Met Museum workers vote to unionize in decisive NLRB election

Staff at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York have voted to unionize in a decisive election overseen by the U.S. National Labor Relations Board.

”We won because we were able to convince our colleagues that they don’t have to accept whatever is offered to them, that their experience and hard work has earned them a seat at the table,” said Rebecca Capua, a conservator who has worked at the museum for 16 years.

Of 896 eligible voters, 542 cast ballots in favor of organizing under Local 2110 of the United Auto Workers, with 172 voting against, according to NLRB data—representing a turnout of about 91%.

The NLRB reported no challenged or voided ballots. However, the UAW said in a statement there were roughly 100 ballots that remain sealed after being challenged by the museum, which “objected to inclusion of these staff in the union.”

“The eligibility of staff in these positions will be determined through a mutually agreed upon arbitration process after the union is officially certified by the National Labor Relations Board,” the union said.

According to the NLRB, the bargaining unit covers full-time and regular part-time professional employees at The Met and The Met Cloisters locations, but excludes managers, supervisors, guards, confidential employees and employees already represented by another union.

The UAW said the bargaining unit is composed of staff across 50 different museum departments and includes curators, conservators, librarians, sales specialists, visitor experience coordinators, development officers, archivists, digital and IT staff, and more.

District Council 37 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees was listed by the NLRB as an intervenor in the representation case.

And dozens of New York City and state elected officials publicly aligned themselves with museum workers ahead of the election, signaling that the election was closely watched by the city’s new political leadership.

Littler Mendelson, a large U.S.-based international law firm that specializes in representing management, was listed as counsel for The Met, while the heavyweight labor firm Levy Ratner—known for more than 50 years of representing unions—served as counsel for the workers, signaling a high-stakes legal fight on both sides.

Workers at the museum had been organizing for more than four years over concerns including job security, pay equity and transparency, according to the UAW.

“I’ve worked at The Met for 31 years and I truly love it but our expertise and our labor have real value deserving of recognition,” digital archivist Stephanie Post said. “By unionizing, we aren’t just protecting our own jobs—we are building a collective voice to ensure every staff member, now and in the future, gets the respect and protection they deserve.”

The aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic has spurred a nationwide drive of museum workers seeking to organize.

Local 2110 UAW already represents workers at some of the nation’s largest cultural institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Workers at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art voted overwhelmingly in December in favor of union representation after the museum declined to voluntarily recognize LACMA United and instead moved the dispute into a formal election process.

In that election, 96% of participating workers voted to unionize under Cultural Workers United District Council 36 of the AFCME.

Stories like this take time, documents and a commitment to public transparency. Please support independent arts journalism by subscribing to Urgent Matter and supporting our work directly.