Len DiCosimo, President of AFM Local 4 in Northeastern Ohio and a newly elected officer of the American Federation of Musicians International Board, joined the America's Work Force Union Podcast to discuss three significant developments.
Active contract negotiations with the Cleveland Orchestra are underway, with Local 4 having already exchanged financial presentations and delivered its first proposal as the current contract heads toward an end-of-August expiration. DiCosimo was elected to the AFM International Board at the union's 103rd convention in Ottawa, where he joined four other newly elected officers, including Karen Suarez-Flint of AFM Local 10-208 in Chicago, who became the first woman elected as AFM vice president.
DiCosimo also addressed why artificial intelligence poses a serious threat to working musicians, composers and lyricists and why the labor movement needs the public to understand what is at stake when consumers choose AI-generated music over the work of human artists.
- The Cleveland Orchestra contract expires at the end of August, and Local 4 has already begun negotiations, exchanging financial presentations and delivering its first formal proposal. DiCosimo noted that Boston, the Chicago Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Cleveland Orchestra are all negotiating simultaneously this year. He identified relief weeks for section string players as a priority in this round of bargaining. This relief is particularly important for violinists and violists who hold their instruments in physically demanding positions and play the most notes, he said.
- In June, the AFM held its 103rd convention in Ottawa. It was the first time in over 50 years that the convention was held in Canada, reflecting the union's international character, including representation of the San Juan Symphony. Five of nine international board seats were newly filled, with DiCosimo among the elected officers. Karen Suarez-Flint of AFM Local 10-208 in Chicago was elected the AFM's new vice president, becoming the first woman to hold that position.
- DiCosimo also discussed the threat AI poses to musicians today and the damage reality television caused to entertainment industry workers a generation ago by wiping out jobs in set design, costuming, makeup and other crafts. He described AI as stealing from the intellectual property rights of musicians, composers and lyricists and called on the general public to direct their discretionary spending toward live music and human artistry rather than AI-generated content. He compared it to the choice shoppers make when they have the option of a human cashier or a self-checkout line.
Thirty Years in the Union, Still at the Table
Len DiCosimo has been on the AFM Local 4 board since 1996 and has served as president since 2005. That is three decades of representing musicians in Northeastern Ohio, including members of the Cleveland Orchestra, musicians who perform at Playhouse Square and independent musicians who make the region's live music scene what it is. He came to today’s conversation with a full agenda: active contract negotiations, a new international role and a reminder about the impact artificial intelligence can have on working artists everywhere.
Cleveland Orchestra Negotiations: Already Underway
The Cleveland Orchestra's collective bargaining agreement expires at the end of August. Negotiations are already in progress. Local 4 and management have exchanged financial presentations, and the union has delivered its first formal proposal. A schedule of bargaining sessions is set through the end of the summer season.
DiCosimo noted that this negotiating cycle is particularly significant because four of the country's most storied orchestras are at the table simultaneously: Boston, the Chicago Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra and Cleveland. The decisions these orchestras make will influence each other and set benchmarks across the symphony sector, which DiCosimo described as one of the most unionized workforces in the United States.
One issue DiCosimo identified as a distinctive priority in this round of talks is relief weeks for section string players. Violinists and violists hold their instruments in positions that are physiologically demanding in ways most people outside the profession never consider. They play the most notes in any given program and do so in postures that create real risk of repetitive stress injury over time. DiCosimo said the orchestra treats its members like athletes and is pursuing bargaining language that reflects that reality.
He connected this directly to a conversation about workplace safety that runs throughout this show. Most people associate occupational injury with physical labor. The reality is that musicians face serious, career-altering injuries from their work. The negotiation is an opportunity to address that in a formal and lasting way.
Ottawa and a New International Role
The American Federation of Musicians held its 103rd convention in Ottawa, last month, marking the first time in more than 50 years the convention had crossed the border. DiCosimo said the location was a meaningful statement about the union's genuine international character, which also includes representation of the San Juan Symphony in Puerto Rico.
Five of nine international board officer positions were newly filled at the convention. DiCosimo was among those elected. In that role, he will participate in quarterly meetings addressing disputes between locals and members, represent the AFM at conferences, work on educational programming for members and local officers and take on legislative and organizing responsibilities as duties are assigned.
He also highlighted the election of Karen Suarez-Flint of AFM Local 10-208 in Chicago as the AFM's new vice president, noting she is the first woman ever elected to that position.
Artificial Intelligence: A Generation-Defining Threat
DiCosimo's most urgent message was about artificial intelligence. He described AI as a threat to musicians, composers and lyricists that functions by stealing from the intellectual property rights those creators have spent careers building. The AFM addresses AI through its electronic media contract language and is actively working with other entertainment unions, including SAG-AFTRA and unions affiliated with the Department of Professional Employees, AFL-CIO, to build coordinated responses across the industry.
The historical parallel he reached for was reality television. When reality TV took off a generation ago, it eliminated jobs across the entertainment industry in set design, costuming, wigs, makeup and other crafts. Workers in those fields saw their livelihoods erode not because their skills were no longer valuable, but because a cheaper format made their work easier to bypass. AI is doing the same thing to a far wider range of workers, and the entertainment industry is among the first to feel it at scale, DiCosimo said.
Every time a consumer chooses AI-generated music over a live performance or a recording by a working musician, a real person loses real income, DiCosimo continued. He drew a parallel to self-checkout lines, where shoppers walk past a cashier to use a machine. That is a choice, and it has consequences for the workers whose jobs disappear as a result. He urged the public to be wary of where their discretionary spending on entertainment goes and to think of supporting live music as an act of solidarity with working people.
The AFM's discussions about AI are ongoing, both at the local level in bargaining and at the international level through convention workshops and cross-union coordination. DiCosimo said the general public should understand what is at stake and be educated about the difference between spending money on human artistry and on content that replaces the people who would have created it.
More information on AFM Local 4 is available at afmlocal4.com.
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