Re: Houston Symphony Cutting Jobs, Salaries


[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ TubeNet BBS ] [ FAQ ]

Posted by dp on January 24, 2003 at 12:47:42:

In Reply to: Houston Symphony Cutting Jobs, Salaries posted by Steve Marcus on January 24, 2003 at 08:35:21:

Some of my friends here know I work in the food chain for a rather small but highly-visible federal agency which (among other places) has a large facility in Houston. I've worked there, and am well-aware of salary spreads and differentials nation-wide due, in-part, to my travel for work. Of those places I have travelled I have to say that Houston as a metropolitan are has one of the lowest cost-of-living levels in the country. Obviously anyone/everyone balks at salary cuts, it appears that the (now-lapsed) contract the AFM players negotiated had a very good salary level for their full-time players. Additionally, (and being a brass player) I'd wager that there's more to cutting the (only) four string player positions which are contractually full-time.
In my town it took years to get rid of dead-wood that was tenured and no longer a musical complement to the ensemble. Believe it or not it's possible that this is just possible that the decision to "cut jobs" is not as harsh as it sounds, given the wide range of variables that the whole enterprise has to contend with.
f.w.i.w. if I could pull that full-time salary in my current work in houston I'd consider re-locating. And if I could also get the additional income that tenured/principal players get, I could buy a nice spread of ranchland within an hour of Houston. Am I interested in the "news" of these "unfairly-treated" musicians? Of course! Such news reports have influence on the pro orchestral scene nation-wide, and the dirth of competent orchestral management professionals and staff only underlines the weighted influence of such goings-on. Am I sympathetic to the details of their "plight"? Not really.


Follow Ups: