Simply put, Strength in Numbers! We can provide you with free live contracts, protection for your recordings, free rehearsal hall, Group Health Insurance, Discounts on Life and Health Insurance, Instrument Insurance, and much more. As Local 257's new website continues to develop, we will be offering more services for our members to help them network more effectively.

Recording "on the card" protects the work of the musicians in a variety of ways:

1.  It establishes a fair pay scale and a pension payment for all musicians on the session

2.  If the recording is used in another medium such as film, television, or a commercial having a "paper trail" will ensure that musicians receive a New Use payment.

3.  If there is ever a dispute about payment, Local 257 will have your back and work to ensure that you will be paid. If the paperwork is not handled properly at the time of the session, it will become more difficult to do this, so do yourself a BIG favor and take care of business on the front end - you won't regret it! 

Local 257 has a variety of recording scales, and a quick look at our "Recording" page should give you a good idea of which scale is right for the project you are recording. We have a yellow "Time Card" form, (hence the term "on the card) that has spaces for the type of session, employer information, place, time and duration of the session, song titles, and the names of all musicians, including the leader. This time card is the basis for the executed contract that will protect the players as well as the employer, and ensure proper scale and AFM pension payments are made. 

Every type of Union session requires a "Signatory", essentially a responsible party who agrees to adhere to the terms for the type of session being performed. These are separate forms, available from the Recording Department of Local 257 and also online on this website. In the case of Demo sessions, a signature on the time card by the employer or producer serves as a Signatory Agreement. All others are simple forms that spell out the rates and conditions of that type of recording project. A modest Health and Welfare payment (usually $22.50 per player for one session) and an AFM Pension payment equivalent to 11% of scale for each player, payable in one check to the AFM-EP Pension Fund, completes the transaction. 

This may sound complicated, but once you have done it a couple of times it becomes simple to "do the right thing." We are more than happy to walk you through it the first few times and make sure you understand the process.