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Complaints Its a sad fact that some performers have an issue on occasion with an industry representative; some know how to deal with it; others don't. If you're not sure if you have grounds for an official complaint, you'll find a 'classic' scenario below (we'll add more over the coming weeks) which deserves the attention of NSW Industrial Relations. Before we go on; you should know that you can call NSW Industrial Relations Licensing Unit on 131 628 to ask questions about Legislation and find out if a representative holds a licence or not. Or, you can click this link to gain direct access to the same report that they'd look at. If you already know that your situation warrants a complaint, click here. For the purpose of this exercise, we'll call the venue "The Club", the artist "Great Guys" and the agent "The Bastard". (All names are fictitious, and no offense is intended to any party. If you have an issue with the word bastard being associated with an agent, then you're obviously on the wrong page.) "Bastard" may be interchanged with "Bitch" as needed. Again, we mean no offense. Example 1 The Bastard rings the Great Guys with an offer for a gig at The Club. The Bastard offered $500 for a 3hr performance and were told they would be paid via The Bastard's agency after the performance. The Great Guys do a sensational performance, The Club and the punters love them and want them back. The Great Guys had already sent their invoice to The Bastard one week prior to the gig with the hope it would assist The Bastard with his payment cycle. Fast forward 2 weeks: The Bastard is avoiding The Great Guys calls and when they finally do speak, he claims that The Club still hasn't paid them but praises them on a great performance. There's talk of future gig bookings at the same venue, and all going well, others that are on The Bastard's books. The Great Guys want to build a good, solid relationship with The Bastard so they're reluctant to push the issue of payment too much, and with the vague promise of additional work, The Great Guys finish the call commenting that they look forward to the payment soon. 3 weeks pass: The Bastard still hasn't paid! and still claims he's waiting on payment from The Club. (You can see where this is going can't you!) 4 weeks pass: The Great Guys are now really fed up and have yet to see payment from The Bastard. The Great Guys phone The Bastard again and are given the same spiel so they decide to make a quick phone call to The Club and politely enquire as to their payment cycles; hoping they won't offend The Club by asking the question and in the hope they may get some answers. 4 weeks and 1 day: The Bastard is ropable! He's found out that The Great Guys have spoken with The Club about the payment and rants and raves about 'breaking protocol' and other stuff about contacting The Club direct. There's threats of black banning The Great Guys; going on to say they won't get any more work through The Bastard's agency. 5 weeks later: Still no payment. The Great Guys figure that they've already pissed off The Bastard and so calling The Club again surely can't do any more damage to the 'relationship' between them and The Bastard, so calls The Club again. The Great Guys professionally and tactfully explain the situation to The Club; and to their surprise (and The Clubs), The Club informs them that they paid The Bastard on the Monday after the performance. What the?!? As you can imagine at this point, The Club and The Great Guys are pretty peeved. The Great Guys because The Bastard has been withholding payment for so long whilst THEIR money has been sitting in a bank account earning The Bastard interest; and The Club because The Bastard is damaging their name and reputation in the marketplace. The Club then goes on to offer The Great Guys future gigs in their room, and the discussion of fee arises. The Club mentions that they'll pay them the same fee as last time which was $650. (You do remember The Bastard offered them $500, right?). The Great Guys mention to The Club that they were only paid $500 by The Bastard for the last show - neither party is too pleased by this revelation as neither party has an arrangement with The Bastard agreeing to extra commission. 5 weeks and 1 day: The Bastard is on the phone, and he's M...A...D, mad! There's all kinds of words being thrown around and none of them are too nice. The Great Guys ask The Bastard when they're going to be paid for their gig; "when I get around to it" is all The Great Guys hear before The Bastard hangs up. A number of things have happened here; some of which are: The Bastard has been 'outed' for illegally withholding payment and its been revealed to The Club and The Great Guys that more than the legally allowed 10% commission has been charged. So... what are the key points here you might be wondering? 1. Regardless of whether The Great Guys have an exclusive agreement with The Bastard or not, or whether The Bastard is acting as a venue consultant for The Club or not - you should NEVER, (I repeat) NEVER be waiting longer than 14 days for payment once you have become entitled to it. This is from the NSW Industrial Relations website:- Money received on behalf of a performer by an entertainment industry agent or a manager which is not paid to the performer immediately must be:
