Classical music had its own drama this year. This spring, the Boston Symphony Orchestra's board announced it would not renew music director Andris Nelsons's contract, in what the Boston Globe calls a "sudden dismissal." The Globe reports most of the musicians stayed loyal to him. Management, per the Globe, said he was "not aligned on future vision."
Then came contract talks, at what the Globe called "the greatest crisis of the BSO's 145-year history." The musicians voted to authorize a strike. The next day, the sides announced a 48-hour extension. In late August they announced a three-year deal, ratified by 94 percent of the musicians, running through August 26, 2029.
The money is good: 4 percent annual raises (4.5 percent in year three), base pay reaching $230,000, and a guaranteed pension of $94,000, which the Globe calls the highest in the field. But the clause everyone's watching isn't about money.
Takeaway #1: The musicians get a real say on the next maestro
FROM THE REPORTING
"The new contract expands the search committee to 12 members, dedicating six spots to players. Significantly, any candidate recommended to the board must not only earn a majority of committee votes, but also a two-thirds supermajority of players' votes. The contract further stipulates that the board will only hire a candidate that has been qualified by the search committee."
What it means for you. Before, the Globe says, musicians held five of 11 seats. Now they hold half, and no one reaches the board without two-thirds of the players' votes. The board still hires, but only from candidates the committee has qualified. Todd Seeber, who chairs the BSO Players Committee, said the deal involves "players as never before in the process of artistic decision making and planning." David Rufino, president of the Boston Musicians' Association, said it would "set a new standard for American Orchestras."
The deal also creates an Artistic Liaison Committee. Musicians recommend guest conductors and artists, and management commits to prioritizing names on the list. But the Globe notes the contract "does not grant players decision or veto power" over artistic choices. That's a voice, not a veto. The devil is in the details.
Your move. If you're on an arts board or a players' committee, put the search process in writing before the next search, not during it. The Boston contract shows it can be done, even mid-crisis.
Takeaway #2: Why you couldn't force this one
FROM THE STATUTE
"to bargain collectively is the performance of the mutual obligation of the employer and the representative of the employees to meet at reasonable times and confer in good faith with respect to wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment ... but such obligation does not compel either party to agree to a proposal or require the making of a concession"
What it means for you. Pay and pensions are "wages." Schedules are "hours." Those are the subjects the law makes both sides bargain over. Who leads the orchestra artistically is a harder fit. Under the Supreme Court's Borg-Warner framework, a subject like that is arguably "permissive": the union can raise it but can't insist on it to the point of impasse or a strike. (That's my reading, not a ruling about Boston.)
So musicians generally can't force a voice in hiring the boss. They can ask, and management can agree. Here, management agreed, and that's what makes this deal unusual. BSO president Chad Smith said it allows "a level of transparency about program planning that has never existed at the Boston Symphony, or probably any orchestra."
The second half of the sentence matters too. Good faith "does not compel either party to agree." It may also help explain why the Boston deal kept final hiring authority with the board. Both sides got something without either being forced.
Your move. If you're negotiating for an ensemble, a cast or a crew, separate what the law requires the other side to discuss from what you'll need to win at the table. The second list needs leverage and goodwill.
Sample wording (our illustration): "No candidate for Music Director will be recommended to the Board without a two-thirds vote of the musicians."
And always remember, don't sign it till you read it, my friends.
General information, not legal advice. Reading this doesn't create an attorney-client relationship. Talk to your union or a labor lawyer about your situation.
