The Philadelphia Orchestra Association and Musicians Reach Tentative Agreement

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The leadership of The Philadelphia Orchestra Association announced today that they have reached a tentative agreement on a three-year contract.

Terms of the agreement include salary increases of 2 percent in year one, and 2.5 percent increases each in years two and three bringing the musicians' base pay to $137,800 in the third year of the contract. Additionally, a Musicians' Appreciation Fund will be established that will provide for supplemental compensation tied to the Orchestra's financial success annually. Other terms of the agreement include increased opportunities for revenue generation and:

• Continued support for the artistic excellence of the Orchestra and the future financial stability of the organization
• The expansion of the complement to 97 musicians in year three
• Flexibility to stage additional pop-up concerts more frequently
• The expansion of the highly popular Sunday concerts to embrace audience demand
• Creative engagement in collaborative learning activities
• Musician participation on the Development Committee of The Board of Directors and direct involvement in fundraising

Allison Vulgamore, president and chief executive officer of The Philadelphia Orchestra, said, "First, it is important to express our deep regret to patrons, students and volunteers for the cancellation of all performances this weekend. Each and every one of us takes our commitment to our audience and community very seriously.

We now have a tentative agreement that will immediately restore our music to our audiences and provide our outstanding musicians with a compensation plan that both increases their base salaries and provides additional financial reward as we continue to build resources for a vibrant and exciting future. This agreement is a demonstration that we are moving forward together to ensure that the Fabulous Philadelphians will be playing for generations to come. We are extremely grateful to the musicians and our Board of Directors for the swift resolution of this agreement."

At a meeting earlier today, the Executive and Human Resources Committees of The Board of Directors of The Philadelphia Orchestra voted unanimously to recommend the new contract to the full Board that will be voted on at a special meeting of the Board of Directors on Tuesday, October 4.    

"We are grateful that we reached this agreement with the musicians and apologize for the effect that the last few days have had on our donors, patrons and community," said Rich Worley, Board Chair. "We are looking forward to working together constructively toward a strong future."

Separately, the musicians met this afternoon and voted to ratify the agreement.

The musicians will be staging a free day of Audience Appreciation concerts across the city on Tuesday, October 4. For more information about locations, please go to philorch.org. 

The season's concert schedule will resume on Thursday, October 6 at 8 p.m. The Orchestra will welcome Simon Rattle and Yannick Nézet-Séguin back to the stage.

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SOURCE Philadelphia Orchestra Association