The AFM has an obligation to all its members. But that doesn’t mean that the AFM should treat all members the same, provide them the same services, or give them equal voice in all the union’s affairs.
Symphonic musicians do not need referral services to make a living in orchestras. They do, however, need to be able to run their own negotiations, have the necessary support for such negotiations, and be able to count on the union for competent contract administration.
Gigging musicians (unless working under CBAs) don’t need the traditional services of a labor union, whether they gig full-time or part-time. (Even if they did, labor law makes it almost impossible for the AFM to provide those services to them.) They do need energetic referral services, promotion of their services to prospective purchasers, fair compensation for their labor, and a guarantee that they won’t get stiffed by their purchasers. Given how little many of them make from performing, it would be nice if the AFM could manage to give them a break on dues. And, because no one has to belong to the AFM in order to work anymore, the antiquated regulations about not working with non-union musicians function only as a disincentive for musicians to join, or remain in, the union.
Recording musicians need both promotion of their contracts and the more traditional services provided by a union. But most of all they need to have real authority in the negotiation and administration of their agreements.
It is tempting, in a case of institutional dysfunction traceable to structural problems, to prescribe a structural change. And I think that, if the AFM didn’t exist, no one would propose creating it in its current form. It’s certainly a stimulating exercise to envision a structure better suited to the 21st century reality we face than the federation of geographic locals we have inherited from the 19th century.
But it’s not really necessary to make such changes in order to end the current conflict, or even to prevent a re-occurrence. Simply going back to the Roehl Report and operating the way envisioned by the IEB when it adopted the Report in 1989 would solve most of the current conflict.
If that doesn’t happen, and there’s still an AFM by the summer of 2010 (and assuming, of course, that I’m still a voting delegate to the AFM Convention by then), my solution will be to vote to throw out the entire IEB and elect one committed to making this union work the way it's supposed to. By that time, I think I’ll have plenty of company.
At Last....God Bless all of America
Posted by: Gordon Stump-Itinerant Musician/Labor Activist | January 20, 2009 at 12:37 PM