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How To Get A Properly Paid Gig

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Award rates have the force of law when musicians are “employees” and prescribe the minimum that can be legally paid. Many musicians incorrectly assume that they are not employees either because they are required to supply an ABN or because their work is casual, in fact neither of these factors is sufficient, by itself, to settle the question. Whether you are an “employee” or an “independent contractor” in a specific instance is a complex question that is beyond the scope of this series, I suggest you contact the Musicians Union for further clarification. 

Even if you are not an employee, the award rates still give useful guidance. Independent contractors do not receive several benefits which employees do and should therefore be paid at a higher rate than the award. If this is not being offered then the price is probably unfair.

You should become familiar with the way the awards work and be aware of extra allowances and the meanings of the various categories. This is not just a matter of a single set fee or an hourly rate. You can view the Musicians’ General Award at:

http://www.airc.gov.au/consolidated_awards/AT/AT787976/asframe.html

The other advantage of being familiar with award minimums is that you can tell venue owners and others that these are objectively set rates.

Next time we will look at the notion of “going rates”.

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An Addictive Personality May Just Give You The dge

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Gone are the days of requesting pink poodles and only white jelly babies in your dressing room, for most of us humble working musicians it’s a case of squeezing in the practice around endless hours of what seems to be non-musical tasks. Things like printing CDs, distributing posters, sending out press releases, organising gear and travel – not to mention trying to earn a crust in between panicking, trying to budget a bouncing cheque book and a general feeling of too much to do with too little time and not nearly enough money.

But for most musicians that is the reality these days – so why my dear friends do we still do it? Well this month, The Dues caught up with two independent musicians, Jeff Lang and Kristy Coote, to find out just what keeps them going when the going gets tough. Is it simply that our powerful creative urge is so strong that it compensates for all the hard work, or can the business side of the industry be just as addictive? For those of us who like a challenge and to never say die, it certainly provides enough highs and lows to keep you interested. If you’re anything like me – the phrase ‘can’t be done’ is like a red-rag to a bull and I must admit I do take a macabre pleasure in proving the impossible possible. However as I get a little older, and a little more pregnant, I am leaning more towards having a good cup of tea and leaving the challenges up to those who are a little less well rounded.

But I do think having a addictive personality is a useful pre-requisite for self-managed artists – at least it helps – as when most sane people would be saying this isn’t worth it – we are saying ‘just one more gig’ or ‘this might be the press pack that finally gets noticed’. Musicians are nothing if not an optimistic lot and I myself am all for that. After all if you have a choice, I’d rather have a half full glass any day, even if it is only half full of unfinished to do lists.

So with only two weeks to go until the Headhunters grace the shores of Australia for the first time and with only twelve weeks to go until we meet our new baby (we’re hoping for a lawyer or an accountant) it looks like sleep will not be high on the priority list. But perhaps that’s a good thing as apparently I’ve got to get used to sleep deprivation – and what could be more rock and roll than that.

Til next time, I’m Megan Albany; say hi to my mum for me – because I probably won’t have time to.

Til next time,

MEGAN ALBANY

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