Why You Need to Join the Musicians' Union or ISM
- By Adam Mezzatesta
- musicians blog
- Updated: 03rd September 2024
As a live music agency, we're here to both protect the interests of the musicians we represent and offer a valued service to our clients. It's our job to ensure that the booking process is fair and straightforward and that all individuals involved fully understand the contracts they sign. However, this doesn't mean that occasional issues don't arise, so it's good to know that, as a working musician, there are various independent bodies there to support you.
The two main bodies in the UK are The Musicians' Union, of which I was a member for over 15 years, and the ISM, where we are now corporate members. Below we've outlined some of the benefits of membership and how signing up might help you throughout your musical career.
The Musicians' Union (MU)
I first joined the Musicians' Union (MU) as a result of being offered my first management deal. It wasn't a particularly detailed contract, but just because I was told 'it's only a standard contract' didn't mean I shouldn't use a qualified professional to check all was completely legit.
Without the budget to employ a professional lawyer, I decided to sign up to the MU, a long standing organisation that works hard to protect the rights of its 30,000 members as well as offering a number of services within the membership fee - including free legal advice.
The MU offer a range of other benefits that will undoubtedly help you throughout your career, below are some worth a mention from the perspective of an independent musician performing at functions and events:
1. Public Liability Insurance (PLI)
You never know what might happen at an event, so it's important to have your own Public Liability Insurance (PLI) in place at all times. PLI is something that's mentioned on almost every live music contract and is a requirement specified on all contracts issued here at Bands For Hire. It's also the most commonly requested document from venues, so before you even begin your function band career, you'll need to make sure you have a copy.
Luckily for you, MU membership comes with PLI cover of up to £10 million and is automatically renewed annually without lifting a finger. Even more reassuring is that an electronic copy of your PLI can be downloaded from the MU website on the day of your renewal.
2. £2,000 of instrument insurance cover
Many musicians simply don't bother to insure their instruments. It's either overlooked or is something considered unworthy of the added annual expense. Whilst you may be super-careful with your prize-winning Gibson, you just never know when an over-zealous audience member will feel the overwhelming desire to pick up said guitar and proudly flaunt their guitar skills to the remaining audience members. Ouch – it happened too many times to mention.
3. Free Legal Advice
Whether you've been offered a record contract, management deal or a long term cruise ship contract, you're going to want to tread carefully before signing on the dotted line. Legal contracts are often extremely intricate and difficult to decipher for the everyday musician - whilst it's good to be able to interpret contracts yourself, it's always handy to get feedback from a professional music industry lawyer who may spot something you've missed. The MU offer free legal advice to every one of its members – just one less thing to worry about when the time comes.
4. Unpaid Fee Recovery
It's hard to believe that a service such as 'Unpaid Fee Recovery' has to exist, but unfortunately we live in a world where unscrupulous individuals and companies will occasionally avoid paying musicians for their hard work! By working with an agency such as Bands For Hire, you already have a team of people on your side, but having an organisation such as the MU behind you as well will make your case even stronger.
5. Contract Templates
Many musicians work on a freelance basis and are therefore self-employed and responsible for their own contracts, whether that be for direct bookings, session musician work or teaching contracts. As a member of the MU you'll have access to download an array of contracts to suit your needs, each one with your interests covered – something I made use of for many years whilst working in a function band.
These are just some of the highlights from our perspective, but there are plenty of other benefits to joining the MU, such as personal accident cover, professional expenses cover, networking events, a partnership advisory service and career development advice.
Above all, the MU is here to provide a voice for all of its members, improving conditions for musicians everywhere. If you're a working musician, then that alone has got to be a good reason to show your support. For more information, head over to the MU website at https://www.musiciansunion.org.uk.
The Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM)
The Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) has striven to support musicians and advocate musicians’ rights since it was founded in 1882. Today, they support almost 10,000 members in the UK and Ireland – everyone from working musicians and music teachers to music students and retired musicians can benefit from becoming a member.
