The opening-night gala at Carnegie Hall in New York was to take place on Wednesday, featuring the Philadelphia Orchestra and violinist Joshua Bell. But that all changed over a labor dispute. There is a new educational wing set to open at Carnegie soon, and management decided to exclude the stagehands from holding sway over it. And for good reason: The stagehands are part of Local 1, and their average total compensation exceeds $400,000 a year – that’s higher than some of the hall’s top executives. But the stagehands went on strike – the first in the history of Carnegie – forcing the cancelation of the gala.

Orchestras around the country are struggling and going bankrupt, leaving classical music in decline, and one of the biggest reasons is powerful unions.