Arts Administrators that work for orchestras and the performing arts sector are the architects behind the scenes navigating budgets, cultivating donors, promoting through marketing, and building bridges within the surrounding community, ensuring a legacy of music and arts lives on.
Yet, their contributions often go unrecognized, their salaries modest, and their job security precarious. While musicians frequently unionize, protecting their livelihoods and artistic integrity, orchestra and arts administrators rarely do—even though they should unionize. Also, I believe it's inevitable.
Here's why...
Growing Awareness
Administrators are increasingly recognizing the value of collective bargaining and the limitations of individual negotiation within a hierarchical nonprofit structure. Rising awareness of workplace rights and the growing influence of social justice movements are further fueling this trend.
Precarious Employment
The arts sector, particularly in the nonprofit realm, is notorious for its precarious employment conditions. Low wages, long hours, high turnover, and the constant threat of layoffs create a sense of instability and vulnerability among administrators. Unions offer a crucial safety net and a collective voice to address these concerns.
Shifting Power Dynamics
The traditional power imbalance between administrators and management is being challenged. As administrators gain a deeper understanding of their rights and the benefits of collective action, they are more likely to demand a greater say in their working conditions and organizational decision-making, especially when the industry is rooted in old traditions that make it hard to create more equitable practices and healthy cultures, and where organizations are solely virtue signaling.
Success in Other Sectors
The success of unionization movements in other neighboring sectors gives hope. Seeing the positive impact of unions on wages, benefits, and working conditions, protections from management in other fields emboldens arts administrators to pursue similar avenues for improvement.
While challenges remain, including the "charitable mindset" prevalent in the nonprofit sector and concerns about potential budget constraints, I still believe the tide will turn eventually with the way things are going.
Arts Administration as a Livelihood
Many arts administration and arts leadership degrees are helping to bring in more highly skilled administrators who come from music backgrounds and who depend on their administrative positions as part of their livelihood and trade. Therefore, when they lose their livelihood it has more catastrophic damage to their career and long term emotional well-being since the job is deeply tied to their life purpose and life-long pursuit in music, often since early childhood.
As more administrators recognize the power of collective action and the potential benefits of unionization, it is likely to become an increasingly prominent feature of the arts landscape.
With today's economy, not many can afford to be simply volunteers or classified as entry-level workers after pursuing degrees that specialize in arts administration and music.
In a country where we can barely afford insurance, housing, retirement, or earn enough to take care of family, having a work environment that steps up and goes beyond just "managing" us from top-down hierarchies will become crucial. (c) Harpsichords & Hot Sauce, 2024
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