mynameisgreat
New Member
Hi. I am a musician, and I was hired to play clubs/weddings etc with a local group, 7 days a week, for several months. There were no written contracts. There was no agreement of any kind of how many gigs I would play, how much I'd be paid, how long my commitment was, etc. I was just going to be the guy that the band called for its gigs.
While playing/rehearsing, the bandleader would sometimes tell me that I was required to do things for the band: write out extra music (without pay), play long periods without breaks, and, most importantly now, give 30 days notice if I wanted to quit. They weren't laid out at once, he would informally say, "Oh, by the way, you have to do give me 30 days notice if you quit", as we were just parting ways, eating, or whatever. I would nod or say 'ok'. He'd have a new requirement or request about once a day.
After several months I decided to quit. He would refuse to tell me how much gigs paid, pay me unspecified lump sums once every 5-6 weeks (we played daily), and was generally mean, controlling, and abusive. Shortly before I quit, I sent an email asking for a list of the gigs I had already played that were yet to be paid, wanting to know how much I would be paid for them. He answered, and gave a total amount (several hundred dollars). He also broke it down showing individual gigs, dates, and dollar amounts.
The next day I quit, and told him I would give him approximately 3 weeks notice (I gave a date 22 days away as my final day). That was ok with him. However, over the next 4 he became especially difficult. We played very long sets with no breaks, which we hadn't done before I gave notice. This was very painful for me as I have cubital tunnel and carpal tunnel syndromes in my arm from playing (I underwent major surgery for it 6 months ago). I had always told the bandleader this, and I told him that the long sets were making it worse. He was more abusive and mean than usual as well. At the end of the 4th day, which was especially long, my arm was in extreme pain and I was fed up with the situation, so I quit on the spot. Now he won't pay me my wages for the past gigs I played, because I didn't give him 30 days notice.
Will I get my money if I go to small claims? I have an email where he states he'll pay me a specific amount, and I think I can prove through my bank records I wasn't paid (he always paid in check).
Sorry for the novel.
While playing/rehearsing, the bandleader would sometimes tell me that I was required to do things for the band: write out extra music (without pay), play long periods without breaks, and, most importantly now, give 30 days notice if I wanted to quit. They weren't laid out at once, he would informally say, "Oh, by the way, you have to do give me 30 days notice if you quit", as we were just parting ways, eating, or whatever. I would nod or say 'ok'. He'd have a new requirement or request about once a day.
After several months I decided to quit. He would refuse to tell me how much gigs paid, pay me unspecified lump sums once every 5-6 weeks (we played daily), and was generally mean, controlling, and abusive. Shortly before I quit, I sent an email asking for a list of the gigs I had already played that were yet to be paid, wanting to know how much I would be paid for them. He answered, and gave a total amount (several hundred dollars). He also broke it down showing individual gigs, dates, and dollar amounts.
The next day I quit, and told him I would give him approximately 3 weeks notice (I gave a date 22 days away as my final day). That was ok with him. However, over the next 4 he became especially difficult. We played very long sets with no breaks, which we hadn't done before I gave notice. This was very painful for me as I have cubital tunnel and carpal tunnel syndromes in my arm from playing (I underwent major surgery for it 6 months ago). I had always told the bandleader this, and I told him that the long sets were making it worse. He was more abusive and mean than usual as well. At the end of the 4th day, which was especially long, my arm was in extreme pain and I was fed up with the situation, so I quit on the spot. Now he won't pay me my wages for the past gigs I played, because I didn't give him 30 days notice.
Will I get my money if I go to small claims? I have an email where he states he'll pay me a specific amount, and I think I can prove through my bank records I wasn't paid (he always paid in check).
Sorry for the novel.
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