carries us, takes care of us, and it is often the place where we meet each other. As a musician, I need to travel to work as well as support myself in the community I live in”.
He concluded, “we have to secure the viability, safety and capacity of the fleet, and the proper working conditions of our comrades who work the boats”.
International solidarity
The MU also moved a composite motion on international solidarity, which raised concerns about escalating global conflict and the role of UK and Scottish infrastructure in supporting military activity. It focused in particular on recent US actions in Venezuela, which have been widely criticised as breaches of international law and risks to global stability.
Speaking in support of the motion, MU delegate Ben Lunn highlighted the use of Scottish airports and airspace in US military operations, arguing that this risks implicating Scotland in acts of aggression and undermining principles of sovereignty and self-determination.
He emphasised the responsibility of the trade union movement to oppose the use of workers’ labour in support of war. He told Congress, “Not a wheel turns without our blessing. Our labour must not be used for imperialist gain".
Read all motions from STUC Congress 2026 or view more highlights from the MU.
If you'd like to represent the MU as a delegate at next year's STUC Congress, please get in touch via sni@themu.org.