In September, live music giant Live Nation announced that its US clubs would stop taking a percentage of artists’ merch stand sales.
The initiative is part of a wider program called “On the Road Again”, created with legendary artist Willie Nelson to support developing artists and crew at the club level.
Now, via its On the Road Again program, LiveNation is rolling out new minimum wages for staff at clubs across the United States and Canada, in what the company calls “an ongoing effort to support developing artists and the crew that work behind the scenes to make shows happen”.
Moving forward, base pay for hourly club staff at Live Nation’s club venues will start at $20 per hour.
All supervisor roles will start at $25 per hour – with “opportunity for advancement in the company” according to the announcement.
Live Nation notes that the new base wages are over 250% higher than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour in the United States.
The company also notes that it exceeds “the highest state minimum wages” including those in states such as California, New York, Washington and the District of Columbia.
These increases will impact more than 5,000 crew members.
Those employees occupy various roles to support shows including box office attendants, production crew, artist hospitality, guest services, ushers, parking attendants, cleaning crews, sustainability coordinators, and more.
Credit: Live Nation/press
“The live music industry is on track for years of growth and offers a great career path, and by increasing minimum wages we’re helping staff get an even stronger start as they begin their journey in live.”
Michael Rapino, Live Nation Entertainment, CEO and President said: “Shows wouldn’t happen without the unsung heroes who work in the background to help support artists and fans.
“In addition to developing artists, clubs also help industry professionals learn the ropes, and many of our promoters and venue managers worked their way up from smaller venues.
“The live music industry is on track for years of growth and offers a great career path, and by increasing minimum wages we’re helping staff get an even stronger start as they begin their journey in live.”
In addition to this latest initiative, through On the Road Again, all headline and support acts playing Live Nation clubs continue to receive $1,500 in travel bonuses on top of nightly compensation and 100% of merch profits.
Live Nation hasn’t set an end date for the program and the company says that all benefits from On the Road Again “are being provided directly from the venue’s existing earnings, with no increases to consumers.”
A full list of participating venues can be seen on the program‘s official website.Music Business Worldwide
