How do you get to Carnegie? Practice. How do you make the most money? Get off the stage.

An article on Bloomberg.com provides some astonishing information regarding employee salaries at the renowned venue. During the fiscal year ending in June 2008, the average income of the full-time stage crew (carpenters and electricians) was $430,543. Exempt from that statistic is Dennis O’Connell, who supervises props at the hall, and made $530,044.

While not mentioned in the article, I think it’s safe to say that no Carnegie Hall musician comes even close to matching that. The only employee of the hall which surpasses the stagehands is Artistic and Executive Director Clive Gillinson, who pulled in $946,581.

So where does this discrepancy come from? The union. Joshua Free, a labor historian from Queens College, suggests that the ability of the workers union to essentially shut down the nucleus of New York’s entertainment district give them the upper hand in contract negotiations.

For more information, check out the full article on Bloomerg.com.

Stagehand Moving Props Makes $530,044 at N.Y.C.’s Carnegie Hall

Posted on October 20th, 2009 at 12:45 pm | Filed under General |