Now is the right time to become an American Federation of Musicians member. From ragtime to rap, from the early phonograph to today's digital recordings, the AFM has been there for its members. And now there are more benefits available to AFM members than ever before, including a multi-million dollar pension fund, excellent contract protection, instrument and travelers insurance, work referral programs and access to licensed booking agents to keep you working.
As an AFM member, you are part of a membership of more than 80,000 musicians. Experience has proven that collective activity on behalf of individuals with similar interests is the most effective way to achieve a goal. The AFM can negotiate agreements and administer contracts, procure valuable benefits and achieve legislative goals. A single musician has no such power.
The AFM has a proud history of managing change rather than being victimized by it. We find strength in adversity, and when the going gets tough, we get creative - all on your behalf.
Like the industry, the AFM is also changing and evolving, and its policies and programs will move in new directions dictated by its members. As a member, you will determine these directions through your interest and involvement. Your membership card will be your key to participation in governing your union, keeping it responsive to your needs and enabling it to serve you better. To become a member now, visit www.afm.org/join.
March 1, 2024
It’s Tax Time: Make It Easy on Yourself To help streamline your 2023 returns, here are some of the new and enhanced programs issued by the IRS in 2024. Taxes can be complicated for musicians. Which form? What can I claim? E-file, where? To help you sort it all out, we outlined a few basic […]
January 23, 2024
A little rain couldn’t dampen the high spirits of close to 300 AFM members and supporters during a morning rally and press conference on January 22 in front of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) headquarters in Sherman Oaks, California, on the first day of negotiations for the Motion Picture/TV Film contract. […]
January 1, 2024
December 30, 2023
The International Labor Communications Association (ILCA) announced its annual labor communications contest winners for 2022 entries. The largest competition exclusively for labor journalists and communicators, the awards recognize excellence among union publications, websites, video, and other media from across North America. The AFM/International Musician received two Saul Miller awards for excellent writing connected to the […]
December 12, 2023
On December 12, the Department for Professional Employees (DPE) of the AFL-CIO hosted a meeting of the arts, entertainment, and media industry unions with the administrator of the Wages and Hours Division of the US Department of Labor (DOL) to discuss enforcement of the prevailing wage requirement in connection with direct and indirect grants from […]
December 1, 2023
In 2023, union leaders were buoyed by a robust National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that empowered organizing nationwide. Though less than the surge of actions in 2022, filing of petitions for union representation in FY 2023 ticked up 3% (after a 53% spike in FY 2022). Union representation petitions for elections were up 3% over […]
November 28, 2023
The actors’ strike is over, with the union approving an agreement with Hollywood studios in November. Leaders of the Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) characterized the deal as a big win, with the contract achieving significant breakthroughs on actors’ pay and putting guardrails on the industry’s use of generative artificial intelligence […]
November 28, 2023
A new Beatles song and video, released 50 years after the band broke up, is just one note in a crescendo of AI and music. The newly released recording that’s being called The Beatles’ last song now has a music video, and both elements used technology that wasn’t available during those heady days of Beatlemania. The song “Now […]
October 30, 2023
Hollywood writers and members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) overwhelmingly ratified a new three-year agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) in early October, officially ending a 150-day strike. The terms of the new agreement will run from September 25, 2023, through May 1, 2026. “Through solidarity and determination, we have […]
October 1, 2023
by Robert Fraser, OCSM President and member of Local 247 (Victoria, BC) The Hotel Ruby Foo’s in the west end of Montreal was the site of this past summer’s Organization of Canadian Symphony Musicians (OCSM) Conference, held August 14-17. Local 406 (Montreal, PQ) was our generous host. We begin each conference with oral reports from […]