The Philadelphia Museum of Art’s workforce recently logged an overwhelming vote to unionize, with 89% of eligible employees casting in favor of joining AFSCME.
The museum’s administration actively opposed the unionization effort, but during a yearlong organizing campaign, the employees highlighted that the leadership was acting in direct opposition to the museum’s mission statement.
“Our administration may believe that the real cultural change we want to see will be top down. We disagree,” said Sarah Shaw, a museum educator and a member of the Philadelphia Museum of Art Union’s organizing committee. “Our union and the grassroots organizing that occurred – the change we experienced in lifting marginalized voices, offering safer spaces for our colleagues, breaking down artificial barriers, creating transparent communications – we accomplished those necessary changes through organizing.”
Read more about the successful vote and the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s workers’ plans for unionization here.
