[Dixielandjazz] Now New Years Eve Fees.

[TCASHWIGG at aol.com]

Comes as no surprise,


The Disney Organization has as long as I can remember been the MacDonald's, 
Burger King, of the entertainment world.

They have never had any regard for musicians other than regular employees 
ranked and respected right alongside the kids picking up the trash and the food 
service personnel, ticket takers etc.

They are an equal opportunity employer, they pay everybody low, as do many 
other theme parks, unless you think union scale is good money.

The ONLY time I ever worked for UNION SCALE was the first week I joined the 
Musician's Union,   the union rep came to the club I was working and had a chat 
with the owner and then came to me and said we should really join the union 
because we were really good players and if we joined the union the club owner 
had agreed to pay us UNION SCALE.

Well we were young and dumb back in the mid 1960s, and ran right down the 
next day and plunked out $116.00 each to sign up.   Went back to work that night 
and worked the rest of the week as usual.   On Saturday night I went into the 
back office to get paid and the club owner handed me $19.50 per man per night 
for six nights of work per man which equaled $117.00 - taxes, and union work 
dues it came to $87.75 per week for the sidemen and I got $10.00 a night extra 
for leaders fees.  I had a four piece band there.

I was rightously upset since we had been working there for three months at 
$125.00 a man per night cash.   The club owner told me we had obviously been 
ripping him off, even though the bar was full every night  and running three 
bartenders and three waitresses to keep up with the crowds.   And he was getting a 
$2.00 cover charge at the door.

I took it up with the Union rep and he said as long as the guy was paying 
Union Scale I had no legitimate greivance to file against him and they could and 
would not intervene.

We did not go back the next week, I did however go down the street about two 
blocks and open up another club and promptly filled it every night with his 
former crowd, and his club soon closed it's doors for good.

Cheers,

Tom ( Every day is New Years Eve for me) Wiggins
You can't negotiate the Fee for Brain Surgery and ya can't negotiate mine 
either, except upwards.   I know how much it costs to operate my show and for my 
people to make a reasonable living and that is what I charge (Consistently).   
And I don't cut the show down to do three piece Dixieland gigs because 
someone does not want to pay for the entire show.   I have a Ten piece Show, a 
Thirteen piece Show and a Fifteen piece show, and a twenty five piece extravaganza 
Mardi Gras show, depending upon how much money they are willing to spend, it 
only gets bigger and better with the addition of performers.

"That's my Story and I'm stickin to it"