TTC Newsletter #1 - July 2024
CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE FULL PDF NEWSLETTER
Opening Message from the TTC Chairperson
Welcome to the first quarterly issue of the Touring Theater Committee (TTC) Newsletter, on the ROAD. Last year, the TTC met for the first time on Friday, May 5, 2023. Our committee has come a long way since then, voting to adopt our own set of bylaws to mirror Local 802’s Broadway Theater Committee on July 28, 2023. Between Friday, May 5, 2023, and Friday, May 3, 2024, the TTC met 23 times using Zoom, a cloud-based video communications platform. This committee represents the first time that members of the AFM Pamphlet B/SET bargaining unit have met on the road to compare experiences, share information about employer practices, and offer peer-to-peer support. For the past year, TTC meetings were held on a bi-monthly basis, with an average attendance of 17 participants, representing 12 out of 20 touring shows. Meetings were attended by stewards, alternate delegates, and side musicians. While the Pamphlet B/SET Agreement negotiation with the Broadway League remained a top priority, other road life concerns were also addressed including health & safety protocols, electronic music technology concerns, full company and Rule 24 layoff support, housing/per diem, instrument transport/travel issues and more. TTC officers are currently working on a 3-year action plan to achieve strategic goals for our bargaining unit before the current agreement expires on Feb. 28, 2027. The committee’s selected goals reflect the major concerns revealed by the April 15th MOA ratification results. With your help, we look forward to fostering better communication and improving road life conditions for everyone in the touring community.
Julie Ferrara
Chairperson, Touring Theatre Committee
Steward, Frozen the Musical, North American Tour (2020 – 2024)
———————————————————————————————————
New Pamphlet B Agreement Ratified by Musicians
Reprinted from AFM International Musician (IM) May 2024 edition, p.12
In April, successor theatrical musical Pamphlet B and Short Engagement Tour (SET) agreements, negotiated with the Broadway League and Disney Theatrical Productions, Inc., were ratified by the bargaining unit. The agreement became effective April 15 and will run until February 28, 2027. Retroactive pay and related items are due for musicians on shows that were running upon ratification.
With guidance and input from the musicians and the musician committee reps, the AFM Theatre/Touring/Booking Division was able to deploy two sets of surveys prior to the start of bargaining. The surveys provided the foundation for the union-side contract demands. That preparation ultimately paid off with sizeable gains realized in wages, health care, pension, travel penalties, and other areas of the contract that had not been addressed in decades.
Following is an overview of the major points of the settlement:
· Wages increase 3.5% from August 28, 2023, to August 25, 2024; 3% from August 26, 2024, to August 31, 2025; and 4.25% from September 1, 2025, to February 27, 2027.
· Vacation pay for SET will increase according to the same percentage rates and schedule. Health benefits for full Pamphlet B and SET will increase to $140 weekly.
· For those who participate in a Local’s health plan, the producer will continue to contribute $140 weekly if the touring musician is on a Rule 24 layoff for the length of the layoff.
· Musicians will earn one performance of paid sick leave for every four weeks of employment, with a cap of six performances per tour year. Up to three sick performances may be borrowed against future accruals in the tour year.
This successor agreement will achieve substantial economic improvements for musicians. These positive results were gained without conceding any significant benefits or protections from prior negotiations.
At the TTC meeting on April 19th, George Fiddler announced that he would begin visiting shows on the road for the first time since the Covid19 Pandemic, likely beginning with the new tours launching between now and the fall season and touring companies that perform in venues close to NYC, like Hartford, Connecticut and Buffalo, NY.
———————————————————————————
Activities Update - AFM Director of Touring
George Fiddler, AFM Director of Touring, visits bands on the road…begins hosting monthly AFM Steward meetings on Thursdays.
Update: On May 4 - 5, 2024, Fiddler traveled to Hartford, CT to visit with the Wicked Tour at the Hartford Bushnell Theater and with the Hadestown Tour in New Haven. Fiddler met with both touring bands and received feedback about the new Pamphlet B/SET MOA. Additionally, starting Thursday, April 25, George Fiddler began hosting Monthly AFM Steward Meetings on Zoom. These meetings are separate from TTC Meetings with an agenda set by AFM leadership. For more information about these meetings, onsite visits, or other touring contract concerns, please contact George at gfiddler@afm.org or (917) 229-0231.
—————————————————————————————
First new MOA in 7 years ratified by slim margin.
