Last Month at the Local

Last month several musicians contacted us about the South Florida Symphony, which has not paid musicians for any of the work they have performed since January 2015. The Local is currently exploring ways to put pressure on the orchestra to pay its musicians before the new season begins in November.

In the mean time, if you are contacted to perform, we strongly suggest that you decline until at least until the outstanding wages have been paid. If you are one of the musicians owed wages, we can assist you in filing wage theft claims in Broward and Miami-Dade counties; please contact us for more information.

Several musicians also contacted us about collecting pension from the AFM-EPF. If you have played a recording session for a major label, or played in an orchestra with a collective bargaining agreement, played on Broadway, played for a union contractor, etc. you probably have a pension account with the AFM-EPF. If you have sufficient contributions to become vested, the fund will send you a check every month once you retire, for the rest of your life. If you are approaching retirement age, you should contact the fund at least three months before you want to receive your first check, as there are some forms that need to be filled out before they can send you your first check. You can find more information about the fund at http://www.afm-epf.org.

If you attended the September membership meeting, than you! Member participation is important for the democratic process. Members elected Carey Kleiman and Iris van Eck to fill the vacancies created by the resignations of Directors Leon and Corcillo. Members also

 voted to adopt changes to the wage scales and Bylaws. Please contact the Local if you would like updated wage scale or bylaw booklets.