Musicians' Association Of Hawaii /Local 677

Who We Are!

The Musicians' Association of Hawaii Local 677 AFM was formed in 1923 and has about 500 members, is composed of mainly professional musicians but anyone with an interest in music may join. It is a statewide organization, part of the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada. The AFM has some 100,000 members.

Membership dues($200.00 per year) may be paid quarterly. There is also work dues of 4 1/2 % due on all jobs worked by our members.

The Musicians' Association of Hawaii does not set fees; we set minimums for different types of work.

Why We Belong!

We are the Professional Musicians of Hawaii. We act together to protect our mutual interests, to promote and conserve our common well-being, to agree on fair prices and conditions, and to enforce good faith and fair dealings in our profession. Working together as a union, we can do things better collectively than individually.

We Need Each Other

Musicians, like all other artists, are a constant target for economic and other exploitation. Only by the communication and cooperation we enjoy through our unity as an AFM Local and with the Federation can we effectively combat unscrupulous purchasers and booking agents. By mutually agreeing on fair standards for musical employment and adhering to those standards, we can frustrate the forces that would promote a "dog-eat-dog" environment in our profession for their personal profit.

We Have Local Representation

We are a democratic, self-governing organization. We establish our regulations and policies at membership meetings. Our officers - President, Vice President, Secretary/ Treasurer, and the seven Board of Directors - are elected by the membership for three year terms. e elect two delegates to represent our interests at conventions of the Federation where the Federation policies are determined. Our Local is affiliated with the State and Local Labor Councils of the AFL-CIO, giving us a powerful ally when needed to deal with the major problems of our profession.

Professional Pride

Our membership unites with the largest and finest organization of professional musicians in the world. We are joined together with the greatest names in the fields of recording, concerts, stage shows, television and night clubs. Whatever our chosen idiom, we stand secure in the knowledge that we, and only we, can truly call ourselves "Professional Musicians."

Local 677 also offers the following benefits.

Payroll Service - Part of the basic union wage scales in an amount for "payroll responsibility." To help with this, our payroll service is a full - service paymaster. This service can help our employers meet their payroll responsibility in accordance with Federal and State Law. It provides us with worker's compensation and temporary disability insurance. The filing of all Federal and State Employer Reports, and the issuance of payroll checks are done on our employer's behalf.
Rehearsal Rooms - that can accommodate from 1 to 60 + musicians.
Pension - ( Our pension fund provides some of the highest and most secure benefits in the industry. So long as the leader or purchaser has signed a participation agreement, a pension contribution of 5% or more of scale is made on our behalf. All nationally negotiated AFM agreements provide for pension contributions.
Medical - Kaiser Group Plans are available to members.
Job Referrals / Bookings - Our office helps those of us who have musical groups available or individuals looking for work to book professional engagements. It is like having our own yellow page ad. We can go into our local office and day of the week and scan a list of jobs available.
Directories and Referrals - The most frequently used service we enjoy is our ability to find other professional musicians for engagements when we need them - or, conversely, to make our own availability known to others. Often our office handles emergencies when musicians are needed to perform. Each year the local prepares a Directory listing of all musicians in our area by name and by their professional capacities. Another Directory lets us advise our fellow musicians about any businesses or other professions we have which they might patronize.
Periodicals - We receive the International Musician, the national publication of the AFM, and our local newsletter, Keola O Na Mele. Local 677 also publishes the Bugle, the award - winning newsletter of the Honolulu Symphony Musicians. Letters to the editor and other submissions for publication may be sent to: Editor677@aol.com
Legislative Programs - On both the State and National levels, Local 677 and the Federation are constantly working for legislation to improve our position as professional musicians.
Contract Department - Our contracts are the bedrock of our professional career. They are our protection. The contract department will assist us in preparing contracts for our professional engagements, and we can have our contracts personalized with our own groups' logo or other identification.
Assistance with Recording - When we make recordings, we can call on a wide variety if services from our Local. Recording agreements negotiated on our behalf by the Federation offer us many protections as well as residuals and pension credits, whether we are recording for others or creating our own product. In the latter case our local also provides expert assistance with copyright matters, with ASCAP and BMI forms and regulations, and in finding the best and most economical production resources. When we are finished, our Local, will even assist us in promoting and selling our completed product.
MPF, SRSPF & FMSMF Administration - The Federation has agreements with recording and film companies under which the latter pay a portion of their proceeds into special funds called Music Performance Fund, the Sound Recording Special Payments Fund and the Film Musicians Secondary Markets Fund. These funds provide support for live musical performances.
Credit Union - As union members, we have the option to join the Hotel and Travel Industry Federal Credit Union.
Negotiations and Collective Bargaining - We have the right to have our Local negotiate with employers on our behalf. With major employers such as the Honolulu Symphony, negotiated collective bargaining agreements cover wages and working conditions in extensive detail. The Federation negotiates international agreements with recording companies and booking agents. On most other jobs we use contracts based on Local 677's area standard wage scales and working conditions, established by our members.
Legal Assistance and Arbitration - Local performances under our standard contract form and our collective bargaining agreements are covered by a provision referring disputes or defaults in payment to binding arbitration, enforceable in a court of law. Should a purchaser be found in default on a contract, our Local will take the arbitration ruling to court, if necessary, to obtain a judgment against the defaulting party.
On - Site Travel Emergency Protection - If we encounter a default when we perform a union engagement away from our home Local, we can call the Federation for immediate assistance. This includes, when needed, flying a Federation representative to the site of the dispute to help us fight out and resolve the problem. If an immediate solution cannot be reached, the Federation will even advance us the money to get home or to proceed on to our next engagement. The Federation will then retain an attorney for us, at no cost to ourselves, and sue the defaulting purchaser for the money we are owed.
Other Convenient Services - To assist us in our musical engagements our union makes available to us a computer, fax machine and a copy machine which helps us get the word out when and where we are performing.
Union Privilege Program - Not phony, Not a gimmick. Not available to non-members. The AFM currently participates in several Union Privilege programs that offer reduced rates and savings on a host of consumer need. The AFM members can take advantage of the Union Privilege MasterCard program, home mortgage program, prescription drug discounts, loan program and legal services.