WASHINGTON, D.C. - IATSE believes that the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts continues to use the temporary closure to permanently eliminate jobs, reduce services, and weaken its Box Office, whose employees have been represented by Local 868 for decades. In its latest round of layoff notices, which was issued last week, the Kennedy Center stated: “The Kennedy Center has determined that the existing and projected programming schedule provides insufficient Box Office work for the current staff. This rationale flies in the face of reality.
Also last week, the Center announced that the Kennedy Center Honors will take place at the Capital One Arena. In addition, the National Symphony Orchestra and the Fortas Chamber Music Concerts have announced off-site, multi-performance seasons. In the past, the Kennedy Center’s Box Office would have sold tickets alongside the ticket offices of other venues for such events and performances. Since the temporary closure, the Kennedy Center’s management engaged in reckless decision-making when they secured the off-site venues for the NSO and Fortas. Those bad decisions not only deprived its own Box Office employees of work, but now have cost employees their jobs. The newly laid-off employees join colleagues who used to work in the Instant Charge and Groups and Subscriptions Departments and whose employment was terminated by the Kennedy Center back in April 2026.
To make matters worse, the Kennedy Center is seeking to negotiate provisions in the collective bargaining agreement that governs the Box Office that would reduce its accountability for the consequences of their bad decisions. Such proposals, along with management’s delays and conduct at the table, demonstrate that the Center is not bargaining in good faith with the union. The Kennedy Center has prolonged the negotiations with the union for a successor agreement while the Center acts unilaterally in ways that have negatively impacted employees’ working conditions.
The collective impact of the Kennedy Center’s conduct and decisions not only affects its employees, but also the general public. The termination and layoff of Box Office employees further degrades the Center’s ability to sell tickets, assist patrons, and support access to Kennedy Center programming. IATSE and Local 868 are preparing new unfair labor practice charges alleging violations of federal labor law. The unions are also preparing grievances concerning alleged violations of existing collective bargaining agreements.
The Kennedy Center’s closure and renovation plans also remain the subject of active federal court proceedings. In May, a federal court blocked the earlier shutdown plan and found that the decision-making process had not met the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees’ obligations. In September, after the Board again voted to close the building, the court required the Kennedy Center to provide thirty days’ notice before making significant physical changes to the property. Litigation concerning the closure and the attempted renaming of the Kennedy Center remains ongoing.
Regardless, these court cases do not relieve the Kennedy Center of its responsibilities to workers. Temporary closure, renovation, programming changes, and litigation cannot become excuses to disregard union contracts or remove bargaining-unit work. The Kennedy Center should rescind these layoffs, return affected employees to work, preserve Local 868’s jurisdiction over Kennedy Center ticketing, and bargain in good faith toward a fair successor agreement.
We stand with these Local 868 members and every worker affected by the Kennedy Center’s actions. The union will use every available legal, contractual, and collective avenue to protect these jobs, preserve vital services, and prevent further permanent damage to a beloved cultural institution by mismanagement.
