Posted by Bill on January 24, 2003 at 13:58:28:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Houston Symphony Cutting Jobs, Salaries posted by wow on January 24, 2003 at 13:17:30:
The orchestra is losing money. The union contract has expired. The orchestra board can go to the union, show them the books, and negotiate a settlement that both sides find satisfactory. Maybe the members of the union want to keep those 4 jobs and take a bigger pay cut. Maybe they would prefer a short term solution until Houston's economy turns around. The issue at hand is unfair labor practices, and the NLRB will make that call. In a perfect world, what I just posted is true. There could be other issues I don't know about, like an unreasonable negotiator on either side or poor communication in the union. I don't know the issues, but certainly the members of the Houston Symphony are not starving, and while the four people that might lose their jobs is unfortunate, lots of people have lost jobs recently. The economy is not doing well, and the reality is that these things happen. It would be easier for all parties if management and the union worked together better, instead of always seeming to be so adversarial. They are on the same side, after all, especially in an orchestra.
Bill, who is posting alot today, Nazzaro