MASS MoCa Union Calls for Strike
Covid-19 rattled the cage at MASS MoCa, like many institutions, shining a spotlight on injustice and inequity in the workplace. The workers at the art museum in western Massachusetts responded by forming a union. Now the union membership has voted with a 96% majority to strike on 8/19/22 to make their demands heard.
The MASS MoCa Union released the following update on 8/5/21:
Our bargaining committee has been at the negotiating table for nearly 11 months, and while many strides have been made, the Museum’s wage offer remains insultingly low without any guaranteed increases for the 2nd and 3rd years of the contract, demanding that we return to the table each year to bargain, and they will not agree on fair language over fundamental workplace rights. We unionized because we are committed to our profession and believe in a more equitable Museum. As staff, our labor is vital to MASS MoCA and should be valued as such.
A press release from Local 2110 UAW gives some insight into the sub-living wage currently on offer for many employees at MASS MoCa:
The average wage in the bargaining unit is $17.30 per hour and two thirds of the unit make under $15.50 per hour. According to The Economic Policy Institute’s family budget calculator for a modest living in Berkshire County, a single individual with no children needs to earn $40,000 per year. The Union is seeking a minimum rate of $18 per hour for the first year of the contract and increases in 2023 and 2024 that would raise staff closer to $20 per hour by the end of the contract. The Museum is proposing a $16 per hour minimum and no guaranteed increases in 2023 and 2024.
In response to unrealistic counter proposals and sundry heeldragging, the union has filed unfair labor practice charges with the NLRB against MASS MoCA.
It was back on March 8, 2021 when the MASS MoCa workforce organized by filing a petition with the NLRB to call for a union vote. By the end of April the votes had been counted. Workers voted for MASS MoCa Union by a tally of 53-15, electing to affiliate with Local 2110 UAW. In the artworld of money, privilege, and paternalistic notions of “noblesse oblige,” where employees are often encouraged through overt and covert messaging to not think of themselves as the type of workers who need union representation, Local 2110 UAW has made headway in organizing. The union’s affiliates include the MFA Union in Boston and more. In Local 2110 UAW’s own words:
The Technical, Office and Professional (TOP) Union, Local 2110, is an amalgamated union with 30 contracts covering over 3000 workers in universities, publishing, museums, law firms and other offices.
The union covers all the workers at MASS MoCa. Via Amanda Tobin, MASS MoCa worker, speaking to Strikewave:
“[MASS MoCa Union] includes folks from the administrative side, like me, other educators, grant writers, finance, and curators but also our art fabrication crew. They’re the ones up on the forklifts. They’ve raised concerns about machinery and safety. Our custodial staff are also included; they are currently on the frontline during the pandemic. Finally, our maintenance crew, who shovel snow after our many snowfall…”
The demands of the union are particular to the field the members work in, but some common themes are safety, pay equity, and, importantly, giving the workers a voice in decision-making to help make MASS MoCa an even more valued member of its community. Speaking to this final point, Tobin talked with Strikewave about how the priorities of a worker-led museums can better align with doing good in the community by backing off more top-heavy funding and administrative strategies.
“Long term, I’d love to see museums get a little more independent from philanthropy and board structures. We shouldn’t be so dependent on individuals and their gifts when those individuals are often very disconnected from the realities of the workers and our more high-needs audiences that many museums are trying to do better by. The community of North Adams is my primary focus in the education department. Many of the folks in our union want to see more attention to our neighbors rather than the tourists.”
The strike is currently scheduled for one day on 8/19/22. HDN will update with more information as available. A strike fund has been set up to help workers cope with lost income during the strike. You can show your support and/or donate to the strike fund via Venmo.
