Catherwood LibraryILR School

The contract covering Broadway musicians represented by Local 802 of the American Federation of Musicians expired at midnight last night and, while the musicians have delayed a strike deadline until Thursday, no contract settlement is in sight. The primary obstacle to a settlement remains the attempts by the League of American Theatres and Producers to eliminate minimum orchestral staffing requirements regarded by the musicians as necessary to insure quality performances (see WIT for Nov. 12, 2002). Insisting that there will be no settlement maintaining current minimums, leaders of the League recently offered to preserve minimums at a small group of the largest theatres at less than thirty percent of current levels---an offer characterized by Local 802 as unserious.