Local 1000 October 2018 Newsletter
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
This is our regular monthly email newsletter. It includes reminders, member news and important announcements from the Executive Board and the office.
News from the Executive Board
Call for Nominations!
Nominations are open for the following Local 1000 Executive Board positions: Vice President from the US, Eastern Representative, and Western Representative (1 year term).
Nominations are also open for up to three delegates to the AFM convention taking place in Las Vegas in June 2019.
The nominating committee is charged to ensure that there is at least one nominee for each open position. Nominations are open until the end of call for nominations at the Fall 2018 Local 1000 Membership Meeting. (Membership meeting details are below.)
If you are interested in running or would like to nominate a candidate, please contact our Nominations Committee Chair, Charlie King at vaguelyrem@aol.com
Fall Membership Meeting at NERFA
Our final Membership Meeting for the year will take place on Friday, November 9, 2018, 10am EST at the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance conference in Stamford, CT.
Please mark your calendars and plan to attend!
Location:
Twain Room
Crowne Plaza Hotel
2701 Summer Street
Stamford, CT 06905
There is a $15 discount available for Local 1000 members registering for NERFA. Please contact together@local1000.org for the discount code. You do not need to be registered for the conference to attend the Local 1000 membership meeting.
We will also once again be hosting our popular Showcase Free Zone sessions in the Twain Room. Please join us!
Showcase Free Zone Schedule and Hosts
THU, Nov. 9th, 11:45 pm – 2 am – Scott Berwick
FRI, Nov. 10th, 11:45 pm – Sally Rogers
FRI, Nov. 11th, 1:00 am – John O’Connor
SAT, Nov. 12th, 11:45 pm – Bev Grant
SAT, Nov. 12th, 1:00 am – Carolann Solebello
Report to Members from the Finance Committee
The Finance Committee (appointed by the President) meets regularly with the Secretary-Treasurer. It is composed of: Cathy Fink, Scott Berwick & Steve Eulberg (Chair) [Scott and Steve are both former Secretary-Treasurers of the Local.]
We have examined the financial reports through Aug 2018 and find them to be accurate and honest.
We have proposed the only cost-saving measure we can find: We have discussed and explored a changes in our dues-paying structure to better serve our membership with our staff and have made recommendations to the Board. These recommendations would require a By-Law Change.
We notice with concern that Work Dues Payments continue on a decreasing trend and recommend continued efforts to recruit members to make Work Dues Equivalency Payments, and make use of our recurring payments auto-withdrawal feature.
We have prepared a Proposed 2019 Budget for review by the Executive Board which assumes staffing at the 2018 level, includes funds for the AFM Federation Meeting and a Membership Gathering.
Respectfully submitted,
Steve Eulberg
Finance Committee Chair, Local 1000 AFM
New Member Orientation Calls
Each Quarter the Local 1000 Board hosts a Cyber Union Hall meeting for all new Union Members. This call is an informative chance to learn about the value of your membership in AFM Local 1000. In addition to learning about the Local there will be time set aside to ask any questions you have about membership and to share your vision for the local. We will have two sessions in October, an afternoon session and an evening session. The calls will be one hour in length and can be accessed via your computer or phone. The links for these calls are listed below. Please make sure you click on the correct time slot for the call you wish to attend. (Please note: The times listed are Central Standard Time). If you have any questions you can contact US Vice President, Aaron Fowler at vicepresident@local100.org or call him at 316-207-4715.
Afternoon Session
Time: Oct 16, 2018 3:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/250010800
Or iPhone one-tap :
US: +1-646-558-8656, 250010800# or +1-669-900-6833, 250010800#
Or Telephone:
US: +1-646-558-8656 or +1-669-900-6833
Canada: +1-647-558-0588
Meeting ID: 250 010 800
International numbers available here
Evening Session
Time: Oct 16, 2018 7:30 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/378309733
Or iPhone one-tap :
US: +1-669-900-6833, 378309733# or +1-646-558-8656, 378309733#
Or Telephone:
US: +1-669-900-6833 or +1-646-558-8656
Canada: +1-647-558-0588
Meeting ID: 378 309 733
International numbers available: https://zoom.us/u/abhSqOu7EL
Update to AFM-EPF Rehabilitation Plan – New LS-1 form now available
On June 22nd an important update from the AFM-EPF went out to our members:
https://afm-epf.org/Portals/2/AFMDocuments/RehabUpdate_201806.pdf
Essentially this is an update to the rehabilitation plan originally put in place in 2011 for the Employer Pension Fund.
CBA contracts negotiated after August 1, 2018 will need to include a 10% increase to the employer pension contributions. For example if your contribution was previously $100 monthly, your new pension contribution under this updated rehabilitation plan would be $110 monthly. The Valid Pension Contribution Rates listed on the back of the LS-1 contact will also increase 10%, so if your rate was previously 10.9%, the corresponding rate will become 11.99%.
