OCT 13, 2025: Broadway musicians of AFM Local 802 have overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike if needed, as the Broadway League continues to demand unacceptable wages and reduced jobs and benefits in the current contract talks. The union’s strike authorization vote closed on the evening of Oct. 12, and results were tallied soon after. The vote count was 98% in favor of strike authorization if necessary.
Local 802 President Bob Suttmann said, “On the heels of the most successful season in history, the Broadway League wants the working musicians and artists who fueled that very success to accept wage cuts, threats to healthcare benefits, and potential job losses. Faced with such an egregious erosion of their working conditions, Local 802 Broadway musicians and other artists are ready to leverage every ounce of their collective power, up to and including a strike. Committing to anything less would mean sacrificing far too many hard-won gains.”
Musicians have been working without a contract on Broadway since Aug. 31, 2025. The musicians’ demands were spelled out clearly in an October 1 open letter to the Broadway League signed by almost all of the 1,200 musicians who play on Broadway. They include:
- Fair wages that reflect Broadway’s success.
- Stable health coverage to allow musicians and their families to enjoy the health benefits that all workers deserve
- Employment and income security so that hardworking freelance musicians have some assurance of job security. This includes not eliminating current jobs on Broadway.
Musicians continue to negotiate with the Broadway League and have bargaining talks scheduled in the next few days.
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ABOUT LOCAL 802
Local 802 represents thousands of highly skilled musicians who drive New York City’s thriving cultural and tourism economy. Its members perform on Broadway, at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall and Radio City, in recording studios, as teaching artists, on late-night TV shows and in other televised bands, and in hotels, clubs, festivals and venues across NYC. The musicians of Local 802 strive to advocate for the common interests of all musicians by organizing a community that dignifies our labor, celebrates our art, and honors the vital role music and culture plays in the economic, cultural and social life of our communities. The union’s ultimate goal is to strengthen our city’s artistic environment and cultural fabric, working every day to champion live music in our communities, advocate for fair wages and the treatment of musicians, and promote policies that allow musicians to afford to live, work and raise a family in New York City.