Allegro

Executive Board Minutes

September 24, 2002 -- October 15, 2002

Volume CII, No. 12December, 2002

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2002

Meeting called to order at 11:30 a.m. Present: President Moriarity, Recording Vice-President Price, Financial Vice-President Hafemeister, Executive Board members Blumenthal, Crow, Gale, Giannini, Landolfi, Reynolds, Rohdin, Shankin and Weiss, Controller Bogert, Assistant to the President Dennison, Assistant Director Lennon, Jazz Advisory Committee Liaison Owens.

Minutes of Sept. 10 unanimously approved as amended.

Financial Vice-President Hafemeister reported that Manager of Information Systems Cardillo would be devoting 21/two-days per week to programming for Local 802’s Health Benefits Plan (HBP). He had been instructed to log the amount of time spent, and that information will be submitted to the HBP Trustees at their next meeting with a request for reimbursement (see minutes of Sept. 10).

Minutes of Sept. 17 unanimously approved as amended.

President Moriarity reported that the Coordinating Advisory Committee (CAC) had approved, on June 18, an allocation of up to $1,500 for the Goldman Memorial Band to print programs for the scheduled concerts of summer 2002. It was noted that the Executive Board had not received a report from the CAC in order to vote on this matter. Moriarity read the bylaw relating to the voting and approval procedure for grants from the Special Projects and Services Fund. In the discussion that followed it was noted that Executive Board concurrence had previously been made after CAC minutes had been approved at a succeeding CAC meeting. Since the CAC had not met for a three-month period, the Executive Board had not been able to consider this matter in the usual timely manner. Motion made and carried that the CAC be requested to send a report of its decision of the June 2002 meeting regarding the Goldman Memorial Band to the Executive Board immediately so that the Executive Board could act. Opposed: Blumenthal

Assistant Director Lennon submitted a request to engage a researcher to assist in research on the Broadway theatre industry in preparation for the upcoming negotiations. The project is to be a collaborative effort with the Theatre Department. The estimated cost was $3,000 plus employee benefits. Discussion held. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Moriarity submitted a request for reimbursement of negotiating expenses of $381.85 for Ron Wasserman of the NYC Ballet negotiating committee. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Moriarity reported on a recently held Broadway theatre strategic planning meeting at Cornell University.

Giannini excused at 1:12 p.m.

Business Rep Delia submitted a memorandum of agreement with Peter Hyde d.b.a. Cherniak Dance Co. for performances at Joyce Soho Dance Studios in October and November 2002. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Delia submitted a memorandum of agreement with Staten Island Symphony for the term of Sept. 1, 2002 through Aug. 1, 2004. This extends the CBA that is in place with several changes and amendments which Delia reviewed. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve subject to ratification by the musicians. Delia excused.

Assistant to the President Dennison submitted a request for tickets to the Working Theatre production of Labor on Broadway in the amount of 15 tickets at $50 each for a total of $750. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Meeting adjourned at 1:25 p.m.


TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2002

Meeting called to order at 11:35 a.m. Present: Recording Vice-President Price, Financial Vice-President Hafemeister, Executive Board members Blumenthal, Crow, Gale, Giannini, Landolfi, Shankin and Weiss, Controller Bogert, Assistant to the President Dennison, Assistant Director Lennon, Jazz Advisory Committee Liaison Owens. President Moriarity excused to attend negotiations at Lincoln Center. Hafemeister chaired the meeting.

Minutes of Sept. 24 unanimously approved as amended.

Motion made and carried unanimously to affirm the telephone poll of the Executive Board on Sept. 26 that unanimously voted non-concurrence with the CAC allocation of up to $1,500 for the Goldman Memorial Band printing of programs for their 2002 summer season of concerts (see minutes of Sept. 24). Assistant Director Lennon reported on a grievance hearing with the Goldman Memorial Band.

Financial Vice-President Hafemeister reported on her and Lennon’s attendance at the New Jersey State Conference of Musicians where she and Lennon presented the AFL-CIO MEMO program for the attending local officers.

It was reported that Local 8 (Milwaukee) had voted to ban contractors as elected officials on its Executive Board.

Assistant to the President Dennison reported on his attendance at a meeting of Coalition of Broadway Unions and Guilds (COBUG), a group that seeks a greater voice in the activities of the theatre industry and the theatre district in New York. Discussion held.

Dennison distributed a special situation request according to the League agreement. The request from Richard Frankel Productions for the upcoming show, Little Shop of Horrors, included letters of support from the composer Alan Menken and orchestrator Danny Troob. Discussion held during which it was noted that a theatre had not yet been selected and that in light of the request the minimum number of musicians could not be determined. After the discussion Dennison was instructed to write a letter citing reasons the board would be likely to deny the request.

