The bitter contract battle between musicians and management of the St.
Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) — a dispute which has caused the
suspension of nearly all the orchestra's activities since the beginning of this
year — may finally be over. As reported by the St. Louis
Post-Dispatch,
representatives of each side announced last night that they had agreed on terms
for a new contract.
The agreement came one day after the St. Louis office of the U.S. National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), siding with SLSO management, announced that it considered the work stoppage to be an illegal strike and would seek a federal court injunction if the musicians did not return to work.
The orchestra's administration had argued that the players, by refusing to perform without a contract (they overwhelmingly rejected a contract proposal on 3 January, and rebuffed subsequent management offers by large margins), were striking unlawfully; the musicians' union claimed that management, by canceling concerts and auditions and changing the locks at Powell Symphony Hall, was engaging in an illegal lockout.
In a statement following the NLRB decision, SLSO president Randy Adams said, "It is very unfortunate that our musicians were persuaded to engage in an unnecessary and illegal strike when this entire situation could have been avoided. It will be particularly sad if the Symphony loses any of its many talented members because of this illegal work stoppage. ... Our counsel has also informed us that one potential effect of the NLRB's ruling could be that the striking musicians forfeit their legal status as employees and lose the protections of federal labor law by participating in the illegal strike."
The attorney for the musicians' union, Leonard Leibowitz, told the Post-Dispatch, "We will fight this [NLRB decision]. We will fight the complaint, and if they seek an injunction we will be there to argue against it. This will not get a settlement. This is all fun and games, but it will not get a settlement."
But the following evening, upon announcement of the settlement, the chairman of the players' negotiating committee, Jan Gippo, told the paper, "It was tough. I believe that it's the best deal we can do. I do have a package that we can recommend [to the rank-and-file musicians]."
The dispute centered on over wages and benefits — specifically, reductions in pay and schedule to which the musicians agreed in response to the 2000–01 financial crisis which brought the SLSO to the brink of bankruptcy. Following that near-disaster, the orchestra's board and management undertook a major campaign to increase the SLSO endowment, which, at $18 million, was extremely low for a top-ranked U.S. orchestra. (The SLSO's peers, first-rate orchestras in mid-size cities such as Pittsburgh, Minneapolis and Cleveland, have endowments of $80 million or more.) In June 2004 the SLSO completed its campaign, raising a further $70 million specifically for its endowment as well as additional funds for operating expenses and repaying debt. The musicians argued that, since the SLSO had received so much money, it could afford to restore the 52-week work year and the pre-crisis pay scale; management maintained that it could not yet do so without dipping into the endowment funds, thus reducing the orchestra's future income and breaking its pledges to donors.
Terms of the contract agreement will not be announced until they have been approved by all the orchestra's musicians; results of the vote are expected on Tuesday afternoon, 1 March. If the contract is accepted, SLSO performances will presumably resume with the next regularly scheduled subscription concert, an all-Mozart program to be conducted by Jerzy Semkow next Friday and Saturday, 4 and 5 March.
— Matthew Westphal
"Symphony, musicians announce an accord"
Sarah Bryan Miller - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - 25 February
2005
"Musicians' strike is illegal, says Symphony"
Sarah Bryan Miller - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - 24 February
2005
"When music returns to Powell Hall, will the players be
around to play?"
Sarah Bryan Miller - St. Louis Post-Dispatch -
20 February 2005
"Musicians refuse to vote on latest offer"
Sarah Bryan Miller - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - 19 February
2005
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