Find out below how they can help you progress in your musical endeavours, supporting and protecting you every step of the way.
1. Bespoke legal service
It may be a sweeping generalisation that creative types tend to shy away from the business aspects of their career, but most contracts and agreements you’ll encounter are likely to be riddled with complex legal jargon. The ISM therefore provides a bespoke legal service in-house, wherein they read through any contracts and agreements with a professional pair of eyes before you sign them, and offers templates and assistance when it comes to drafting your own contracts. They also keep their legal helpline open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, so you’ll never have to feel like you’re facing an uncomfortable disagreement alone.
One such uncomfortable situation most musicians find themselves in at some point in their careers is not being paid for their services. The ISM’s legal team recovers thousands of pounds in unpaid fees every year for their members, so if your run-in with an unscrupulous venue owner or your dispute over a clause in a contract leaves you out of pocket, you’ll soon receive the support you need.
2. Insurance
The ISM also provides Public Liability Insurance (PLI), which is essential for any musician considering a career in performance. You can never quite predict what can go wrong on the night. Moreover, PLI is often a requirement for concert venues, or for live music agencies you’re looking to sign up with. As an ISM member, you’ll receive free liability insurance with cover up to £10m, whether it’s public liability for an accident caused by your performance or during a lesson you’re teaching, product liability for an accident caused by something you’ve designed or repaired, or employer’s liability for accidental injuries inflicted on someone while they’re working for you, so as a member you’ll be fully prepared for your next musical undertaking. And the best thing is, you’ll be protected from the day you sign up.
Don’t worry – the ISM doesn’t just protect others from you! They also offer musical instrument and equipment insurance with discounts of up to 20% - and there’s no limit on the number of instruments you can cover. Many musicians don’t trouble themselves with insurance – but when you find yourself heading to the side of the stage to bring out your priceless early sixties Stratocaster only to discover someone’s accidentally knocked it over, you’ll be glad to have taken advantage of the ISM’s exclusive offer!
3. Professional community
When you join the ISM family, you’re more than just a customer – you’re part of a community. As such, you’ll be given the opportunity to attend Special Interest Groups and various networking events to discuss and shape the course that the music industry is taking, building useful professional relationships along the way. Not only will this help shape your own musical career, but it will also help ensure a better future for generations of musicians to come.
The ISM is also heavily involved in campaigning for the rights of musicians, whether they be performers, composers or educators. If you have any concerns about how you or other members of the music community are treated, the ISM will give you a voice, and that voice will be heard.
4. Professional and personal development
To help you become the best musician you can be, the ISM offers regular seminars and special events which provide valuable opportunities to network with other professional musicians and gain essential knowledge. They also offer webinars and other online advice on such key topics as royalties, self-promotion and copyright.
Another significant part of your development as a musician is your personal wellbeing, something the ISM takes very seriously. In addition to their legal helpline, their personal advice and support line is also open 24 hours, so they can lend you a friendly ear anytime, anywhere. If you start to feel the strain at any point in your musical enterprises, the ISM also works with their sister charity, the ISM Members Fund, to offer face-to-face counselling and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT). The ISM Members Fund has also just launched a pilot physiotherapy scheme, the first service of its kind offered on this scale in the music sector.
5. Enhanced visibility and presence
The ISM is more than willing to share their enhanced status with you. For example, if you’ve been teaching music to under 18s for six months or more, you can apply for Registered Private Teacher status, which includes a DBS check and certificates for you to display. If you’re a performer, session or otherwise, your affiliation with ISM will serve as a recognised credential.
Furthermore, the ISM can list your musical services for free on their Music Directory of music professionals – the only one of its kind in the UK – as well as promoting your gigs or concerts in their bi-monthly magazine, ISM Music Journal. It’s a fantastic way to hear about and be heard by the best professional musicians working today.
