The AFM (musicians' union) - pros & cons?

[hagbass101]

Not all locals do this, but my local,(580,Clarksburg, WV) just abolished work dues for local musicians. That was a big plus for us. There are union gigs available that will earn you enough to more than reimburse you for your local and national dues, so basically it's free to belong. Several years ago, our band got stiffed by a club owner and the union got us our money plus part of the money for future gigs we had booked there. If you're an AFM member, at least you're assured you can play anywhere you want to play, and as previously mentioned, the available insurance is a good deal.

 

[lbwdog]

The only tangible benefit I ever received was two small checks after performing at some high end benefit concerts.

In the early seventies I joined a band that had a high visibility house gig at a club in a strong Union town. The second night I played, the local union president was at the club to invite (read: command) me to the Union hall the next day, to get signed up (LOL). I maintained my card into the mid eighties, but decided to let my membership lapse since I had moved back to my home town, and wasn't doing any union gigs.

I started doing regular recording sessions though, and twice had to renew my membership in order to play on records. The last time was in '98 while doing an album on a major label (Mercury). The artist's manager asked me for my union info, and seemed perplexed when I told him I was inactive. He told me it wasn't mandatory, but i wouldn't be credited on the album and wouldn't benefit from any future royalties, etc. I then got on the phone with my local's business mgr. who said he'd put a card in the mail if I would put a check in the mail!

I've gone inactive since then, and probably won't have the need to ever join again, because my health issues prevent me from doing any major projects anymore.

 

[armybass]

Well, consider whether you'll still have those bargaining rights if unions and working people don't connect with those interests at the voting booth - can we spell "Wisconsin?"

Bargaining rights????? I have no problem with folks being pro union...musician or otherwise but lets at least be honest enough to admit that unions have a bad history of "protecting" workers who for all intents and purposes cannot do their jobs and would be fired from a job where they did not have "bargaining rights". Look, I come from a long line line of union workers but at some point we have to stand up and be accounted for and not hide behind "political connections".

What you see as a positive can surely be seen as a negative by others. It is best to honestly discuss our differences without trying to villify the other side. I DO NOT THINK THAT ANYONE IN THIS DISCUSSION HAS DONE THAT. Just saying that it is possible to have a civil disagreement about unions whether it be musician or what we see in the news today. Lets just realize that the other guy may have a valid point and debate it instead of suggesting that others are bad people or something silly like that.

 

[LiquidMidnight]

Bargaining rights????? I have no problem with folks being pro union...musician or otherwise but lets at least be honest enough to admit that unions have a bad history of "protecting" workers who for all intents and purposes cannot do their jobs and would be fired from a job where they did not have "bargaining rights".

Is that necessarily true, though? Arbitration costs money, and you're looking at a couple of grand for an average arbitrator. That money is usually coming out of the pockets of both management and the union. While it is true that most grievance processes have two or three steps before arbitration, it's up to management and the union if they want to resolve things between themselves before going to arbitration. It's not a one-sided thing. Unions have wide discretion when it comes to their duty of fair representation as well.

I'm not aruging the point of protecting bad employees one way or another. I'm just saying that we can always come up with anecdotal evidence either way. What I am saying is that a good empirical study may be able to shed some light on this question. Personally, I think the findings would surprise a lot of people.

 

[Jon Moody]

I'd suggest you to AFM's website and find the nearest local chapter to you. Call the chapter president and find out from him what they can offer you.

This, because they are going to vary wildly. My area, while a small town, is a huge musical theatre town. We have around 5 community theatres, a civic theatre and two equity playhouses in the immediate area.

The union is only involved in the local symphony and the local summer stock theatre, to which we're wondering why the owner doesn't stop working with them.

So really, unless I pull a couple shows at the summer stock theatre in the summer, it doesn't pay for me to have a union membership.

The ironic thing is that when I read the minutes from the local meetings, one major complaint is that my local is too focused on one thing; the symphony.