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Musicians of the New York City Ballet Orchestra protest stagnant wages at Lincoln Center
By
Precious Fondren
Published Sep 20, 2023
Modified Sep 20, 2023
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Precious Fondren / Gothamist
By
Precious Fondren
Published Sep 20, 2023
Modified Sep 20, 2023
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Before the New York City ballet kicked off its 75th season on Tuesday evening, dozens of musicians rallied in front of Lincoln Center to protest what they say are unfair wages.
Dressed in black T-shirts with the words “musicians of New York City Ballet,” members of the ballet’s orchestra waved signs behind police barricades that read “fair contract now,” and “live music moves you,” as patrons passed by in gowns and suits to see the opening night of George Balanchine’s “Jewels.”
“Our players in the New York City Ballet orchestra need to feed their families,” said Sara Cutler, a harpist who is also the president of Local 802, which represents the orchestra’s union, at Tuesday’s gathering. “They need to give their families health care. That's it!”
Ethan Silverman, left, a bassoonist of the orchestra, stands with Ian Sullivan, principal timpanist. They attended the rally Tuesday evening before performing in the ballet's orchestra.
Precious Fondren / Gothamist
Members of the ballet’s orchestra said that their demands remain unmet and they are still being underpaid despite four months of negotiations around pay and health benefits.
Ethan Silverman, a bassoonist who chairs the musicians’ negotiating committee, said the ballet’s musicians were unpaid for almost 15 months while they were furloughed during the COVID-19 pandemic, from June 2020 to September 2021.
They returned to work in September 2021, but Silverman said they took a 15% pay cut in their last contract, which was signed in December 2021 and expired in August. Musicians with the ballet make around $75,000 a year, according to Silverman.
Union members said that while they understood taking a pay cut in 2021, their wages have not gone up even as ticket sales for the ballet have rebounded. Cutler said they were performing at approximately 9% below their 2019 compensation.
Cutler said the musicians were also being asked to pay higher health care premiums, adding to some members' financial burdens.
The New York City Ballet disputes the union's claims. In a statement, it said that the union “has chosen to launch an aggressive public relations campaign that includes many inaccurate and misleading statements.”
Dozens of musicians and supporters rallied Tuesday night outside Lincoln Center.
Precious Fondren / Gothamist
“The 15% salary cut was not imposed but negotiated mutually and in good faith along with the musicians’ COVID relief package,” the ballet said in the statement. “In addition, as the musicians are employed seasonally and work only 24 weeks each year, they did not lose 15 months of work at NYCB during the pandemic shutdown as they have claimed.”
At the protest, as police tried to keep the crowd off the Lincoln Center steps, the musicians played a live version of The O'Jays' “For the Love of Money,” which they interspersed with chants such as, “What do we want? A new contract! When do we want it? Now!”
Union members said Tuesday night’s protest won't be the last.
“We're professionals, so we're here to do a good job and support the company. We just would like a fair contract,” said Alexandra Knoll, who plays the oboe in the orchestra. “But we also realize that the show doesn't go on without us, and so we want to pull our weight.”
The protest comes weeks after the union announced that the musicians voted to authorize a strike, as they continue to negotiate with ballet management.
That authorization, which passed with 54 members voting in favor of a strike and two voting against, means orchestra members can collectively choose not to work until a contract is settled.
Still, some musicians said that outcome is far from their first choice.
“We're performers. We want to perform. We want to make this work without doing that,” said Ian Sullivan, the orchestra's principal timpanist. “A strike is a last resort. We really hope it doesn't come to that.”
After the protest wound down, the musicians headed into the theater to perform in “Jewels.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the title of the ballet; it is “Jewels.”
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Precious Fondren
Precious is a former WNYC & Gothamist culture reporter.
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