Still strongly affected by the consequences of the covid crisis on attendance, American museums are still making layoffs. The San Francisco museum, the SFMOMA, announced on Wednesday the abolition of 29 positions: 20 full -time employees, 9 part -time, to which are added 13 non -filled vacant stations. Twenty-six of the employees concerned are members of the union Office and Professional Employees International Union Local 29 (Opeiu Local 29).
“We now know that we cannot just come back to the time before the pandemic”wrote Christopher Bedford, director of the museum since 2022. “We have to trace a new path for the future, based on the realities of the present. »»
In 2023, the SFMOMA had already dismissed seven employees and removed 13 positions, faced with a post-prisonmia attendance which was 65 % lower than that of 2019. Despite an increase in the price of entry tickets of 25 to 30 dollars (from 23 to 28 euros), the budget deficit is still around 5 million dollars (4 million euros). The museum has revised down its frequentation forecasts to 600,000 annual visitors.
Recent federal cuts in the financing of culture, under the Trump administration, complicate the situation. According to the San Francisco Standarda federal subsidy of $ 210,000 (189,000 euros) intended to improve the accessibility of the SFMOMA already seems compromised.
The union, currently in negotiations with management, called on its members to oppose these layoffs at a meeting scheduled for Thursday. Employees denounce the “brutal” nature of layoffs and ask the museum to favor discounts among management positions.
