The Met kicks chorus problem a short way down 7th Avenue

The Metropolitan Opera and the American Guild of Musical Artists reached a very short-term pay deal before close of business on Friday.

It amounts to around a five percent pay increase for AGMA members, who include the chorus, dancers, actors and some soloists. But it’s only a one-year deal, meaning that both sides go back to the table in a matter of months.

What’s more, the Met qualifies this agreement as ‘tentative’:

‘We’re pleased to announce that we have reached a tentative agreement on a new one-year contract with the American Guild of Musical Artists, the union of the Met’s chorus, soloists, dancers, full-time actors, stage managers, stage directors, and choreographers. Together with our orchestra and stagehands, AGMA members form the heart and soul of the Met’s performances.’

Meanwhile the Met is in the thick of haggling with two main unions – Local 802 of the American Federation of Musicians, representing the orchestra, and Local One of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, covering stagehands. Both have agreements that lapse at the end of next month.

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