The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra management and the Player’s Association have taken to dueling through press releases.
On Nov. 1, the Player’s Association sent out a press release alleging that the management stripped the two most important provisions from the new version of their contract, which were the creation of an Audience Association and accountability benchmarks.
The management responded with a clarification statement on their Web site, disputing many of the claims made in the Player’s Association press release. The musicians fired back with a press release titled “More Threats and More Inequality.”
Among the musicians’ complaints are the charges that management took smaller pay cuts than the musicians and that they have been illegally circumventing the union to negotiate directly with musicians. The musicians’ latest press release stated “Unfair labor practice charges are currently pending.”
Carla Lehmeier-Tatum, NMSO Player’s Association spokeswoman, said management acted illegally in contacting musicians outside of union meetings.
“They have been sending e-mails directly to each musician. Those e-mails contained basically misinformation about the union’s proposal,” she said. “Management has been urging the musicians to accept the terms of their last, best and final (offer).”
David Sherry, NMSO management spokesman, declined to comment on Lehmeier-Tatum’s allegation about circumventing the union.
Lehmeier-Tatum said the musicians presented their offer, which included the creation of an Audience Association — a board of community members who would ensure that the terms of the contract are followed.
She said management voted to accept their offer but removed the Audience Association and several accountability benchmarks.
“With last, best and final offers, they basically come as a package deal. You can’t just go ahead and pick which portions of the agreement you will accept, and which ones you won’t,” she said. “The board rejected our final offer, modified the one really important piece of the contract and gave it back to the union.”
Sherry said the management could not pay the musicians under their proposed terms.
“Their offer was not affordable,” Sherry said. “They wanted to play and talk at a rate above the salaries that were part of their last, best and final economic offer.”
Lehmeier-Tatum said the musicians and the management have each proposed last, best and final offers for contracts. Now the musicians are holding a ratification vote — which will be over by the end of the week — for the latest version of the contract. She said management attempted to influence the results of the ratification vote.
“The musicians did everything in their power to try now for the musicians to have a voice through a ratification vote, and management did everything in their power to not only influence our ratification vote but to disrupt our ratification vote,” she said.
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The musicians offered to play and talk, meaning they would work under the terms they proposed while negotiating with the management, Lehmeier-Tatum said. Management rejected the play-and-talk offer.
Lehmeier-Tatum said that the NMSO is the only symphony orchestra in the country in which the management proposed larger cuts for the musicians than for themselves.
Sherry said he didn’t know if that was true, but the cuts were necessary because of economic realities.
“We cannot verify this. Furthermore, it is irrelevant. We’re talking about the survival of this organization in this town, at this time, in this economy,” he said.
Lehmeier-Tatum said management has threatened several times to implement their version of the contract. If they did that, it would force the musicians to either accept the contract or go on strike.
Oboe player Kevin Vigneau said that although the musicians have not played a concert since their contract expired on Aug. 31, they are not boycotting the orchestra.
“It hasn’t been implemented, and we are not on strike,” he said.
