This last comment sparked a question that I have been meaning to ask -- how many of you are employed by or know of a non-profit or museum that has a union for its employees? The institution I work for has been presented with a petition from employees to unionize -- an official vote is just weeks away. Based on the research I have done (unions, National Labor Relations Act, SEIU local 46, etc.) -- a union would not be in the best interest of a non-profit arts organization nor its employees. What are some of your thoughts? DeAnn Gould -----Original Message----- From: Ross Weeks [SMTP:[log in to unmask]] Sent: Tuesday, July 28, 1998 4:06 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: The Value of an M.A. - $7.25/hr? I agree entirely with Elizabeth and some others. Yes, museums "ought" to try to pay more. Many "ought" to learn to get by with fewer staff, and pass the savings on to those whose positions are essential. Hundreds can afford only one staff member, not always fulltime. These are wonderfully rewarding places for a professional to work. No, it's not simply a matter of trustees raising more money, as someone suggested. There are too many cultural organizations in most communities competing for the same pool of philanthropy. Yes, lots of our most thoughtful trustees and donors COULD give lots more money. So could corporations. They probably won't, and never have. To encourage museum people to organize, in the fashion of dockworkers and coalminers, as one writer suggested, will simply shut many of our institutions down. -----Original Message----- From: Elizabeth Stith <[log in to unmask]> Newsgroups: bit.listserv.museum-l To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Date: Tuesday, July 28, 1998 12:25 PM Subject: Re: The Value of an M.A. - $7.25/hr? >I really disagree with the idea that museums do not value the degree - or whatever level of education - their employees have. I do know that funding always hase been and always will be problematic for all but a rarified few of us. It seems to me that in most museums staff are paid to the best ability of the organization. I have never experienced anything else. If people new to the field feel that starting salaries are too low then I invite them to rethink their choosen careers. I made a decision many years ago that related to the quality of my life and one part of that decision was an understanding that I was never going to make a fortune doing what I want to do. It's called life.