“The San Diego Symphony Orchestra Association and the American Federation of Musicians, Local 325, on Wednesday ratified a new, five-year agreement that extends through June 2021,” writes George Varga in Thursday’s (9/1) San Diego Union Tribune. “Annual wages for 82 full-time musicians in the 106-year-old orchestra will jump from just under $70,000 in the first year to $80,000 when the contract concludes in 2021…. Martha Gilmer, the symphony’s chief executive officer … described the spirit of the negotiations as ‘collaborative, rigorous and exhaustive.’ … Other facets of the new agreement deal with scheduling flexibility, workload limits, savings for the symphony on parking costs and improvements to severance pay. Also included in the new pact is a revamped education and outreach program…. Sam Hager, the musicians’ co-chair, described the new agreement as representing ‘an important juncture for the symphony’ that should prove beneficial to the orchestra’s growth…. The new five-year agreement comes midway through the symphony’s extensive, worldwide search to replace its outgoing music director Jahja Ling [which] coincides with its ambitious plans to transform its current outdoor summer concert site… into a larger, year-round concert and live-events venue.”
Posted September 6, 2016
