Fee Negotiation and Fair Pay
Fees and Salaries - An Overview
Employees of large orchestras have a secure income thanks to collective agreements, although the agreements of individual ensembles differ. Making comparisons proves complicated upon closer inspection, as the sum consists of a base salary and various allowances; furthermore, salary increments can also vary significantly. Musicians who perform in one of the more than 55,000 Austrian music establishments that are members of the Austrian Event Organizers Association can also rely on a collective agreement. In the field of church music, several dioceses provide guidelines for hourly rates on their websites.
However, this should not overshadow the fact that fees for performances, composition commissions, recordings, etc., primarily depend on negotiation skills if no collective agreement applies. To understand the range in which one can begin negotiations, the minimum fees for advertising, sound recordings, performances, and other services, as well as the recommended minimum fees for music creators provided by the Musicians' Guild, are helpful.
It’s important to note that, even if discussing finances is uncomfortable, this must be addressed and documented in writing – so that all parties know exactly what they are committing to.
Fair Pay
What exactly does Fair Pay mean in the cultural sector? What impact do the recommended minimum fees have on musicians and cultural professionals? And where can reliable information and contacts regarding this topic be found? To provide a brief overview, we’ve summarized all relevant content here.
A comprehensive overview with profession- and genre-specific information can be found at mica - music austria.
Fair Pay Reader 2024
The Austrian Cultural Council provides the current Fair Pay Reader. This document not only contains the summarized information specifically for the music sector but also offers a wide collection of Fair Pay tools. These include salary tables, collective agreements, calculation aids, and non-binding fee recommendations for various fields in arts and culture.
Download: Fair Pay Reader 2024 – For Fair Conditions in Arts, Culture, and Media (Austrian Cultural Council)
Minimum Fee Recommendations for the Music Sector
The minimum fee recommendations, or the fee scale for musicians in Austria, were jointly developed by several organizations, including the IG Free Music Creators (IGFM), the Musicians’ Guild, the Austrian Music Council (ÖMR), the Austrian Trade Union Federation/younion, the Austrian Composers Association, and the Austrian Music Mediation Platform (PMÖ).
To facilitate project planning and the calculation of personnel costs – especially for funding applications – the Austrian Music Council and mica – music austria developed a calculation aid. It is based on Fair Pay principles and includes fee rates that can serve as a guideline. It is available for download at mica - music austria.
In-depth Practical Knowledge
Model contracts: www.musicaustria.at/mustervertraege
Practical knowledge: www.musicaustria.at/praxiswissen
Musicians' Guild: www.musikergilde.at/de/beratung.html
younion – The Life Union: www.younion.at/cms/C01/C01_0/home
Austrian Composers Association: www.komponistenbund.at
Austrian Event Organizers Association: www.vvat.at