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.
February 1, 2021
There is no question that the pandemic has wreaked havoc on our industry. Our stages, concert halls, festivals, and nightclubs have shuttered. Never before has a crisis destabilized our sector and our union in the way the coronavirus crisis has. Our collective future is unclear. As members and leaders in our union await the restoration […]
January 1, 2021
The American Federation of Musicians congratulates President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris for their victory in the November 2020 general election. Our union endorsed the Biden-Harris ticket because their campaign agenda promoted the protection of American workers, and committed to strengthening worker organizing, collective bargaining, and unions. As I’ve mentioned in this column […]
January 1, 2021
The Black Lives Matter movement has raised awareness and made the need for more diversity central to the ongoing conversation. The International Musician Editorial Board thought it was an opportune time to take an introspective look at diversity within the pages of our official union publication that you receive every month as a member of […]
January 1, 2021
How many times will we say or hear, this week or over the coming months, how happy everyone is that 2020 is behind us? We all know the extreme toll the challenges of the past 10 months have taken on musicians and their families, financially, physically, and emotionally. Although we have not yet escaped the […]
January 1, 2021
en français “Schools closed, church services cancelled, restaurants, shops, theatres, and venues shuttered, public gatherings limited and then banned, and a $5 ‘civic duty’ fine levied against those refusing to wear a mask,” was how it was reported. Sound familiar? Interestingly, those events took place between 1918 and 1920, when the so-called “Spanish Flu” claimed […]
January 1, 2021
Each one of us experienced this past year differently, a totally unique experience. For me, time sped by so fast that it felt like a month passed with every blink of the eye. I haven’t really had time to process it all yet. Glimpses of the shutdown, gathering, sifting, disbursing information as quickly as possible, […]
December 1, 2020
I am pleased to report that on October 22, 2020, after years of false starts, interruptions, and delays, the Federation reached agreement with representatives of CBS, NBC, and ABC for a successor Television Videotape Agreement, subject to ratification by the members. Negotiations for this agreement spread over four years. The previous agreement expired on February […]
December 1, 2020
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris have been projected by AP, CNN, and Fox News as the winners of the recent US presidential election. At this writing, the counting of ballots continues in some states and lawsuits are being prepared and filed contesting this outcome. We have now entered the lame duck session […]
December 1, 2020
Since we last reported to you, the world has continued to change. Fortunately, the Film Musicians Secondary Markets Fund’s (FMSMF) commitment to the work of collecting and distributing the secondary market residuals that are so critical to the lives and livelihoods of working musicians is unchanged. As working film/TV musicians are aware, with the onset […]
December 1, 2020
(en français) Broadcasting, and the sectors it supports, account for a huge economic impact on Canada’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In 2019, broadcasting alone accounted for $9.1 billion of GDP, revenues of $16.9 billion, and represented 41,901 jobs. Film and video were $4.3 billion of GPD, revenues of $13.9 billion, and 71,027 jobs. Music and […]