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.
December 16, 2015
IM -According to USA Today, European regulators are investigating McDonald’s to determine if McDonald’s was given an unfair tax advantage by Luxembourg in breach of European Union state aid rules. US and European labor groups joined anti-poverty organization War on Want in issuing a report last February accusing McDonald’s of deliberately avoiding more than $1 billion in European corporate taxes from 2009 to 2013. The report contends that the company channeled royalty payments in a small Luxembourg-based subsidiary with a Swiss branch. The Luxembourg entity registered cumulative revenue of more than $3.2 billion during that period, yet paid only $16.9 million in taxes.
“For too long, McDonald’s has stashed billions in tax havens and ducked contributing to state coffers while simultaneously imposing poverty wages on its workers. McDonald’s has a clear record of mistreating workers and communities virtually everywhere it operates, and it’s time that the company be held accountable,” said Scott Courtney, organizing director of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).
“The purpose of double taxation treaties between countries is to avoid double taxation—not to justify nontaxation,” says Margrethe Vestager, the European Commission’s competition commissioner. The EU has been cracking down on sweetheart tax deals for US multinational corporations and has also recently looked into the tax affairs of Apple, Amazon, Starbucks, and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.