Minn. Orchestra Touts Fiscal Health on Rebound From Lockout

The Minnesota Orchestra reduced its budget shortfall and increased its assets for the fiscal year ending Aug. 31, presenting a relatively rosy financial picture for the organization as it recovers from a protracted labor battle, the Star Tribune reports.

Holding their first annual meeting in two years, during much of which musicians had been locked out, orchestra officials last week announced a fiscal 2014 deficit of $650,000 on expenses of about $21.5-million and said investment funds rose from $147-million to $164-million thanks to market growth and a spike in donations.

The 16-month lockout, the longest work stoppage for a U.S. orchestra, ended in January as musicians accepted a three-year deal that cuts wages and benefits by 15 percent. The organization ran deficits of $1.1-million in fiscal 2013, almost all of which was lost to the lockout, and $6-million the previous year, prompting management’s hard line on cutting labor costs.