Dennison submitted an agreement with the Children’s Theatre Company of Minneapolis for a production entitled A Year With Frog and Toad, appearing at the New Victory Theatre from Sept. 12 through Dec. 30. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Motion made and carried unanimously to affirm the telephone poll of the Executive Board on Sept. 27 that granted a request for an archival audio-video recording by Musical Theatre Works of a performance on Sept. 30 at La Guardia High School.

Meeting recessed at 1:10 p.m.

Meeting resumed at 2:15 p.m. Present: Price, Hafemeister, Blumenthal, Crow, Gale, Giannini, Landolfi, Shankin, Bogert, Dennison, Owens.

Legislative Director Beaudoin appeared before the board to report that a meeting of the NYC Council Health Committee will take place at City Hall on Oct. 10, to consider testimony for the Smoke Free Workplace Bill. Interested Local 802 members, staff and elected officials were urged to attend in support of this legislation.

Beaudoin submitted a recommendation for endorsement of George Martinez, candidate for City Council. Motion made and carried unanimously to endorse George Martinez. Motion made and carried unanimously to contribute $250 from TEMPO802 to the George Martinez campaign.

Motion made and carried unanimously to endorse Alan Hevesi, candidate for state comptroller.

Motion made and carried unanimously to contribute $250 from TEMPO802 to Kevin Parker’s campaign for City Council.

Motion made and carried unanimously to purchase three tickets at $50 each, total $150, for Beaudoin, Hafemeister and Lennon to attend Crain’s Business Breakfast on Arts and Culture on Oct. 2.

Beaudoin informed the board of a tentative meeting of the city council’s Cultural Affairs Committee that will consider testimony on the “Truth in Advertising” bill, one of Local 802’s legislative initiatives. All were invited to attend and support this bill. Beaudoin thanked and excused.

Organizing Director Eisman appeared before the board to report on the organizing campaign at the Elaine Kaufman Cultural Center. He distributed several samples of management letters to faculty that were against the union and also distributed Local 802 material in favor of the campaign. Discussion followed in which Eisman detailed the progress of the campaign.

Price distributed to the board a list of Broadway musicians for whom he had granted leaves of absence.

Meeting adjourned at 3:00 p.m.


TUESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2002

Meeting called to order at 11:30 a.m. Present: President Moriarity, Recording Vice-President Price, Financial Vice-President Hafemeister, Executive Board members Blumenthal, Gale, Landolfi, Reynolds and Shankin, Controller Bogert, Assistant to the President Dennison, Assistant Director Lennon, Jazz Advisory Committee Liaison Owens.

Minutes of Oct. 1 unanimously approved as amended.

Financial Vice-President Hafemeister noted that the $150 voted for tickets to Crain’s Breakfast on Art and Culture on Oct. 2 was not spent because the event had been oversubscribed (see minutes of Oct. 1).

Members Tony Cecere, Dan Braden, Don Batchelder and Bill Shadel, members of the Westfield (N.J.) Symphony Orchestra committee, appeared before the board to inform the board of a possible proposal for fundraising to assist the orchestra in its operation. Discussion held. The committee was thanked and excused.

Assistant Director Lennon submitted a letter from the Miller Theatre at Columbia University that requested permission to pay day rates for a scheduled evening rehearsal that is in preparation for a concert on Dec. 3. Lennon was instructed to obtain more information regarding the concert and then to resubmit the request.

Lennon submitted an agreement with the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) for the services of musicians for the FDNY/IAFF memorial service at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 12. St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble will serve as payroll agent for the employer. Lennon reviewed the contract for the board. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Board member Weiss present at 11:55 a.m.

Price submitted for the board’s information and approval a proposal to change from our current telephone supplier to service by Verizon, the major telephone company in the Northeast. Verizon is a union company with a CBA with the Communication Workers of America. The board instructed Price to have Building Supervisor Jaffe prepare a cost analysis and comparison and present this information to the board at the next meeting.

Price submitted a request from MIS Director Cardillo for hardware, software and network technical training through several courses by New Horizons Computer Learning Center. If approved, the courses would be taken over a period of several months so as not to interfere with his duties and to spread the cost over two years. The total cost for three courses would be $4,275. Discussion held. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Price submitted a request from the Interfaith Committee of Remembrance for permission to use public service scale for their concert with the Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on Nov. 9. Discussion held during which Price was instructed to refer this request to the Concert Department for consultation.

President Moriarity reported that Joy Portugal had resigned as editor of Allegro and that Senior Organizer Mikael Elsila had been appointed and had moved from the Organizing Department to be the new editor. Moriarity outlined the contemplated salary structure and also noted that Elsila requested a computer to work at home on Allegro material. Discussion held. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve the appointment, the salary structure and the request for the computer.

Discussion held on the current hiring freeze, staff, legal, organizing and recording matters.

