On Thursday evening (March 30), a line of about 200 people, including museum members, donors and trustees, snaked around the perimeter of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York for the VIP opening of new exhibits by the installation artist. Sarah Sze And Gego, the late Venezuelan modernist. While they waited, patrons were treated to a different display: about 30 members of the Guggenheim workers’ union holding up signs and handing out leaflets to raise awareness of their ongoing contract negotiations with museum management.
“We’re here because we want to educate the public and visitors, and especially the arts community, about what’s going on,” said Maida Rosenstein, organizing director of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2110, whose Guggenheim union is a part. “We will continue to make our voices heard until we get a fair contract.”
The Guggenheim union, which represents employees in all sectors, including conservation, conservation and education, returned Friday morning (March 31) for a flyer ahead of press previews for the Sze exhibits and Gego (which are open to the public today). Rosemary Taylor, a member of the Guggenheim’s negotiating committee, called the mood Thursday night “very supportive.” She added: “The public asks questions and seems happy to support the workers. They want to know more about what we are doing here.
“We are fighting for our first contract. We’ve been in negotiations for a little over a year,” said Nicolette Zoran, negotiating committee member and head of visitor experience at the Guggenheim. “Management continues to give us cheap deals on salaries, the most important thing. You can’t pay rent with prestige.
Union Guggenheim workers hand out flyers to visitors waiting to enter exhibition openings on March 30 Photo courtesy of Rosemary Taylor/United Auto Workers
Form in 2021, the UAW Local 2110 union represents about 140 workers across the Guggenheim. The contract currently offered by the museum administration would be valid for four years and provides for a total of 9.75% salary increases. The union is demanding a minimum increase of 16.5% over 4 years as well as an increase in wages for theater staff and technicians, as well as the extension of union worker protections to contract and project employees.
“The Guggenheim has been in negotiations for over a year, and the Guggenheim definitely has a below-standard salary proposal on the table,” Rosenstein said. “They are offering very small increases, well below the cost of living, below what we have been able to negotiate at the Whitney and even at much smaller establishments. And that doesn’t cut it. People unionized for a reason. They wanted to solve this problem and we need the museum to do it.
This week’s actions at the Guggenheim follow the ratification earlier this month of unionized employees at the Whitney Museum’ first contract. That contract included a number of wage increases, including 15% across the board and a new minimum wage of $22 an hour for self-employed workers retroactive to January 1, 2023. Unionized Guggenheim workers hope to be able to s build on their fellow Crosstown victories and secure his own first contract.
“The Guggenheim is at the bargaining table to negotiate a contract with Local 2110 in good faith,” a Guggenheim spokesperson said. “We are committed to maintaining a respectful and positive work environment for all exceptional Guggenheim staff.
The Guggenheim’s Engineering and Facilities and Services Professionals, Preparation and Manufacturing Specialists also organized a union in 2021, which is part of Local 30 of the IUOE (International Union of Operating Engineers), which has 22 full-time and 145 part-time employees. museum workers.
