Unions
Changing institutional culture from the inside out: why more and more US museum workers are forming unions
Employees across the sector are turning to unions to fight for better wages, benefits and working conditions
Hundreds of RISD students walk out in support of striking university workers
Students and faculty at the top-ranked art and design university have been vocal in their support of custodial, moving and groundskeeping staff
9,000 workers on strike at Rutgers University, home to one of US’s top art schools
The Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers is one of the most prestigious university art programmes on the East Coast
Strike at New York’s Hispanic Society enters second week as museum pushes back long-planned reopening
Unionised workers at the institution in Upper Manhattan have been on strike since 27 March as negotiations over their first contract have stalled
‘You can’t pay rent with prestige’: as contract negotiations drag on, unionised Guggenheim workers rally at exhibition openings
As museum members and supporters waited to enter opening celebrations for Gego and Sarah Sze shows, they were greeted by members of UAW Local 2110
Unionised Whitney Museum workers ratify their first contract after 16 months of negotiations
The deal means significant pay increases for hourly wage earners and salaried employees alike, and extends some benefits to temporary workers
British Museum staff to strike as cultural workers across UK take industrial action—including during school holiday
Workers at the Wallace Collection, Historic England, National Museums Scotland and the National Museum of Liverpool will also be striking over pay and labour conditions
'Systematically underpaid': arts courses across UK grind to a halt amid nation's biggest university strike in history
Lecturers across the country are protesting university workers’ pay, pensions and working conditions
With the threat of cuts, unions get militant in UK museums—and their membership is growing rapidly
Workers are increasingly turning to collective bargaining, industrial action and representation by trade unions
Workers at New York’s Storm King Art Center seek to form a union amid $45m campus revamp
Employees of the non-profit it are seeking union representation, but administrators have opted not to voluntarily recognise the unions
Dia Art Foundation staff announce intentions to unionise
The proposed union would consist of 135 professional and non-professional staff at Dia sites in New York, Beacon, Long Island and New Mexico
Workers at the Baltimore Museum of Art vote to form a wall-to-wall union
In a vote on 14 July, 89 workers voted to unionise while 29 voted to not, making the museum the latest US art institution to join the labour movement
Hundreds demonstrate at Philadelphia Museum of Art as both sides remain 'very far apart' in union contract negotiations
Workers at the museum have been without a contract since forming a union in 2020
Unionised Philadelphia Museum of Art workers rally to push contract negotiations forward
Negotiations between the union and museum leadership have been ongoing since October 2020
New York’s Jewish Museum announces formation of a union
The unionisation follows similar decisions made by the Museum of Modern Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and others
Unionised workers at MOCA Los Angeles ratify first contract with museum
Negotiations between museum leadership and the union had repeatedly been delayed due to Covid-19, administrative shakeups and more issues
Whitney Museum workers protest outside the institution’s fundraising gala over union contract negotiations
Around 100 demonstrators rallied outside the institution during its gala, hoping to give greater urgency to ongoing negotiations with museum leaders
Whitney Museum staff protest against stalled contract negotiations at biennial’s VIP opening
Guests arriving at Tuesday’s reception were handed leaflets explaining the current state of negotiations between the newly formed union and museum administration
State of the unions: why US museum workers are mobilising against their employers
With the arts sector increasingly vulnerable in the wake of the pandemic, a new breed of digitally optimised worker is emerging
Employees at the Art Institute of Chicago museum and school vote to join union
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees will now represent 266 employees at the museum and another 249 at the school
From NFTs to LFTs: 2021's biggest art stories—and what they mean
The Art Newspaper team picks apart this year’s most important developments, from demands for colonial restitution to the return of culture wars
MFA Boston workers who unionised go on strike
More than 200 workers at the museum are striking for a day in protest of stalled contract negotiations
Workers at the Brooklyn Museum vote overwhelmingly to form a union
Represented by a UAW local, curators, conservators, educators and others at the New York institution will now seek to negotiate a contract with management
Brooklyn Museum employees seek to form a union bargaining unit
The labour chapter would represent 130 curators, conservators, front-desk staff and others
After long talks, Guggenheim’s unionised employees sign agreement with the museum
Accord includes average pay increases of 10% and annual bonuses for on-call workers
Employees at the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh vote decisively to form a union
Goals include better pay and benefits, Covid-19 safety and a role in the institutions’ decision-making
It is not just artists who are starving: how the US can rebuild its creative industry post-Covid
A proposal issued to both presidential campaigns by Americans for the Arts outlines a national strategy to put creative workers back to work
With unemployment at an historic high, America's art workers band together
Labour organising is building across the culture sphere. Could an industry-wide arts union be next?
Tate will axe more than 300 jobs from its commercial arm next month
Director Maria Balshaw says the organisation has been left with “no option” but to resize as visitor figures and revenues plunge due to the pandemic
Strike action looms at Tate and Southbank Centre as unions fight restructuring plans
Around 600 jobs are set to be axed across both sites as financial fallout from coronavirus pandemic intensifies