National Opera to reduce staff by 40; two-month layoff for all in summer 2007

Staff angry over recovery plan

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After putting it to a vote, the Board of the Finnish National Opera on Wednesday approved of the strategic recovery plan proposed by the Opera management.
      According to the restructuring programme, the number of staff is to be reduced from 600 to 560 employees over the next three years. Moreover, the entire staff will be laid off for two months in 2007.
     
While the majority of the Board members were in favour of the recovery programme, the three staff members of the Board voted unanimously against the proposal.
      During the three-hour meeting, the staff members managed to make just a few minor changes to the proposal, including adding a sentence saying that the staff reductions have to be made "keeping in mind the artistic goals".
      After the Board meeting, an information meeting for the staff was arranged in a tense atmosphere. However, no walkouts or other demonstrations are planned.
     
Leena Paavolainen, one of the Board members representing the staff, expressed her surprise at the decision to focus almost all savings on the permanent staff, and not so much on the hundreds of annual guest appearances.
      It is not possible to improve the Opera's financial standing without touching the personnel expenses, said the Chairman of the Board Seppo Tiitinen, who is also the Secretary-General of the Parliament of Finland.
      "Over 80 percent of the Opera's expenses are payroll costs", Tiitinen noted.
      According to Tiitinen, nobody is to be dismissed, as the reductions will be implemented by using natural wastage.
     
At this point, there are apparently no plans for outsourcing as yet, even though Administrative Director Pekka Kauranen admits that the management is considering whether or not it would be sensible to outsource some of the Opera's functions.
      In the future, the management of the Opera is to compile an accurate budget for each production and to monitor the budgets of individual projects more closely, Tiitinen commented on Wednesday.
     
The Opera's losses of close to EUR 1.8 million over the past year were primarily caused by the fact that the performances of operas and ballets did not pull in the sort of crowds that had been expected, and audience numbers were down across the board - sharply in some cases - compared with the previous year, which saw an annual surplus on operations of around EUR 250,000.
      While admitting miscalculation, General Director Erkki Korhonen promised to pursue closer financial monitoring and more open communication in the future.
      When asked if General Director Erkki Korhonen still enjoys the Board's confidence, Chairman Seppo Tiitinen replied that as the recovery plan proposed by the management was approved by the two-thirds majority of the Board, the answer is yes.
      On the other hand, the representatives of the staff submitted a letter to the Chairman of the Board and to Minister of Culture Tanja Karpela on Wednesday, expressing their lack of confidence in both General Director Erkki Korhonen and Administrative Director Pekka Kauranen.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Finnish National Opera to decide on strategic recovery plan today (26.4.2006)

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  Finnish National Opera

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