On Saturday, the musicians, member of the Twin Cities Musicians Union, unanimously rejected a management proposal including 30-50 percent pay cuts and over 200 changes to the existing contract. They also unanimously passed a motion urging the Minnesota Orchestra management to “Play and Talk” while negotiations on a new agreement continued.
Orchestra management turned down that offer, as well as another offer to enter into binding arbitration.
“Our board and management have a responsibility to protect the Minnesota Orchestra for the long term and that means negotiating a contract that allows the organization to live within its financial means,” the Orchestra said in a statement posted on its website.
The musicians question the management’s interpretation of the orchestra’s financial status.
“Today we renew our call for a joint, independent financial analysis of the Association’s finances,” the musicians said. “We remain deeply concerned about discrepancies in management’s financial reports and find it disturbing that they would lock-out the musicians and cancel concerts rather than undergo a transparent and independent analysis of the Association’s finances. We ask, ‘What more is [Orchestra President and CEO] Michael Henson hiding?’”
The musicians offered these facts:
• Despite multiple requests, the Orchestra Management and Board have failed to provide a copy of the approved 2012-13 budget to the Musicians.
• The Management and Board have not provided any audited financial information to the Musicians more recent than August 2011.
• In September, the Association touted they had raised $97 million in the Building for the Future campaign, including $14 million in taxpayer funding for the $50 million lobby renovation project.
The musicians also noted that even though it has cancelled concerts, the Orchestra is not automatically refunding money to ticket holders, as it has done for other event cancellations.
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On Saturday, the musicians, member of the Twin Cities Musicians Union, unanimously rejected a management proposal including 30-50 percent pay cuts and over 200 changes to the existing contract. They also unanimously passed a motion urging the Minnesota Orchestra management to “Play and Talk” while negotiations on a new agreement continued.
Orchestra management turned down that offer, as well as another offer to enter into binding arbitration.
“Our board and management have a responsibility to protect the Minnesota Orchestra for the long term and that means negotiating a contract that allows the organization to live within its financial means,” the Orchestra said in a statement posted on its website.
The musicians question the management’s interpretation of the orchestra’s financial status.
“Today we renew our call for a joint, independent financial analysis of the Association’s finances,” the musicians said. “We remain deeply concerned about discrepancies in management’s financial reports and find it disturbing that they would lock-out the musicians and cancel concerts rather than undergo a transparent and independent analysis of the Association’s finances. We ask, ‘What more is [Orchestra President and CEO] Michael Henson hiding?’”
The musicians offered these facts:
• Despite multiple requests, the Orchestra Management and Board have failed to provide a copy of the approved 2012-13 budget to the Musicians.
• The Management and Board have not provided any audited financial information to the Musicians more recent than August 2011.
• In September, the Association touted they had raised $97 million in the Building for the Future campaign, including $14 million in taxpayer funding for the $50 million lobby renovation project.
The musicians also noted that even though it has cancelled concerts, the Orchestra is not automatically refunding money to ticket holders, as it has done for other event cancellations.