A trust account under this section must be kept exclusively for the purpose of money received on behalf of a performer. 2. Did you notice the extra commission that was 'uncovered'? I'm not sure about you, but when I went to school, 10% of $500 is $50! If The Bastard was stupid enough (with further prodding) to claim they were acting as a Venue Consultant for The Club, there's a pretty good chance they've just entered the territory of 'double dipping'. You've got to be careful when making an accusation regarding this one though; you'd need substantiating evidence from The Club to back up the claim. Even if The Club had utilised The Bastard's services as a Venue Consultant, Industrial Relations stipulate If an entertainment industry agent also acts as a venue consultant in respect of a particular performance, the agent is entitled to demand or receive a fee only as a venue consultant for the performance. 3. Something else that is of importance is to check our Licence List link (or the one above, or phone NSWIR) to check if The Bastard actually has a licence. If you choose to complain, this bit of information will add weight to your claims. What should you do now you might be wondering? Despite The Bastard's response and feelings toward you during your last communication, attempt to sort out the issue with them so that you get your payment. You can choose to bring up the issue of the extra commission The Bastard took, but it may be difficult to prove unless The Club is willing to supply you with documentation. If you can't resolve the situation with The Bastard, the first thing to do, is send them a letter of demand for your payment (You can find information and a sample on the Arts Law website or by clicking here for a direct link.) We recommend emailing it with a 'read receipt' via your email program, and also sending a copy via Registered Post at your local PO, with a delivery confirmation (an added service at nominal cost). This documentation showing your attempt at settlement with The Bastard will become important if you choose to take the matter through the Local Courts. Now... to complain or not to complain? You seriously need to assess the situation before you do anything. Its all well and good to be so fired up by The Bastard's actions and the way he treated you, but are you prepared to follow it through? We ALWAYS suggest letting NSW Industrial Relations know in an official capacity of what illegal activity The Bastard has been up to - how can we bring about change if no one gives examples of what is going on? As a note: If you choose not to complain due to fear of not getting any more work from The Bastard, or whatever other reason is stopping you; jump over to our forum and share your story with others. You never know who you'll be helping by sharing what you're going through, and you're sure to find some friendly souls that are willing to offer support and advice. If you would like to complain, get your documentation together and send an email by clicking here. As a note; we do NOT collect your information at any time during the complaints process. This link is offered with the intention of assisting you - nothing else. Things that should be included in a complaint include any documentation that you have received from The Bastard in relation to the gig. This includes emails regarding gig and payment terms and conditions and anything else you received. As we mentioned above, the letter of demand will also prove useful to highlight The Bastard holding onto your money. Be factual, concise (unlike this page :)) and remember - no name calling or referring to them as The Bastard (we'll leave that as our private joke). Highlight the points in the Entertainment Industry Act upon which you are relying, and clearly outline the time frame you refer to. If you have done gigs for The Bastard in the past, include those in your complaint as well, specifically stating that you have concerns The Bastard may have overcharged in commissions on those too. Be specific! Ask for individual issues to be looked at and dealt with. Ask for a response to your complaint and follow NSWIR up if you have not heard from them within 2 weeks. Possible outcome From the above example, one possible outcome could be that NSWIR make an order for The Bastard to pay you additional funds owed from overcharged commissions. How happy would you be having that extra $$$ in your pocket?? Important note: The information, advice and suggestions contained in this website, and specifically this page do not replace specialised and professional legal advice. In all instances where we refer to NSW Industrial Relations or Arts Law, we do so providing direct links to information they provide. In other words - don't take our word for it as we're not legal professionals. Just trying to help you is all.
It's all about the music man... |
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