November 13, 2020 - The American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) has announced it will hold a Constitutional Referendum. For the first time in many years, the AGMA Constitution will be getting an update. This Referendum is the culmination of more than a year of work by AGMA’s elected member-leaders, who have been working to revise and fix AGMA’s Constitution since last fall. On October 28, the AGMA Board of Governors approved and recommended to AGMA’s membership the “Board of Governors Revision,” a comprehensive rewrite of the AGMA constitution designed to improve AGMA’s governance, increase transparency, and make AGMA’s foundational document more accessible to the membership. The Board of Governors Revision focuses o... Read More -->

Dear AGMA Artists: The right of the members to recall their elected leaders for serious misconduct is a hallmark of a functioning democratic union. AGMA would never intentionally strip you of that right. Since releasing the details of the Board of Governors Revision of the Constitution, some members have raised concerns that the Revision removes this right. I am writing to reassure you that this will not happen should the Board of Governors Revision be approved. To be clear, the ability and procedure for AGMA members to sign a petition triggering a recall election for a National Officer or a member of the Board of Governors was never in our Constitution. Instead, this provision was contained in AGMA’s Bylaws. In rewriting the Co... Read More -->

https://vimeo.com/472295870/17d5456ea1 The following memo was sent to AGMA members on 10/28/2020: We are excited to bring you an important announcement about the future of AGMA. Next month, on November 16, AGMA will begin a referendum vote to revise our union Constitution. We wanted to let you know how we got here and to encourage you to vote in the referendum. AGMA’s Constitution is our foundational governing document. It’s the most important document in the union and serves as our “rules for the road.” Our Constitution hasn’t been meaningfully updated in some time, which has lead to some problems along the way. Since 2019, AGMA’s Constitutional Working Group which is part of the Administration and Policy Committee ... Read More -->

AGMA was saddened to hear of the cancelations of the remainder of Lyric’s 2020-21 season. The pandemic has made it difficult for all of us in the Performing Arts industry and our Artists are eager to return to their favorite stage in the world. Lyric Opera said that its goal is to collaborate with its unions on “good faith proposals that included guaranteed wages and medical benefits during the dark period to help reduce the hardship during this difficult time.” That is AGMA's goal as well. AGMA wants to work with Lyric Opera to find a solution to all of the problems posed by COVID-19. In fact, we were doing just that: negotiating with Lyric Opera to find a way to provide income to our Artists who have been out of work since M... Read More -->

Following Lyric Opera of Chicago's announcement on the cancelation of its season, AGMA sent the following email to AGMA Artists of Lyric Opera of Chicago: You are receiving this email because you’ve worked at Lyric Opera of Chicago in the past season or were scheduled to work for Lyric Opera during this season. We are reaching out because today Lyric Opera announced the cancellation of the remainder of the 2020-2021 season. To say AGMA is disappointed is the understatement of the year. For those who were not able to join AGMA last night at our emergency shop meeting, we feel it is necessary at this moment to update you on the status of our negotiations with Lyric Opera of Chicago and what today’s announcement means for Artists. ... Read More -->

The latest caucus to establish itself within AGMA is the Operatic and Concert Choristers Caucus (OCCC). AGMA choristers in good standing are encouraged to join the first official kickoff meeting of the OCCC on Thursday, October 29, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. ET/2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. PT. To register and receive the Zoom details, please email OCCC@musicalartists.org. “We’re looking for a representative and diverse group of Artists passionate about affecting choristers’ livelihoods in a positive way,” said Met Opera Chorister Ned Hanlon. “All over the country we confront the same issues and concerns. The time has come to see what we can do to fix them by working together.” The OCCC is dedicated to the promotion of a bette... Read More -->

In its 84 years, the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) has never endorsed a presidential candidate — but that all changed today. The AGMA Board of Governors voted on Tuesday, September 29 to endorse Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris for President and Vice President of the United States. “President Trump has nominated anti-union and anti-worker judges at every level of the federal judiciary, including to the Supreme Court, resulting in judicial opinions that have attacked and undermined the legal status and protections of unions in the United States,” reads a part of the two-page resolution that was presented and approved by the AGMA Board of Governors in support of endorsing Joe Biden as President. This endorsement come... Read More -->

We are pleased to announce that today, AGMA finalized the purchase of its new headquarters. Our new office, located at 305 7th Avenue, will be state-of-the-art, and capable of hosting bargaining sessions, trainings, and other functions of the union. Once it is safe to come together again, we hope that you, our members, come to view this as a place where you can meet, organize, and celebrate with one another. We would like to recap the financial benefit to our members. First, our monthly and annual operating costs for office space have been greatly reduced, as monthly expenses are now far less than what AGMA was paying in rent at our old location. Second, we plan to sublet a portion of the space to another tenant. This renta... Read More -->