Pamphlet B/SET bargaining unit divided on MOA terms…members hopeful for increased representation at 2027 contract negotiations.
On Monday, April 15, 2024, AFM leadership announced the ratification of our new Pamphlet B/SET MOA by a slim majority. This was the first new Pamphlet B/SET agreement to be negotiated since 2016. Leadership was reportedly surprised by the number of members who vetoed the tentative agreement due to disappointment with wage increases, health care inequities, Rule 24 layoff rules, and a perceived lack of bargaining unit representation. Over the past year, members submitted AFM surveys that illustrated a desire to see wage increases that responded to inflation and offset the 3 years our bargaining unit went without receiving any raises. Other concerns about the new MOA included the negotiated health fund contributions which only benefit AFM members currently enrolled in New York, Las Vegas, or Los Angeles Health Benefit Plans (HBP) and the migration of SET working conditions into Full Pamphlet B. The biggest gains in the new MOA will be felt by the Short Engagement Tours (SET), while a loss of road life conditions will be felt by Full Pamphlet B travelers. In a historic first, the American Arbitration Associate (AAA Elections) report issued to the AFM was displayed for TTC meeting participants to view the ratification results. George Fiddler, Director of Touring, shared the confidential information due to “a climate that requires transparency.” For more about this report, please contact George Fiddler directly at gfiddler@afm.org. Ballot data remains confidential and unprintable.
Touring Player Reps increased by 25%, increasing from 2 to 3. All other negotiating team participants were Local Reps or AFM officers. Travelers hope for a better balance of representation at the 2027 bargaining table.
Another issue of great concern for the bargaining unit was the perceived lack of representation by Touring Player Reps at the bargaining table. The lack of functional knowledge by Local reps who never worked under the Pamphlet B/SET agreement gave rise to much concern from bargaining unit workers. While the appointed Player Reps increased by 25%, in real terms this change only equated to an increase from 2 to 3 player reps, plus one former player rep who is also a current AFM staff member. In light of the number of Local reps and AFM officers included on the negotiating team, this increase does not reflect equal representation of touring players. It is also important to note that unlike Broadway Theaters, Pamphlet B/SET tours operate under multiple contract terms that incorporate many different variables and changing contexts. While two or three player reps for the Broadway shows might be sufficient to represent collective concerns, this is not true for our national tours. Accordingly, at the April 19th TTC meeting, George Fiddler suggested that AFM leadership might potentially be open to considering greater participation from travelers, perhaps including both elected and appointed Player Reps, on future negotiating committees.
—————————————————————————-
SET vs. Full Pamphlet B gains in the new MOA
The new MOA achieved gains for SET, but also moved SET working conditions into the Full Pamphlet B terms. Here’s what that means.
SET - Short Engagement Tours or “SET” are tours that usually sit down in a city for one week or less. The pay and working conditions of these tours has historically been lower than Full Pamphlet B. The main selling point of SET is the potential to make “overages” which can sometimes offset the lower wage scale. However, overages are not guaranteed. While average weekly overages hover at around $500/wk, some tours like The Prom received overages averaging $12/wk, while tours like Beetlejuice and Mamma Mia have received up to $1200+/wk. It’s a gamble. If you are willing to take the risk, the payoff potential can make a SET tour very lucrative. But if you are not prepared to live on SET wages without overages (the current base side musician pay is $1,038.23/wk), consider carefully before signing on the dotted line. Additionally, the travel itinerary for many short engagement tours can be grueling. Rehearsals, late-night travel and quick turnarounds can make this lifestyle tiring for the body and soul. However, the new MOA won gains for the SET contract with increased wages of 3.5% in the 1st year (or roughly the cost of a 2nd piece of luggage), pension on overages, increased sick days, and more.
FULL PAMPHLET B - Tours that travel under Full contract terms receive a higher weekly wage without the opportunity to receive overages. These tours sit down in cities for two weeks or longer. However, due to bargaining concessions, SET working conditions have now been moved into Full Pamphlet B terms. For example, this means that companies are now allowed to schedule 32 performances in a 4-week period, allowing productions to perform back-to-back 9-show weeks, a working condition that was previously prohibited in the Full touring agreement. Combined with changes to housing and per diem rules in parity with Equity (that align closely with previous SET rules), Full Pamphlet B travelers may soon expect to feel differences in their working conditions.
—————————————————————————-
