Latest news with #ChristopherBedford
San Francisco Chronicle
08-05-2025
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
SFMOMA employees say leadership is avoiding them after sudden layoffs
A scheduled in-person meeting between leadership at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and its staff to address recent layoffs was canceled, according to the museum workers' union. 'Here's a visual representation of the Museum's current accountability for their decisions to layoff union staff,' read a caption for a photo of an empty conference room posted to Instagram by the SFMOMA Union on Wednesday, April 7. It concluded with a message of protest: 'Cut from the Top. No Layoffs.' SFMOMA confirmed with the Chronicle that the meeting scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Thursday, May 8, was held online and concluded before 10 a.m. A museum spokesperson added that the executive team, including Director Christopher Bedford, would make themselves available for in-person office hours to meet directly with staff. The last-minute cancellation of the in-person staff meeting came a day after the museum's announcement that it laid off 29 employees, or about 7.5% of its total workforce, including more than two dozen union members. Thirteen additional positions, either vacant or soon-to-be, were also eliminated. According to the union, 26 members were dismissed 'with no notice.' In response, union leaders called on staff to wear black and protest during the originally scheduled in-person meeting. The museum said that 'enhanced' severance packages were provided to union employees. In a letter to the community, Bedford called the layoffs 'difficult' but necessary, citing persistent declines in attendance and broader financial challenges. 'We continue to grapple with some hard realities,' Bedford wrote, noting that the museum is adapting to a 'new normal' of approximately 600,000 annual visitors — a substantial decline from the 892,000 reported in 2019. The move follows a previous round of cuts in November 2023, when SFMOMA eliminated 20 positions in response to a 35% drop in attendance since before the pandemic.
San Francisco Chronicle
08-05-2025
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
‘No notice': Union slams SFMOMA's surprise layoffs as museum cites financial strain
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art laid off 29 employees, sparking sharp backlash from workers and their representatives. The layoffs, announced Wednesday, May 7, constitute about 7.5% of SFMOMA's workforce and include more than two dozen union members. 'SFMOMA is laying off 26 union members today with no notice,' the union said. It called on staff to wear black and protest at a scheduled all-staff meeting scheduled for Thursday, May 8, urging the museum to 'CUT FROM THE TOP' instead of front-line workers. SFMOMA Director Christopher Bedford acknowledged the job cuts in a letter to the community, describing the decision as 'difficult' but necessary. 'We continue to grapple with some hard realities,' Bedford wrote, citing persistent declines in attendance and broader financial challenges. He said the museum is adapting to a 'new normal' of roughly 600,000 annual visitors, down from pre-pandemic levels (SFMOMA counted 892,000 visitors in 2019), and must scale back accordingly. The reduction in staff affected union and non-union employees, and included 20 full-time and nine part-time roles. Thirteen vacant or soon-to-be-vacant positions were also eliminated. The museum noted that 'enhanced' severance packages were offered to union employees. In November 2023, SFMOMA cut 20 positions, citing a 35% drop in attendance since 2019. Despite popular recent exhibitions, including shows by Yayoi Kusama and Ruth Asawa, and its annual Art Bash fundraiser generating more than $2 million in April, Bedford emphasized that tourism and foot traffic downtown remain sluggish. He said that museum leaders are exploring new revenue streams and hoping to grow philanthropic support. 'As these efforts take root, we must continue to be vigilant about our budget and make critical decisions to reduce costs and scale the institution in alignment with our current context,' Bedford said. 'Those reductions, unfortunately, include expenses both unrelated and related to our staff.' The union's bargaining team met Wednesday afternoon to demand answers, saying it will 'begin our fight back on these unjustified layoffs.'
