Vancouver, CANADA (April 19, 2023) — The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) is pleased to share that, after many months of negotiating, we have reached a tentative agreement with IATSE Local 118, which represents the stagehands and theatre technicians that help bring our concerts to life at the Orpheum. The VSO appreciates the skills and professional expertise of stagehands, the integral role they play in our concerts, and the wider arts and entertainment industry across Vancouver.
Following a challenging negotiation, we have now reached a tentative four-year agreement with IATSE Local 118. This agreement will allow the VSO to balance fair pay with financial stability. We continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and its long-term ripple effects: the need for increased efforts to bring audiences back to arts and culture events, during a time of global economic instability. Even in times of uncertainty, as a non-profit, charitable organization, the VSO must continue to balance the needs of all its stakeholders, while balancing its annual budgets. This agreement with Local 118 will aid the VSO in doing so over the next four years.
We are thankful to the members of IATSE Local 118 for the time they’ve invested throughout the negotiation process and are glad that we’ve now come to a compromise. With this tentative agreement in place, we can continue to bring irresistible musical experiences to our loyal VSO fans. Concerts for this week, and moving forward, will continue as scheduled.
About the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
Founded in 1919, the Grammy and Juno-award winning Vancouver Symphony Orchestra is the third largest orchestra in Canada, the largest arts organization in Western Canada, and one of the few orchestras in the world to have its own music school.
Led by Music Director Otto Tausk since 2018, the VSO performs more than 150 concerts each year, throughout Vancouver and the province of British Columbia, reaching over 270,000 people annually. On tour the VSO has performed in the United States, China, Korea and across Canada.
The orchestra presents passionate, high-quality performances of classical, popular and culturally diverse music, creating meaningful engagement with audiences of all ages and backgrounds.
Recent guest artists include Daniil Trifonov, Dawn Upshaw, James Ehnes, Adrianne Pieczonka, Gidon Kremer, Renée Fleming, Yefim Bronfman, Itzhak Perlman, Bernadette Peters, Tan Dun, and more.