Lennon excused at 12:25 p.m.

Meeting recessed at 1:00 p.m.

Meeting resumed at 2:30 p.m. Present: Moriarity, Price, Hafemeister, Blumenthal, Gale, Landolfi, Shankin, Weiss, Bogert, Dennison, Lennon.

Organizing Director Eisman appeared before the board to submit an agreement with the Midori Foundation for their teaching artists. Discussion held. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve. Eisman excused.

Moriarity resumed the earlier discussion regarding the Organizing and Recording departments and staff matters.

Moriarity submitted an agreement with OPEIU Local 153, which represents the clerical staff at Local 802, and reviewed its terms and conditions. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Meeting adjourned at 3:30 p.m.


TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2002

Meeting called to order at 11:25 a.m. Present: President Moriarity, Recording Vice-President Price, Financial Vice-President Hafemeister, Executive Board members Blumenthal, Crow, Landolfi, Reynolds, Rohdin, Shankin and Weiss, Controller Bogert, Assistant to the President Dennison, Assistant Director Lennon, Jazz Advisory Committee Liaison Owens.

Minutes of Oct. 8 unanimously approved as amended.

Price reported that Office Manager Jaffe, in response to the board’s request for information regarding the proposed telephone changeover to Verizon (see minutes of Oct. 8), would have a Verizon representative appear before the board to make a presentation and answer any questions the board might have.

Price also reported on his consultation with the Concert Department regarding the interfaith concert at St. John the Divine in November. The request for public service scale was not relevant since MPTF funds became available for the concert.

Discussion held on staff and supervisory matters.

Board member Giannini present at 11:40 a.m. during the previous discussion.

Assistant Recording Supervisor Schaffner and Contract Administrator Hannen appeared before the board to report that 20 musicians that appeared on a wedding special on NBC’s Today Show in 2001 had not been paid due to a misunderstanding and a miscommunication between Local 802, NBC and Hank Lane Music. Three musicians who had appeared on camera had been paid TV scale by NBC, but NBC refused to pay for the remaining musicians since they did not appear on camera and Hank Lane’s legal counsel had previously obtained a release from Local 802 for wages since Local 802 had the understanding that NBC would pay these wages. Schaffner and Hannen recommended that Local 802 settle the outstanding wages and benefits by a payment from the interest in the escrow recording account as follows: single engagement club date scale of $175 per musician plus $21 for HBP and 10 percent AFM-EPF on videotape scale of $281.60. Discussion held. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve. Schaffner and Hannen excused.

Members Don Batchelder and Dan Braden of the Westfield Symphony Orchestra (WSO) committee along with Business Rep Delia appeared before the board to submit a management request to include unpaid student musicians in a concert at Montclair State University (MSU), made possible through a grant from the Crawford Foundation, on Dec. 8. The MSU students would be used in addition to the full complement of musicians on the WSO primary hiring list. The committee recommended the proposal with the proviso that the performance and any additional rehearsals be treated in all respects as a subscription concert, regardless of any MPTF funding, and that wages and benefits be paid to all musicians, other than MSU students, in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve. Batchelder and Braden excused.

Assistant Director Lennon resubmitted the request from the Miller Theatre to pay evening rehearsal at day rates with additional information that the professional singers of the chorus are not available Sunday morning due to commitments to sing in various church services and the orchestral musicians are unavailable in the afternoon due to various matinee performances. The evening rehearsal would resolve the scheduling problems. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve with the proviso to excuse any musicians with a conflicting engagement.

President Moriarity reported that an arbitration hearing regarding dismissal of a NY Philharmonic musician had been held. He submitted expenses in the amount of $195.97 for a witness, a member of the Minnesota Orchestra, who had traveled to New York to testify on behalf of Local 802 in support of the musician. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Moriarity reported that a meeting will be held Oct. 15 with the band from the CBS David Letterman Show to discuss the stalled TV Videotape negotiations.

Assistant to the President Dennison reported on meetings held with off-Broadway producer Ben Sprecher, who was representing the Little Shubert, Variety Arts and Promenade Theatre. Discussion held on music preparation for off-Broadway.

Giannini excused at 1:05 p.m.

Dennison submitted an agreement with Innovative Music Programs, Inc. a/k/a Shem Guibory, for terms and conditions of employment of musicians. Motion made and carried unanimously to approve.

Reynolds excused at 1:10 p.m.

Controller Bogert distributed and reviewed financial reports for August 2002 and January through August 2002.

Moriarity reported that members Robert Hardwick and Sheldon Gordon had entered an appeal to the AFM-IEB from a decision of Local 802’s Trial Board (see June Allegro).

Motion made and carried unanimously to approve the September 2002 vouchers.

Meeting adjourned at 1:15 p.m.