Who do I talk to about a problem on my show? How do I get vested in the pension fund? How do I find work as a freelancer? Is my gig covered under a union contract and what does that mean? What does the union do?

New members (and even some veterans) have lots of questions about Local 802 — and we have answers! Musicians join the union for a variety of reasons. Some join because it’s required by a contract; others simply want to be part of our community. In any case, once you join, you discover a world of benefits. Some may even surprise you. It’s our task to introduce you to the many advantages of membership. We also want you to feel welcome, informed, and confident on the job — and know that Local 802 always has your back.

Once everything shut down in March 2020, our priorities shifted dramatically from normal day-to-day operations to advising members about unemployment benefits, building up our Emergency Relief Fund, scrambling to find ways to keep members on the health plan, and a million other things that needed immediate attention. With our building closed, we suspended some operations, including our new member orientation meetings. Surprisingly, even with very little work happening during the shutdown, we gained new members. We are thrilled to officially welcome over 300 new and reinstated members who joined between January 2020 and October 2021. That number includes around 20 members who transferred from the defunct AFM Local 38-398 (covering Larchmont, NY and surrounding areas).

I am pleased to invite all new members to the next new membership orientation meeting on Thursday, November 4 at 11am on Zoom. If you can’t make that time, we’ll hold another meeting on Thursday, December 2 at 6pm. Both meetings are being held remotely for health and safety reasons, although we are hoping to resume in-person meetings beginning in January.

• Please register and get the Zoom code for Thursday, Nov. 4 (11am to 12 noon) by clicking here.
• Please register and get the Zoom code for Thursday, Dec. 2 (6pm to 7pm) by clicking here.

(New members only have to sign up for one meeting.)

LOCAL 802 is 100

Happy 100th birthday, Local 802! Our centennial celebration on October 12 was a success! We got lucky with the weather and enjoyed a gorgeous day at the Naumberg Bandshell in Central Park. Six different musical groups performed a wide variety of music, and we heard over a dozen politicians speak in support of Local 802 — including Senator Chuck Schumer. Check out some of the photos here. Thank you to all who participated, organized and attended this great event!

The Local 802 centennial celebration was a smash success! Photo (c) Purple Critter Media