Unionized staff at the Whitney Museum of American Art have set a strike date of Monday, October 5, unless they reach a fair contract with the museum. The vote to authorize strike action was held earlier this month in conjunction with the Brooklyn Museum and American Folk Art Museum unions. The vote gave the union the authority to call a strike if negotiations fail to produce a fair contract by the deadline.
The deadline is timed around the preview week for a major Roy Lichtenstein retrospective, which opens to the public on October 11. The first three-year contract between the Whitney and staff organized under UAW Local 2110 expired in June this year. During the initial agreement, the wage floor for entry-level employees rose from $17 to $24 an hour. Other provisions included strengthened job security, increased professional development, revised benefits contributions, and more comprehensive environmental safety measures.
Now staff are calling for the base salary rate for full-time employees to meet the minimum figure for a single, childless adult to live sustainably in New York City, calculated at ~$71,000 according to a City Hall report on the cost of living published earlier this year.
“We’d rather be working and doing our jobs, but our wages are untenable for making ends meet in New York City,” said the union’s chairperson.
Contract Details
The current contract between the Whitney and its unionized staff expired in June. The union, UAW Local 2110, represents the museum’s workers. The vote to authorize strike action was held earlier this month in conjunction with the Brooklyn Museum and American Folk Art Museum unions.
The agreement covered several areas beyond pay. Job security was strengthened, professional development opportunities increased, benefits contributions were revised, and environmental safety measures became more comprehensive. Those gains were part of the package that workers negotiated during the initial three-year period.
The vote itself was a formal step. It authorizes the union to call a strike if negotiations fail to produce a fair contract by the deadline.
The Strike Demand
Staff are asking for a base salary rate that meets the minimum figure for a single, childless adult to live sustainably in New York City. That figure is calculated at ~$71,000 according to a City Hall report on the cost of living published earlier this year.
The union’s chairperson put the position plainly: “We’d rather be working and doing our jobs, but our wages are untenable for making ends meet in New York City.”
Lichtenstein’s Preview Week
The strike deadline is timed around the preview week for a late Pop artist Roy Lichtenstein retrospective, which opens to the public on October 11. The exhibition is a significant event for the museum, and its preview week typically draws considerable attention.
The Wage Increase
During the initial three-year contract, the wage floor for entry-level employees rose from $17 to $24 an hour. That increase was part of the package that workers negotiated and received during the first agreement.
The new threshold reflects a higher starting point for hourly workers. It also sets a precedent for what the union considers a fair starting point, even as staff now push for a full-time salary that meets the city’s living-cost standard.
Cost of Living in New York
The ~$71,000 figure comes from a City Hall report on the cost of living published earlier this year. That report calculates the minimum income needed for a single, childless adult to live sustainably in New York City.
The union is asking the museum to move its full-time salary toward that benchmark.
Authorizing the Strike
The vote to authorize strike action was held earlier this month in conjunction with the Brooklyn Museum and American Folk Art Museum unions. The vote was a formal step. It authorizes the union to call a strike if negotiations fail to produce a fair contract by the deadline. The strike date is set for Monday, October 5.
What Happens Next
The standoff puts the museum in an awkward position. A major retrospective is scheduled to open on October 11, and the strike deadline falls during the preview week for the exhibition.
The union has made its position clear: workers want a contract that pays full-time employees enough to live sustainably in New York City.
The Outcome at Stake
The strike deadline is Monday, October 5. If a fair contract is not reached by then, union members will walk off the job. The museum will have to decide whether to operate without unionized staff or to accept the terms that workers have put forward.
The union’s position is that wages are untenable. Workers need a living wage to continue doing their jobs.
Where the paper stands
The paper backs the workers’ right to negotiate a fair contract and is against any arrangement that favors the museum over its employees. The vote gives the union the authority to call a strike if negotiations fail, and that authority should be respected.
The union’s demand is modest in its own terms: a full-time salary that meets the minimum figure for a single, childless adult to live sustainably in New York City, calculated at ~$71,000. The union chairperson put it plainly: “We’d rather be working and doing our jobs, but our wages are untenable for making ends meet in New York City.” That is a fair position to take.
The museum should respond before the deadline arrives. The standoff is now public, and the next few days will determine whether the retrospective opens as planned or whether the strike proceeds. The paper will watch for a resolution that respects the workers’ right to negotiate fairly.
Key Facts Box
- Strike date: Monday, October 5
- Contract expiration: June
- Current wage floor: $24 per hour for entry-level employees
- Proposed full-time salary: ~$71,000 per year, based on a City Hall cost-of-living report
- Exhibition opening: October 11
- Unions voting together: Whitney, Brooklyn Museum, American Folk Art Museum
The standoff is now public. The union has authorized the strike, the deadline is fixed, and the museum has not yet responded publicly to the figure staff are demanding. The next few days will determine whether the retrospective opens as planned or whether the strike proceeds.
See the a run of 13 images at Hyperallergic.
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