I have read the article about the Civic Light Opera musicians strike in your March 1999 issue, and it seems to me you are missing a few points. Yes, the management of the theater would probably fix a few problems, one at a time; however, what the musicians really want is an agreed upon procedure whereby currently known and future unknown problems could be worked out to everyone's satisfaction with open negotiations. Right now, each musician must negotiate separately. This is very beneficial to management - they don't have to be fair to everyone.

Of course, money is involved as with any contract. However, your paper's coverage grossly distorts the musicians' interest by quoting them out of context. The musicians and the union's leadership have opening recognized that CLO does not have the same financial means of the larger theaters in town. The musicians would be foolish to ask for more than the theater can pay - if the theater closed down, there go the jobs. Instead, the AFM (American Federation of Musicians) has stated that they could help the CLO grow its audience by helping to publicize performances within the Labor community, and, if the CLO wanted to present educational programs, an AFM trust fund could pay half of the musicians' salaries. This would help to make the CLO into a more financially stable organization. Perhaps the CLO Board does not want this to happen.

There are any number of ways to consider who is eligible to be counted in a union election, any of which could be valid. There is one easy way to settle the question of whether the musicians want a union - have an election! Why won't the CLO Board take that one easy step? Perhaps they are afraid of losing.

And finally, most musicians have day jobs - they have to pay the rent somehow. There are not enough well paying jobs in their profession to go around, no matter how good they are. Does that mean they are to be considered "amateurs" in the sense that anyone who has had a few lessons could play as well? Will the resulting music satisfy audiences and sell tickets?

-JOAN SANDLER,

Labor Party, Seattle Chapter