Organizing

The Union Difference, and Why It Matters

August 1, 2022

As our cover story this month illustrates, the lines between opportunity and employment are often blurred in the minds of working musicians. Whether we are “students” who are being paid less than professionals, or freelance musicians eager to take every opportunity, it is easy to rationalize that the details don’t matter, or that the connections […]

We Must Be the Change We Need

August 1, 2022

I often hear certain themes from local officers and committee members when talking about organizing: people just don’t want to join, it’s too difficult, people aren’t showing up for meetings, etc. The repetition of these negative affirmations can make it seem like organizing is a magical thing that only a certain few people can achieve. […]

The Recipe for Successful Organizing Campaigns

August 1, 2022

From Starbucks to Amazon to musical workplaces, the ingredients of a labor campaign are universal—and like any great recipe, there are no shortcuts. This year saw inspiring worker wins at two major—and notoriously anti-union—corporations: Amazon and Starbucks. And these workers did it themselves, outside the framework of existing unions, forming the Amazon Labor Union and […]

New Initiatives Toward a Brighter 2022 for Freelance Musicians

January 1, 2022

by Wages Argott, AFM Director of Freelance Services and Membership Development Let’s talk about 2021, our first full calendar year under the shadow of COVID-19. I, like everyone else, finished 2020 grateful that my family and I were alive and healthy and we all still had roofs over our heads. I gave little thought to […]

2021 YEAR IN REVIEW — In Unity, There Is Strength

December 1, 2021

January The Riot on Capitol Hill On January 6, a violent mob of President Donald Trump supporters sought to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election by disrupting the joint session of Congress assembled to formalize President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. On January 7, AFM President Ray Hair issued this statement: “The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and […]

Musicians Return to the Pit as Touring Shows Reopen

November 1, 2021

by Tino Gagliardi, AFM Director of Theatre, Touring, and Booking Division It’s been a long time coming, but after 18 months, Broadway’s touring shows have finally reopened. Officially, the pandemic has not been declared “over,” but touring musicians, on-location musicians, stagehands, and production crews are returning to work. In 2020, 23 AFM-covered touring productions were […]

Time to Ask “The Question”

September 1, 2021

by Dave Pomeroy, International Executive Board Member and President of Local 257 (Nashville, TN) Over the past few decades, even before the pandemic, almost everything about the way we make records has been transformed. Hit recordings are being made in bedrooms and basements as well as big commercial studios. Music consumers have more choices than […]

What Is Organizing, Anyway?

August 1, 2021

Welcome to the first Organizing-focused issue of the International Musician. You may be familiar with the phrase “organizing is the lifeblood of labor unions,” but what exactly is organizing? Broadly, it is people joining together around shared issues to build collective power and win positive change. In my early career as a touring theater musician, […]

David vs. Goliath: Musicians Take on HBO—and Win

August 1, 2021

When it comes to labor organizing, it takes hard work and collective action to win. But often it only takes one person to start that change in motion. In March, cellist Theo Zimmerman of Local 802 (New York City), one of a group of musicians from all over the Northeast, was contacted about several days […]

Organizing for a Successful Campaign: A Study from Fort Wayne

July 31, 2021

When we think of union campaigns, we often think of people in the streets, a media presence, and pressure from the public, but these are actually the fruits of successful organizing that preceded them. Any organizer who has run a successful campaign knows the amount of preparation, research, and planning that is put in ahead […]