DETROIT, Ill., Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Contract talks between the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and its striking musicians have broken down, but both sides said they want to meet again.
Both sides said talks could resume Sunday, but neither confirmed they actually would, The Detroit News reported.
Musicians have been on strike for 16 weeks. The strike was precipitated when management imposed a new contract with pay cuts of about 30 percent, along with work-rule changes directed at greater community engagement.
The musicians' union has offered to accept a 21 percent pay cut. The orchestra has been running deficits for years, which in 2010 totaled $8.8 million.
In a news release Saturday, management charged the musicians with failing to deliver a revised contract proposal the union had promised. But a short time later, musicians e-mailed their proposal for a 36-month, $36 million budget.
"We never said we'd hand them a sealed document at a certain time," said Detroit Federation of Musicians President Gordon Stump. "But now we've given them a proposal for $36 million (in orchestra costs) over 36 months, and they'll look at it."
