New 3-Year Contract for Baltimore Symphony Musicians, with Salary Increases

In Thursday’s (9/18) Baltimore Sun, Todd Karpovich writes, “The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and its musicians approved a new, three-year collective bargaining agreement that includes the largest salary increases in more than a decade, both parties announced Thursday, days after the union members authorized a strike. The contract, ratified Wednesday by members of the Musicians’ Association of Metropolitan Baltimore, Local 40-543 of the American Federation of Musicians, takes effect Sept. 15, 2025, retroactively, and runs through Sept. 10, 2028. Under the agreement, minimum annual pay will rise by about 12% over three years, with base salaries growing from the $90,107 of the previous contract to $92,811 in fiscal year 2026, then $96,523 the following year and finally $101,350, according to the agreement. The deal maintains the orchestra’s full-time roster of 85 members, including two librarians, and preserves benefits … Negotiations were … described as collaborative, with both sides agreeing early on that raising musician pay was a shared priority…. The contract also features a complete redesign of the orchestra’s audition and tenure review system…. Leaders on both sides said the current deal positions the orchestra for stability and growth.”