You also have to pay them at least minimum wage for every hour or portion thereof that they are “permitted or suffered to work…” And “waiting for work is an integral part of working.” (from Department of Labor docs) You’re damn right you can be held liable for their injuries, and if they do something (or fail to do something) that results in injury or loss to a third party, you’re on the hook for that, too.
As for union labor, the major deterrent for you is that you probably don’t need the minimum number of hands that might be required for a call. And it can seem silly to have (and pay for) a four hour call when you need help for 45 minutes.
But you build this into your bid as a separate line item. You can have your client directly pay the Local’s business agent or the call steward (however they handle it), and you won’t have to do anything but make the phone call. My experience is that on church gigs and community festivals I need the paid labor on the *out* because the volunteers who were so eager to help set up suddenly have more pressing things to do…
Reply by Bob Cap
First, I always go with my gut feeling. That feeling means I’m hungry and I like to eat. Hence, I like to be paid for the work I do.
If I have a client that wants me to bill them for services rendered, I have them fill out an application for credit and I pay to have the credit check run. The same thing happens when we want to buy gear on credit. Credit checks are a normal part of doing business and are factored into our charges.
If they are a promoter, band, etc, there is no such thing as a deadbeat in my area. The word is deposit and final payment when we arrive. Deposits can be in check form if there is enough time to clear the bank before the gig. Balance in CASH only. (Certified and bank checks can have payment stopped.)
Same thing with rental gear. Credit check first. Or large cash only deposit. I’d rather lose the rental than lose the gear. I’ve had people come in to rent gear that I didn’t feel good about. Deposit covers cost of gear, final.
Trusted people can be just that until something happens and you’re left holding the bag. If your friends help you, you’re the person that assumes the liability, period. If somebody gets hurt while “helping” you you’re the “employer”.
CYA, liability insurance is really cheap when compared to a lawsuit. Of course, my uncle Bruno used to say, “If I got nuttin’ to lose, they can’t get blood from a turnip.”
Reply by Chris Kathman
I mixed a show for the Hell’s Angels once in S.F., and the person taking money at the door (it was a benefit) left without understanding that the club did not pay the sound company. The head of the chapter listened to me, and promised to show up the next day, and did, on his bike, blowing the minds of my co-workers at the shop when he roared up and walked in wearing his colors and gave them the dough – in a brown paper bag.
One small piece of advice – don’t make threats, make promises. And carry them through. If you say the gear doesn’t roll off the truck until cash is in hand, then it is important that the gear not roll off the truck. Irresponsible promoters may really love music, but field production people have enough to do without having to spank them. But it’s part of the game.
A friend of mine held up two concerts a year apart for one of the biggest rock stars in the world when the artist’s manager did not come across with the contracted balance in cash. The first time, when the artist found out that his management was jerking around the sound company, he was furious and ordered them to pay the bill so he could play his show. The second time, he went BALLISTIC on his manager.
Gigs that I do as a designer/mixer, I make the client pay half of my bill and the sound company’s up front.
I read a funny quote once by a guy who was the agent for the novelist William Burroughs. Someone stiffed them for the fee for a reading, and then smugly told the agent, “You can’t get blood from a stone!”
The agent asked quietly, “What makes you think you’re a stone?”