Regarding LS-1s, although these increases should technically begin on August 1, 2018, the Fund recognizes prices may already have been negotiated for upcoming work, so they have administratively given Single Engagements an extra 3 month phase in period and will be looking for the increase to be paid on work occurring November 1, 2018 and later.
Please be sure to read the announcement above from the EPF for the entire update. The office is in touch with the AFM-EPF regarding this issue, so please let us know if you have any questions about this.
AFM-EPF Webinar
[Note: This message was recently sent directly to all Fund participants along with a registration link. Please check your inbox for their email!]
On Tuesday, October 9 at 5:30 p.m. EDT (4:30 p.m. CDT, 3:30 p.m. MDT, 2:30 p.m. PDT), the AFM-EPF will hold a one-hour webinar for Fund participants. This webinar will provide an update on our engagement with Congress to produce legislation that protects our Pension Fund and your retirement security.
Participants will be able to ask questions about the state of the Congressional Joint Select Committee on the Solvency of Multiemployer Pension Plans and how you can make your voice heard in Congress.
Webinar attendance must be limited due to cost considerations, and will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis. However, the webinar will subsequently be archived and made available to all participants via the AFM-EPF website.
Participants may only register using the email address that is on file with the Fund Office.
Any participants who have not yet provided their email address to the Fund may do so by registering on the Fund website.
Webinar attendance will be finalized by Monday, October 8, at which time all registrants will be notified by email of their attendance status. Attendees will receive a unique link to access the webinar at the scheduled start time.
Pension Contributions – Reminder to Avoid Late Fees!
Just a reminder: Pension contributions need to be received by Local 1000 no later than 1 month after the engagement. For example: if you do work in February we should receive your contracts and payments for pension contributions no later than the end of March, otherwise you risk being fined by the AFM-EPF $25 per engagement submitted.
Dues Increase
At the membership meeting on June 24, members approved a motion to increase annual dues by $5 to US$177 per year, or $46.75 per quarter. This dues increase will take effect as of October 1, 2018 and will be reflected on invoices for the fourth quarter of 2018 and forward. As noted in previous newsletters, the increase will help us cover our basic operating costs.
Scales Increase
At the recent membership meeting, members approved a motion to increase Local 1000 wage scales. Information about the proposed increases has been in the last few newsletters, but in the meeting members also voted to increase the scale for K-12 engagements from $200 to $220 to match the AFM’s MPTF scale for those concerts. In addition, solo concert scale has gone up $20 to $250, solo small concert scale increased from $110 to $120. Ensemble scales for small concerts went from $110 to $120 for the leader, and $50 to $60 for a side person. All other scales remain the same. The entire revised schedule of scales is available on our website here. Local 1000 scales are the MINIMUM that members must use for contracted engagements, members are always free to negotiate higher fees.
Canadian Corner
P2 Updates
The CFM is now advising Canadian members applying for P2 visas to get their application in at least 60 days before the first engagement.
If you are applying, please make sure you download the latest application, which can be found here:
English: http://www.cfmusicians.org/services/work-permits
French: http://www.cfmusicians.org/services/permis-de-travail
Please contact Canadian VP Kev Corbett or the CFM for more information.
Member News
Do you have a new album coming out? Did you recently receive an award?
If you have exciting news to share with Local 1000 members, we want to know. Submit Your News Here!
Local 1000 Membership Update
New and Reinstated Members
We are excited to welcome the following new and recently reinstated members to Local 1000!
Marcus Browne
Eldan Cohen
October Birthdays
Finally, we would like to wish the following members Happy Birthday! If your birthday falls in October and you don’t see it listed below, or if the date is incorrect, please send an email to our Birthday Bunny, Deborah Van Kleef with your birthdate, current phone number and email address.
| 10/01 Seamus Kennedy
10/04 Kathy Peters 10/05 Sandra Wong 10/07 Samuel Gleaves 10/07 Annie Patterson 10/08 Leigh Cline 10/08 Alexandra Ribera 10/09 Orit Shimoni 10/11 Anna Gallup 10/12 Jadea Kelly 10/15 Merritt Janes 10/15 Erin McKeown 10/16 Elizabeth Curry 10/16 Beatrix Methe 10/16 Deborah Van Kleef 10/18 Mara Levine 10/19 Nancy Mike 10/20 Jennifer Camp 10/21 Julia Lane 10/21 Danny Lapidus 10/23 Margaret Nelson 10/23 Evo Bluestein |
10/23 Yann Falquet
10/24 Denise Levac 10/24 Lowry Olafson 10/25 Maura Kennedy 10/25 Laura Spink 10/26 Chris Quinn 10/27 Rayna Farr 10/27 Marshall Volt 10/28 Monica Leo 10/28 James Keelaghan 10/28 Lee Starck 10/28 Kevin Maul 10/28 Bob Wright 10/29 David Gans 10/29 Jamie Anderson 10/30 Jordan Safer 10/31 Thomas Begich 10/31 Gordon Bok 10/31 Mike Mezzatesta 10/31 Tom Paxton 10/31 Carl Rufh |
In Solidarity,
AFM Local 1000