A Compromising Position

After 17 long months of negotiations, AZOOMA has secured a long-term commitment through the 2011-2012 season. It is a three-year agreement with a side letter that includes two additional years of “right of first refusal.”

The agreement includes a wage-freeze for two years and a very modest wage increase in the third year in the face of the opera’s financial struggles.

This agreement will be presented to the orchestra for ratification during the Arizona Opera production on “La Traviata” production next month when the orchestra meets again as a whole.

AZOOMA agreed to no pay increase for two years, and to subsidize Arizona Opera in the face of rising gasoline prices during their long drives to and from Flagstaff, Tucson and Phoenix.

These are huge concessions.

1. No pay increase for two years.
2. A modest pay increase in the third year.
3. A two-year freeze of our mileage reimbursement rate of thirty cents per mile – far below the IRS rate of 48.5 cents per mile.

Recent news reports cite that gas prices may be as high as $3.75 (maybe even $4.00) per gallon by the summer of 2008.

The AZOOMA Negotiation committee began work for negotiations in October 2006.